


Final Fantasy 8: Novelization

by Sombra112



Category: Final Fantasy VIII
Genre: Canon Related, F/M, Novelization, Reimagining, Romance, head canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-13
Updated: 2016-11-28
Packaged: 2018-06-02 02:51:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 53
Words: 530,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6547678
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sombra112/pseuds/Sombra112
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>:AN - This transcription is going to stick very closely to the original work with additional scenes and head canon added in. This is my imagining of FF8 if it were to be written out. I've made some changes to some in universe rules to better fit the narrative but maintained the story as closely as possible. Full note inside.: </p><p>The destiny of Squall Leonhart as he pieces together his past, his present, and his future while fighting his own heart.<br/>The fate of Rinoa Heartily as she struggles to live on her own strength while caring for an injured soul.<br/>The fantasy epic of a world of monsters fighting against the powers of time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. It'll Probably Leave a Scar

**Author's Note:**

> This transcription is going to stick very closely to the original work with additional scenes and head canon added in. This is my imagining of FF8 if it were to be written out. I've made some changes to some in universe rules to better fit the narrative but maintained the story as closely as possible.
> 
> Notably:  
> GF, magic, and junction system has been reworked. In game, decision of who gets what, how it's used, and when is up to the gamer. GF has been given out to characters based first on how well it fits into the story then secondarily on how it fits into the chosen magical rules. Magic cache systems has been changed and rules created so as not to create overpowered characters that ruins a non-game narrative. Junction system has been altered to fit into new GF/magic rules.
> 
> Some side quests will be included as fits with the narrative. Not all could be included, cuts were made based on story. Attempts were made to include as many side quests as possible. 
> 
> Choices: There are times in game that you can make decisions that will affect dialogue including simple A or B style choices and character selection. Such decisions have been made according to what best fits the story. Similarly, character assignments at different points when it's up to the player have been picked based on what makes the most sense. 
> 
> Head canon: While this transcription has made a great deal of effort to stick as closely to the game as possible, this 'remake' is intended to expand upon the given story and fill in gaps while trying to remain true to the overall heart of the piece and canon. Thoughts have been expanded. Dialogue has been fixed/altered/expanded as based upon what works best for canon and head canon. Scenes have been added, as yet none have been deleted. 
> 
> Five 'Discs': Story chapters will be separated into parts I-V. Discs I-IV are the traditional game play with alterations and expansions. Disc Five will be complete fan fiction as based upon what direction this author thinks this story would go after the credits finished. The first four 'discs' can be read alone and the fifth ignored completely if desired. 
> 
> Finally: This work was written with a great deal of love and effort. It is brought to you as a passion piece because of the love that this author has for the original FF8. While I know that the game is not perfect, it doesn't diminish my love for it at all. I do not think I know better than the developers and, although this is very much canon and a transcription of the game, it is still filled with my own personal thoughts and head canons. Apologies are made if you do not agree or at all appreciate the way it is written.

“Edea?” Cid stepped out of the house, the fussy toddler in his arms having finally fallen asleep after what felt like hours of tears and screams. Cid wanted to put him down, but he needed first for his wife to make sure the other kids were asleep and weren't going to wake him back up. Or the other way around.

Casting his eyes around their front walkway, Cid frowned at her stillness in response to his call.

“Edea? What's wrong?”

His wife was standing on the cobblestone path, looking out towards nothing, totally still. She didn't even hear him until the fourth time he called her name. Then she jumped and turned like she was startled and surprised.

“What's wrong?” Cid repeated, frowning in concern at the action.

“Cid...” she breathed, uncertain of how, or even if, she should tell him what just happened.

***

There was a storm in the sky. Bruised clouds weighted the air and the scent of the coming rain tickled Squall's nostrils. There was a soft breeze, heralding the fury that was yet to come. For just the moment though, it was strangely calm.

Then thunder rang out loudly as lightning lit up the dark clouds for the briefest of moments. Squall's eyes didn't flinch as his weapon, knocked from his hand just a moment ago, slammed its edge down into the ground directly before of him. It stuck in place, the silver lion pendant on a chain jingling against the hilt as the blade vibrated angrily.

Before it had stopped swinging, his gloved hand was grabbing the black grip and he jerked up quickly, freeing his abused Revolver. The gleaming of the silver blade was dulled slightly by the storm, but its edge was sharp and its bite still very deadly.

Squall felt unreasonably angry. Not just because it had been knocked away – careless – or because he had lost control of his weapon – unacceptable – but because it was him that had done it.

Grinning at the small victory, Seifer lifted his own thinner but sharper Hyperion and leveled it at at Squall's throat. The upper arm strength it took to wield the heavy, normally two-handed weapon meant that Seifer was stronger and more agile. But he paid for it with a lighter weapon. Squall's Revolver was much thicker, much more durable, than Hyperion.

Though Seifer had disarmed him, the battle wasn't over yet. Seifer's greatest weakness was that unassailable ego of his. An ego that permitted Squall to pick his weapon back up instead of claiming victory on a training session that had been going on for far too long already.

Squall's hands were tingling, going numb, from the constant beating he and his blade were enduring. He was hungry, tired, and dreading the hike back to garden through the forest from the plateau Seifer had chosen – the atmosphere! – to train on today.

Squall would never admit his exhaustion though. He brandished his weapon with confidence, refusing to show any weakness. Refusing to back down from this challenge. He was going to keep standing until he could no longer do so. He didn't care if the training session had far surpassed accepted parameters for time set by the garden. So long as Seifer kept coming, he would keep fighting.

He charged forward, bring the Revolver up and around as Seifer turned in place. Hyperion's blade slammed against his and Squall could feel the force echoing down his arms far more acutely than normal. He was getting too tired, he was going to get sloppy soon.

Also...

Did Seifer just do a pirouette? Had he always done that spiny thing and was Squall just noticing? If so, that was ridiculous. How had it taken him this long to notice Seifer dancing in battle?

Squall didn't get to ponder that for very long. They struggled against each other for only a moment before Seifer, slippery as always, slid past Squall. Hyperion's blade sung against Revolver's and Squall turned just as Seifer did to attack again.

He was already getting sloppy. His next slice swung far to the right of Seifer. Snarling, mostly at his own ineptitude, he brought the blade around again for another attempt.

Seifer knocked away his sword easily. Squall had to admit, no matter much it irked to do so, Seifer had a great deal of stamina. He was still going strong, laughing at everything like he was fresh. Only being intimately familiar with Seifer's fighting style allowed Squall to know just how tired his training partner was becoming. He wasn't constantly lifting Hyperion, choosing instead to rest his weary arms between strikes.

Just like Squall, he refused to admit defeat either.

Squall rushed him and Seifer ducked neatly under his blade. Skidding to a halt, Squall turned to see Seifer grinning at him. Well at his ease, he leaned back and beckoned him forward mockingly.

Obligingly, Squall stepped forward, and though his brain clearly commanded his arm to raise his blade, it was simply too tired to obey. So it came up late. Just in time to knock away the Hyperion being thrust directly at his face.

Once. Twice.

Seifer reeled slightly giving Squall his in. He slashed downward and threw all of his weight and remaining power down against Hyperion. His advantage lasted only a moment before Seifer, stronger than Squall, threw him off.

The crashing of metal against metal ripped through the air in time with the thunder. Seifer threw a wild side slash and Squall ducked under it neatly. He almost didn't jump back in time to avoid the sudden reverse slash Seifer struck with immediately afterwords.

Snarling with the effort it took to power his overtired body, Squall swung forward. Too sloppy, he didn't even get close to hitting him. He came back again, quicker, forcing Seifer to hold Hyperion's dull edge with his other hand to stave off his assault.

Then Seifer came up from under him, throwing him backwards and away. Squall's immediate retreat was short lived as he raced forward again.

And Seifer grinned.

The light of the fire spell lit up Squall's field of vision. He barely had time to recognize it for what it was before he lifted his sword. The spell crashed against the blade, throwing him flat onto his back against the hard ground.

Rocks bit into his back through the leather of his jacket as he sat up. Snarling, an accusation was already there on his tongue. This was supposed to be a melee training battle only. No ranged weapons – no bullets in the chamber – and no magic. They had been specifically instructed to leave their GF at garden. An instruction that Seifer had clearly not followed but Squall naively had.

However, as the smoke and ash floated down around him, and Squall looked up with a growl, it was to see a smile on Seifer's face. A slightly crazed smile. One that anticipated a victory. And the words he had been about to snap died in his throat.

He saw the blow coming like Seifer was moving in slow motion. Even as his instincts and training were urging him to duck away, his abused and exhausted body refused to follow the command. He could do nothing but watch.

Sharp pain erupted on his face as he fell with the blow. The splatter of his own blood against the rocks awoke the primal instincts to survive buried within him under years of training to be precise and exacting in battle.

He turned with a cry of anger, blood streaming hotly down his face. That smirk Seifer always seemed to be wearing taunted his pain.

Squall's booted foot planted hard against the ground. The Revolver sent up sparks as he dragged it harshly upwards. Between the two of them, it was always a competition. One always had to give just as good as he had gotten.

More blood, bright red, stained the rocky battlefield and Seifer let out the first cry of pain even as the inky blackness of unconsciousness was closing in on Squall's field of vision.

***

The bright morning sunlight burned Squall's eyes before he ever opened them. He recognized the antiseptic scent of the infirmary room as well as the morning birds that lived amongst the threes around the garden without needing to see anything.

A slight throbbing across his face reminded him of where he had been, what he had been doing.

Seifer...

He kept the mental curse to himself as his eyes finally opened. He wasn't at all surprised to see the kindly old Dr. Kadowoki grinning down at him. A grin that only spread as he sat up and reached for the slash across his face.

Dr. Kadowaki, an expert in both magical and non-magical healing, had already sealed it closed with a cure spell. There was a bandage across his forehead, to make sure that it didn't open again as the magic went into effect. Heal spells were powerful, but they were slow acting. Open wounds would heal, but they needed time to do so.

“How are you feeling?” the doctor asked him, a hint of amusement in her voice.

My forehead hurts...

“...Ok,” he said after a moment. Of course his forehead hurt, he had just recently gotten it slashed open. No point in complaining about it.

“It looks like your eyes are focusing. You should be fine. Say your name for me.”

“Squall.”

“Squall...?"

He resisted the urge to sigh. “Squall Leonhart. Would you like my ID number, too?”

Dr. Kadowaki chuckled at his cheek. “Your attitude is returning. That's a good sign. I must admit, I was a bit worried when you were carried in here.”

“Carried?” he asked, his voice mostly disinterested.

Dr. Kadowaki nodded once. “Someone really should have been looking out for you. You're lucky that I decided to send someone to find you when Seifer came back and you didn't or you might still be laying out on that rock. Or worse, in a monster's belly.”

“Whatever,” he mumbled. He should probably thank her. She didn't give him a chance.

“Why don't you take it easy in training? Next time, you might not be so lucky.” She was pointing at him seriously, frowning. It wasn't the first time he had wound up in this room because of a training misadventure. Nor was he the first student in here. However, he could admit, he probably frequented this room more than most.

It was sweet, in a way, how maternal Dr. Kadowaki was acting. At the same time, he didn't at all appreciate being told to back down. To not stand up for himself. She was acting like he was somehow to blame for this.

“Tell that to Seifer,” he finally mumbled as if to remind her who was really at fault here.

“That Seifer...” Dr. Kadowaki crossed her arms and shook her head thinking of him.

He had come in here around sunset last night as the storm was really starting to brew. He was howling in anger and pain like a trapped animal about the wound across his face. It had taken so long to calm him down that by the time Dr. Kadowaki was able to see to the mark it was too late for her healing magic to prevent any serious scarring.

Squall had been found about midnight after Dr. Kadowaki had 'gently' persuaded Seifer to tell her where the two of them had been training. He had passed out from a mixture of pain and exhaustion and Seifer had left him there. When Dr. Kadowaki had confronted him about it. He had shrugged and reminded her that he was also exhausted and in pain. How was he supposed to carry someone else back when he could barely carry himself?

It was infuriating because Dr. Kadowaki knew that Seifer had done it on purpose, but he could provide reasonable enough excuse for not doing so. Meaning he wouldn't be punished for the action. All she had been able to do was ask a couple of SeeDs between missions to go find Squall. Of course, by the time she had gotten to him it was too late to completely repair the damage. Squall's mark would be deeper, more apparent than Seifer's.

But neither one was coming through this unscathed. In a way, Dr. Kadowaki was proud of her boy for being so tough. He gave as good as he got until the end. He was one of the few that refused to allow Seifer to always get his way no matter how many fights broke out. When it would be easy to just leave it alone, Squall fought back.

Despite that pride though, she was also exasperated.

Seifer was a helpless case. Dr. Kadowaki didn't think anything could be done to help him. Squall on the other hand...

Squall was tough, he was strong. Fiercely independent and at the same time dependable. She had faith that Squall could be something great. If only he could stop landing himself in here because he forgot his own limits while fighting Seifer.

“Why don't you ignore him?” she asked, irritated with his stubbornness.

“I can't just run away,” he responded immediately as though it were a basic fact of life and she were the odd one for not understanding it.

“You want to be cool, huh?” she asked, throwing up her hands in annoyance. Why did it feel like she had had this argument a hundred times before? “Well, don't get hurt in the process.”

He didn't respond and she sighed internally. Like beating her head against a wall. If she didn't love him so much, she'd probably beat him. As it was, she should probably get him out of here before she lost the strength to resist the urge.

“Let's see, your instructor is...Quistis! Right. I'll call her now. Just wait here a minute.”

As she turned to walk to the phone on her desk just outside of the patient rooms, Squall laid back and draped his arm over his aching head. He bet if he complained Dr. Kadowaki would happily provide him with pain medication.

He kept silent as he listened to her dial and call his instructor. He really wasn't looking forward to seeing her and hearing the inevitable lecture he would get for this latest one.

“Quistis?” Dr. Kadowaki said brightly into the receiver. “Come get your student. Yes...Yes...His injury's not serious...It'll probably leave a scar.”

A scar? How long had he been laying out there? It had to be quite a while if her magic couldn't seal the wound neatly shut again. Not that it really mattered, he supposed. So long as it didn't interfere with his fighting abilities. It would probably make him more recognizable, but he wasn't taking stealth and spy study courses, so it didn't really matter.

“...Right,” Dr. Kadowaki nodded, her voice a bit grave. “Now, please come by.”

She hung up and moved around to get started on his discharge paperwork.

Squall occupied himself by counting holes in the ceiling, like stars in the sky. It wouldn't take long for Quistis to get here. Judging by the placement of the sun, morning class hadn't started yet. Not that there would probably be much of a morning class today, considering.

Oh, that's right, he still had to go to the-

“Squall.”

An unfamiliar voice interrupted his thoughts and his head turned over to look through the window that led to the darkened neighboring patient room. A girl with short, straight brown hair was smiling at him from the other side, her eyes swimming with emotions he didn't recognize. She looked like a pixie with her small face and delicate features.  
She had...no sense of style. What was she wearing? What was the bright green wrap for? Squall was certain she wasn't a student of this garden. She had no muscle tone for one thing. She had completely flawless skin for another. It didn't look like she had ever been in a fight in her life.

How did she know his name?

Having caught his eyes, she smiled wider and her expression was a strange mixture of happiness and sadness. “So we meet again.”

Again? Did he know her? No, he's was certain that he would recognize a pixie faced girl who appeared to be several years his senior despite her childish features.

He didn't get a chance to ask who she was or what she was doing here. Even as she was walking away, he heard the door to the infirmary whoosh open softly and the familiar, fast paced, short strides of his instructor and longtime acquaintance.

Quistis was here. Lecture time.

Bright blonde hair the color of burning gold pulled back into a tight top knot. A long lean body that was deceptively willowy. She was just as tight and powerful as her weapon. She was in uniform today in preparation for lessons and had her delicate glasses perched loosely on her aristocratic nose. They shined in the bright sunlight when she nearly walked past his room then stopped and turned with a smile and a sigh at the state he made laid out on the bed.

She strode forward with that smile in place. It wasn't condescending or even really amused. It was more like a cross between resigned and happy. A strange expression. Squall thought he would prefer a stern glare and a lecture.

“I knew it'd either be you or Siefer,” she chuckled, leaning over him as if to examine his wound for herself. “Didn't think it would be both of you. Seifer's already out though. As I understand it, he absolutely refused to sleep in the infirmary. Which is only good. It meant you could sleep in the infirmary without him bothering you.”

Squall didn't dignify that with a response and she didn't wait for one. She was already turning, going into instructor mode. That he preferred most of all. Instructor mode was clinical, factual, and didn't bother him with emotions.

“Come on, let's go,” she said firmly. “Today's the field exam. I can't be late for class.”

Quistis gave him enough time to freshen up a bit in the infirmary bathroom before leading him out down the hall towards the main garden square. Squall strode with measured, unfaltering steps. He stared straight ahead and pretended not to notice her staring at him.

Here it comes...

“Squall. Is there something on your mind?” she asked curiously.

Here it was.

His answer was both pre-prepared for this conversation that he had known would be coming, and automatic. For once, it was actually kind of true. Mostly he was just thinking about getting out of here and back to class so he could get on with the prerequisites.

“Not really.”

“Nor really,” she said in time with him before she burst out laughing, stopping in place to do so.

Squall took a few steps forward before turning back, somehow aggravated. What exactly was that she had just done?

“What's so funny?”

“Funny? No, no. It's not that.” She waved his question away with a bright smile. “I'm just happy. I feel like I'm finally beginning to understand my student a little. That's all.”

More than aggravated now, Squall resisted the urge to glare at her. He had to remind himself that, despite their minimum age difference, she was still an instructor and he still a cadet. It would be rude and against the chain of command for him to snap at her.

He had to settle for, “I'm more complex than you think.”

“Then tell me,” she beamed as though she could hear his lie. “Tell me more about yourself.”

Squall deliberately turned from her and began walking away. He so did not want to have this conversation, especially not with her.

“It's none of your-”

“-business!” she finished quickly, beaming and laughing again.

He flinched in place before increasing his pace as she continued to laugh silently. She kept up with him easily. Of course she did. She was able to sense his annoyance now though and kept to herself. That didn't stop him from knowing that she had a very self satisfied smile on her face directly behind him without needing to see it.

The two of them walked together out of the hall leading into the infirmary and back into the garden proper. The large chamber nexus that connected all the common areas and dorms of the garden was filled with distant echoes of talking and laughter as students and SeeDs went about their day. The gentle trickling of water from the dolphin statues around the pathways was calming. The water beneath their feet shined in the light. This place always smelled of freshly waxed wood and cool water. It was a calming, happy sort of scent.

Squall knew there were people that whispered and laughed good naturedly to see him being escorted from the infirmary – yet again – by his instructor. They didn't mean any harm by it and it was easily ignorable. Quistis, however, seemed to take umbrage with it.

“Get back to your studies,” she ordered one group that all jumped to attention at the command.

Squall ignored it all in favor of returning to the elevator. He just wanted to get this obligatory homeroom over with so he could finally get some work done.

The rest of the walk to the classroom was quiet. A few times, Squall could detect Quistis about to say something, but thankfully she kept her thoughts to herself each time.

The door to the classroom swooshed open and Squall stepped inside. Just a few steps behind him, Quistis strode in as well and people began making their way to their desks.

“Good morning, class,” Quistis greeted them in full instructor mode. “Let's start with today's schedule.”

She moved around to her overly large desk, giving everyone ample time to take their seats. Her small frame was absolutely dwarfed by her the enormous desk and computer panel. She still somehow commanded the space.

“There seems to have been some rumors flying around since yesterday. Let me put them to rest now. Yes, a large scale field exam for SeeD candidates will begin later this afternoon.”

Squall knew that already. He had been dully informed by a gloating Seifer before their training session because Seifer, who sat just across the isle from him in class, always needed to be able to prove himself superior in any small way possible

Which meant Squall had to hurry up and finish his prerequisites if he wanted to be qualified to go. Which he did.

He turned on the panel of his desk and opened the drawer. Nestled inside, contained within a pair Odine Capsules, his two guardians waited where he had left them.

“Those not participating and those who failed last week's written test are to remain here in study hall. Field exam participants will have free time until the exam,” Quistis continued. “Just be sure you're in top condition. Meet in the front hall at 1600 hours. I'll announce the team assignments there.”

Ignoring her, this was just more stuff he already knew, Squall picked up the capsules and opened them with a press of a small switch. The magic of his GFs sank down deep into his arm. He could feel their energies racing up to their homes in his head. Shiva, his very first GF, and Quetzalcoatl. They greeted him warmly, even the ice queen.

Shiva was a strange mix of cool and warm. Squall could feel her settle into her familiar place, whispering a wordless greeting to him. Quetzalcoatl was faster than her, exciting and sparky. He sang his greeting out in Squall's mind as he nestled in place.

Immediately, he felt Shiva protest unhappily. She didn't get along well with Quetzalcoatl. She told him she didn't like how the bird was constantly singing. They reacted together peacefully enough, but it was common knowledge that most GFs didn't like sharing the same head space. The GFs would need to be friendly to want to share that way and most simply weren't.

“Any questions?” Quistis called out, pulling Squall's attention from his GFs. She scanned out over her classroom. Some looked happy at the prospect of study hall/free time. Others, like Squall, were clearly focused on preparing for the field exam. Then her eyes hit on Seifer who only looked calm and cool and quite at his leisure.

The sight of his scar, unbandaged and somehow proud, reminded her. Quistis felt irritation flare up in her chest.

“Oh, and Seifer!”

He looked up as though surprised to hear her calling on him.

Quistis frowned as she remembered the conversation she had with Dr. Kadowaki last night. Those two had been training for far too long if it was enough to make Squall black out. Besides that, both of them had come out of the ordeal scarred. She should have known better than to let them train unsupervised. As their instructor, it was her job to keep them both in line and safe.

Seifer wasn't going to be punished for leaving Squall behind, no matter how much it rankled Quistis inside or that she knew he did it on purpose. All she could do was give him a small verbal lashing for the rule he did break.

“Do not injury your partner while training,” she snapped, her voice making it clear just how displeased she was with his actions. “Be more careful from now on.”

As though he might have forgotten about the new, permanent accessory to his visage, Seifer looked over at Squall. The scar didn't irritate nearly so much as the thought of Squall telling on him did.

Squall, busy junctioning his magic cache between Shiva and Quetzalcoatl and his weapon – stored away at the moment – didn't look over at him or even really care that he was glaring.

Wordless, Seifer slammed his hand down on his desk panel. Squall didn't look up. Quistis nodded once as though the angry outburst was exactly what she expected from Seifer. And, honestly, it probably was, considering.

She addressed her class as a whole again. “Field exam participants: I will see you all later. Everyone else: At least pretend to get some work done, okay?”

Laughing at her joke, the class broke out into noise as people started talking and moving. Those taking the exam today were first out the door – Seifer included. The others milled about, talking and laughing. Very few actually pulled out notebooks. Squall, still working with his GFs, didn't move at all until Quistis called out again over the din.

“And Squall. I need to talk to you.”

He looked up from his task to see her smiling at him gently, well out of instructor mode. The sight didn't last long before she was descended on by her fan club. She had a fan club. For the life of him, Squall couldn't figure out how she had a fan club.

Well, he supposed she was a bit of a prodigy as far as fighting went. No one could deny her skill to be an instructor at so young an age. Still...A fan club?

Wondering what she could want from him now, he stood up and began making his way to the front of the classroom. She had to shoo her fan club away so he could get close. They stepped back, but the adoration and hero worship in their eyes still shined bright as they watched her talk to him. Like every word she spoke was gospel.

Sometimes, Squall really didn't understand people at all.

Quistis crossed her arms and smiled at him. Like they might both be cadets and comrades again instead of cadet and very superior.

“You haven't been to the Fire Cavern yet, have you?” she asked rhetorically. “You told me that was where you were going yesterday, right? You won't be able to take part in today's SeeD exam if you don't pass your prerequisites.”

He was very much aware. He would be doing it now but she was talking to him. He had originally planned on going this morning before homeroom, but Seifer...

“Hm?” Quistis looked at him interestedly, recognizing his thinking face. “Do you have a good excuse?”

“...Not really.” No point in telling them something they already knew. And taking the time would only delay his getting out there to complete the assignment. He had until 1600, but it was a little bit of a hike to the Fire Cavern.

“Then let's get going,” Quistis beamed brightly.

Why was she coming? Oh, that's right. He needed a SeeD member to support. He was going to ask one of the other SeeDs to do it. They didn't mind helping out cadets usually. He supposed Quistis would work just as well as anyone else. So long as she didn't keep looking at him like that. It made him feel awkward how she kept trying to get closer to him. He much preferred instructor mode.

“I'll be waiting at the front gate, so come down when you're ready,” she said, pointing over her shoulder.

Then Squall watched as she left and his eyes darted to her fan club, The Trepies, even before they moved. One girl looked devastated that she wasn't the one singled out. The guy was almost salivating to see their instructor walking away. All three of them followed after her like loyal puppies.

Seriously, what were they going so crazy over?

Figuring it was none of his business what other people did – or why – he left the classroom. He wondered if he would have some time to stop by the dorms to take a shower before he had to meet Quistis. She hadn't stated when she wanted to meet him. She would have to ditch her fanclub first though. There was no way he was going to accept them coming along. He doubted very highly that the garden staff would either and he wasn't risking making SeeD because of a group of hormone raddled, fan club people couldn't stand to be apart from-

“I'm late. I'm late! I'm LATE!!!”

That was the only warning Squall received before a blur of brown hair and blue uniform suddenly slammed against his chest. He recoiled neatly, his leg kicking back to catch himself as he resisted the urge to grab for a weapon he simply didn't have on him at the moment.

The girl, a tiny little thing, cried out as she fell back and landed hard on her bottom. She was tiny, but she was dense. Squall actually felt the force of that hit.

Should he ask if she was okay? She looked fine to him. She wasn't bleeding and she was standing up again on her own fine enough. He ended up not saying anything. He didn't really have to.

The girl, who had chosen to curl her hair outwards and up, smiled at him as she stood and straightened out her uniform. A uniform that looked rather new. He hadn't seen her before at this garden, though that was clearly a garden uniform.

“There,” she nodded, satisfied with her own appearance before grinning at him sheepishly. “Sorry. I was kinda in a hurry.”

She had an accent. Trabian, if he wasn't wrong. Her eyes darted between him and the classroom he had just walked out of.

“Hey, did you just come from that class?” she asked, her face falling. “Is...homeroom over?”

Squall nodded once. He was going to tell her it was fine because they were either having study hall or preparing for the field exam. Once again, he didn't get a chance to. She spoke right over him.

“Woo...Oh, nooo...” she moaned pitifully, her head falling into her hands. “This place is sooo much bigger than my last garden!”

Her last garden? Then she must be from Trabia Garden. An exchange student. If she was transferring to Balamb, especially at her age, then she could only be here for one reason.

“Oh, hey, hey!” she chirped like an overexcited bird. “I just transferred here. Do you think you could give me a quick tour of this garden?”

Squall seriously considered telling her he didn't have the time. He had to go meet Instructor Trepe, he had to grab his gunblade before doing that. He was still hoping to get a shower before going to meet her.

But she was looking at him so hopefully. And she was a fellow cadet. Instructor Trepe would understand he was sure. He would really rather not, but he couldn't turn down such an honest and necessary request. It wasn't like he had to literally take her around the school anyway.

“Sure,” he nodded again, resigned to the next half an hour or so.

“Whoo-hoo!” she called excitedly jumping up and down. “Alright, let's go!”

“We'll go down to the first floor lobby and I'll show you the directory,” he continued as though she hadn't interrupted.

The girl nodded eagerly and fell into step beside him as he made his way to the elevator. Really, it wasn't too far out of his way. He had to go to the infirmary to pick up the Revolver anyway since he had left it with Dr. Kadowaki – weapons were not permitted in classrooms and he needed her to remove the bandage on his head. Then he could go right to the front gate from there. Really, he wasn't going to be that inconvenienced. He would just a shower after the Fire Cavern.

The girl chattered at him as the elevator went down. Squall had no choice but to hear her since there was nothing else making a sound. He marveled at her ability to talk about absolutely nothing at all in particular.

Squall stepped from the elevator, grateful because his destination was immediately before him.

“That's the directory,” he pointed, walking forward determinedly.

“Oh, wow!” the girl beamed. “I didn't even see that!”

“Balamb Garden is pretty big. So it's a good idea to check where you want to go here at the directory. Especially if you are unused to the place.”

“How do you use this thing?” she asked, peering at the logo screen.

“It's a touch screen.” Squall reached up and demonstrated by swiping his hand across the panel and waking it up. “This is the first floor where all of the common rooms are. The second floor has the classrooms. I'll just give you a quick explanation of the various facilities.”

“Yes, sir!” she gave him a mock solute, winking at him as though they were in on a joke.

“You'll find the dormitories to the north. A majority of the students live in the dorms. There aren't too many students who commute. And those that do still tend to have dorm rooms. It's just easier to have a fast place to sleep after a long day of training.

“Yeah, I'm in the dorms, too!” she beamed brightly. “They're so cute and small! I love mine. I have a roommate and everything. She doesn't really talk much though.”

“SeeDs are given priority on the single rooms,” Squall explained patiently. “You'll find they are rarely there to occupy them though since they're usually on missions. You can rest and change in your dorms. Immediately west of the dorms is the cafeteria. There's always a big rush for the hot dogs. You better get used to waiting in line if you want them.”

“Why?”

“They're the only edible thing on the menu. The rest of it is mostly just bland or outright nasty. Everything is healthy and can provide you with all the necessary vitamins, minerals, and energy you need. I personally don't mind it, but you'll need to get there early for hot dogs.”

“Got it!”

“East of the dorms is the parking lot. Personal vehicles are allowed but not in the white zone. That's for authorized garden vehicles that we take during missions. It leads out to the front gate, which you can also reach through this hall here down south.

That's where Instructor Trepe was. How much time had he wasted? She was probably already there and it would be rude to make her wait excessively. Of course, it was partially her fault for not designating a meeting time.

“Hm?” the girl looked at him, curious as to why he had fallen silent. “What's the matter?”

“Nothing.” No point in telling her. “Next, the quad. It's located west. That's where we tend to hold the more sociable, less formal events-”

“I know! I know!” she jumped up and down, happy to recognize something. “That's where the Garden Festival is going to be! It's going to be great! I'm planning to be on the committee. You wanna help out, too?!”

No. Just no.

“Let's just continue,” he said as politely as he was able. “South of the quad is the infirmary. You can get any injuries you obtain seen to there, but a lot of students just go there advice. The resident doctor is a very kindly woman who is happy to help however she can.”

“What's the doctor's name?”

“Dr. Kadowaki. The east block over here has the training center. It's the only facility open during the night in case you want night training. There's real monsters running loose here, so don't go unless you're prepared to fight them. It's mostly lower level monsters. Mostly. If you don't take it seriously, you may end up dead. Just be careful.”

He glanced to the side to make sure she understood. She nodded nervously. “Okay.”

“South is the library. Most of the material you need or could want is already digitized. However, we do have a selection of works that are older or simply not put into the system. For most everything, the classroom panels is sufficient, but the library does have it's uses and serves as a quiet place to study. You know how to get to the F classroom now, right.”

“Yep, I remember,' she chuckled at herself.

“There's many classrooms up there, A-J. It's a clockwise circle, so just keep walking one direction until you find you want.”

“Easy to remember.”

“There's also a third floor. That houses the headmaster's office and guest rooms for any high profile clients that may be visiting with the intention of hiring SeeD. You should only venture up there if you have permission or you'll get in trouble.”

“Another question: What's the headmaster's name?”

She transferred here and didn't even bother to learn the headmaster's name?

“Headmaster Cid. Anything else?”

“Nope! I got it!”

Squall nodded and closed out the directory back to it's resting mode.

“Hey, um,” the girl looked at him with a friendly smile. He really hoped she wasn't going to try to make friends. He didn't like new students. They didn't know to stay away from him. “Are you taking today's SeeD exam?”

“Yeah.” If he could ever get to the Fire Cavern.

“Then maybe I'll see you again, later. I took my written test and fulfilled my prerequisites at my previous garden, so I'm taking the SeeD exam today, too. Good luck to both of us, huh? Thanks a lot for everything!”

She waved at him and walked off. Squall looked at the time on the directory and shrugged before walking off back towards the infirmary to pick up his weapon. Quistis was probably already at the front gate. He wouldn't have time for a shower. How disappointing.

***

Quistis was out of her uniform and back in her street clothes. A salmon colored pencil skirt and sleeveless button up shirt. A pair of brown leather boots and long leather gloves. She didn't wear her glasses outside of the classroom because she only needed them for reading. She smiled up at him as he approached. If she had been waiting long, she didn't give any indication of it.

“You remember your advanced junctioning?” she asked patiently.

“I remember.” He had already finished doing it.

“Your GF can each hold different abilities-”

“I know.”

“And the magic can boost them, thereby boosting your own abilities,” she continued in quasi-instructor mode. “How's Quetzalcoatl working for you?”

“He's not really. He doesn't get along well with Shiva.” Squall scratched at the back of his head where he could feel Quetzalcoatl resting.

The GF provided power to their masters, and in return took a place in their caster's brain as their own as a place of security. GF were able to experience the world through their masters and few of them wanted to exist without the safety of another's head. In a way, they were almost parasitic. If it weren't for their ability to mix with magic, they would only be drains.

The longer one had a GF, the more intimate and familiar they became with it. Shiva was Squall's first GF, earned during his first year as an upperclassman. They had been together, training together, for a while. She tended to live in a spot beneath his left temple. She was a great companion when he had a headache due to her cooling abilities.

Quetzalcoatl, on the other hand, rested at the base of his skull. He did sing a lot and Squall often heard him doing it like a whisper in the back of his mind. It didn't bother him overly much, but apparently it bothered Shiva.

Quistis frowned at his admission. “Really? Quetzalcoatl is very friendly. I thought for sure Shiva would like him."

Squall shook his head. “He may be friendly, but she's territorial. They're both great in battle, but they keep fighting even after it's over. Can you take him back?”

Quistis nodded and held out her hand. He placed his over it and the bright blue and pink magic energy transferred between the two of them.

Quistis smiled as she felt Quetzalcoatl settle into the back of her head. He was a longtime friend of hers that she hadn't mind giving to Squall in the hopes that maybe he could finally hold a second GF. Shiva was really too picky about companions. Then again, she supposed that she should just be happy that she had accepted Squall as her master. Shiva had spent a long time in the catalog of garden owned GFs because she refused all who tried to junction her.

Until she had finally been given to Squall. The two of them had bonded together well. To the point that the garden had just given her to him. However, her loner personality refused any and all other GFs that Squall would try to equip.

Quetzalcoatl had been Quistis's GF for a few years. She had given him up because he was so sweet and loving that she though he would break through Shiva's icy exterior. In vain, apparently. Quistis was happy though to hear him singing in her head again.

“Great,” she nodded after she had finished automatically junctioning her magic to him. “Ready to go? The Fire Cavern is located just east of here.”

He knew that. Why did she always tell him things he already knew?

Whatever...

He nodded and left out through the front gate. Quistis was just a step behind, smiling at the back of his black jacket. She had really missed fighting with him. That was the worst part of making SeeD and then instructor. She could no longer fight beside her students and cadets as an equal.

For just this morning though, she could pretend they were equals again. And if this afternoon went how she was sure it would, it would be true by tomorrow.


	2. The Fire Cavern

Quistis was an excellent fighter. She had mastered her whip at a very young age and GF junctioning not long after. Fighting beside her was always an excellent learning experience, even for Squall who had been fighting with her for years. She learned so quickly and easily and her fighting style always seemed to change based on who she was fighting. She even had a knack for managing to mimic the tricks of monsters.

While the monsters in the forest between the garden and the Fire Cavern were not all that powerful, they were numerous and the bite bugs tended to swarm. Though Squall could easily destroyed hoards of the insects using Shiva's ice magic, he knew better.

Quistis was here to make sure he didn't die in the Fire Cavern. SeeDs rarely worked alone for the simple reason that there were strength in numbers. However, she was also here because a SeeD needed to give a report on his performance in battle. He could definitely use Shiva to make this easier, but not using her would be more impressive to the garden staff. Anyone could use a GF, technically speaking, but SeeDs were combat specialists. They needed to be able to fight without them.

The two of them together covered ground very quickly. In this at least, fighting, Quistis was professional and clinical. This was how he liked her best. When they fought together, it was like they were on the exact same wavelength. No emotions. No expectations. Just two warriors fighting their way through monsters.

“You're doing very well,” Quistis admired as they hiked through the nearby forest. There was no set trail because they were encouraged never to travel the same route twice. So the terrain was rather taxing to get through.

Squall rather liked the workout though. He enjoyed how his muscles came alive and how his body moved as a single, comprehensive unit. Physical activity like this didn't require a great deal of thought, but did need his attention to make sure he didn't trip up. In that way, he didn't have to over think anything and could actually relax.

“Thanks,” he mumbled after a moment, more from habit than anything.

“No, really,” she pressed against his lackluster reaction. “You know, when you first changed from a saber to a gunblade, I was really worried. That's not an easy weapon to master.”

He knew. That's why he chose it. The saber was too easy. Guns were too easy. The combination of the two in the gunblade required a much more experienced touch. It was something he could devote a great deal of time and effort to.

“Who switched first? You, or Seifer?” Quistis asked, trying to remember.

“Seifer did. I mastered it first, but he's been training with it longer.”

“Oh, that's right.” She nodded slowly, recalling now.

Seifer hadn't been able to resist the allure of a powerful weapon that very few could use. He hadn't trained with a saber for very long before switching though and the sudden added difficulty hindered his learning process significantly. It was because Squall trained longer with a sword and practiced aiming separately that he was able to gain control of a gunblade before Seifer.

“How's your specialist training with it coming?” she asked, curious. Though she was his general instructor, she couldn't teach him the gunblade. As with most weapon specialties – besides her own – he had to learn that from someone else.

However, there was no gunblade teacher at garden because it was so hard to find someone who could actually weild the weapon with sufficient proficiency. And though there were many who attempted to learn – drawn by the challenge or the power or whatever else – few stayed with it as Squall and Seifer were doing. There wasn't even a single gunblade specialist in SeeD.

Because of that, Seifer and Squall had to either learn on their own or take training from written works or video demonstrations created by others since the gunblade's inception. The best way for the pair of them to learn, however, was to train with each other.

Both of them were driven and determined. Fighting against one another meant that there was a constant battle to be superior to the other. One would sometimes get better, but the other didn't usually take long to equal him again. It was a beautiful give and take that worked out well for them.

Most times, anyway.

“I'm getting faster,” Squall automatically reported in a dull voice as he used a low hanging tree branch to climb a rather steep wall of dirt. “Seifer is still faster at the moment though.”

“Keep it up,” Quistis smiled as his body disappeared over the edge.

By the time she joined him, he was already walking forward again. It wasn't his place to slow down for her sake. She had to keep up with him.

Which she didn't mind doing. Quistis couldn't help but grin at the sight he made.

Confident, steady, focused. He was everything a SeeD could dream of being. If he hadn't switched to gunblade training four years ago, he definitely would have been ready to take the SeeD exam at fifteen as she had done. She doubted though that he ever would have been an instructor. Somehow, the thought of him in charge of upperclassmen, much less underclassman, was funny to her.

No, he'd definitely be a lifer SeeD. Content to go out on missions until he could no longer pass the mandatory yearly physical. Then what? Retire?

It was a fun little thought exercise she liked to play with herself. Where would Squall be one year from now? Two years? Ten? Twenty?

Would she still be with him? Still smiling at his turned back? When was he going to finally open himself up to her? Depend on her? She didn't care how long she had to wait. She had known him longer than anyone else. She would always be there for him. And one day he would see that for himself and finally turn to her.

And, maybe then, he would be smiling at her.

Squall paused and turned around, frowning at the fact that her steps had slowed. Since he didn't hear her call out a monster attack, he wondered what had happened. Sure, it was her job to get him back to garden safely, but he wasn't going to let her die either.

“Is there a problem, instructor?” he asked seriously, his eyes gazing around as though he actually expected there to be a problem.

Knowing him, he probably did.

Quistis smiled and jogged forward. “Not at all. Come on, we're almost there and it's already past noon. If you want to get back in time, we better hurry.”

Squall nodded, accepting that at face value before turning back to continue on.

He was feeling the thrill of the hunt. Of the chase. His blood was singing as it pumped refreshingly through his body. Fighting, hiking, running. This was what made him feel alive.

Since Squall attended Balamb Garden, he thought it only natural that he try out for SeeD. It just seemed a natural progression. However, he couldn't deny that he rather enjoyed pushing his body to his limits to see what he could do with it. He enjoyed learning his skills, honing his craft. He really enjoyed the feeling of his blade in his hand. That was especially nice.

When he worked his body like this, he could stop thinking. And he enjoyed that respite from the constant thoughts that nagged at him.

Immediately, he felt anger being directed at him from under his left temple. Shiva taking exception to that statement. After all, she was a constant thought in his head.

He simply reminded her that she didn't enjoy it when he kept her up at night thinking either. Those nights he forgot to unjunction her. And even sometimes during the day when he was thinking so much that she would get irritated.

She calmed down but he still felt something like an icy bolt hitting his head. It was quick, and it didn't even really hurt. Just Shiva reminding him that she was there and she had feelings too.

Aside from a few more bite bugs and caterchipillars that were easily dealt with by one of them, the rest of the trip to the Fire Cavern passed without much excitement. Which was rather annoying since Squall knew for a fact there was a better monster in these woods.

It was shy though. Well, maybe next time...

The Fire Cavern was a cave near the coast. It didn't extend very far, but it did reach down low enough that it had access to the lava vault beneath the mountains that made up Balamb. Everyone knew that there was a GF in there. He was a stubborn one though. It was said he was difficult to defeat and claim due to his animalistic but still somehow intelligent fighting ability. A few cadets had tried to go after him as their prerequisite, but no one had yet succeeded.

Which was precisely why Squall had chosen to go after him instead of opting for an easier GF to hunt after. He didn't want an easy GF. He wanted a strong GF. There was no point to just getting the grade here. Even after the exam, this GF was going to be his. If they were going to be together, he wanted to make sure it was a good one.

Since it was a hotspot for SeeD hopefuls, garden staff was already waiting by the cave entrance. It would be their job to monitor him and ensure that he came back within the chosen time limit. They would also be grading him as Quistis would be doing.

As the cave came into view, Squall was already thinking tactics for beating fire monsters. He had some blizzard spells for offense and had already junctioned them. He rather wished Shiva would allow him to use his fire spells even just for defense. The ice goddess, however, was adamant about him keeping them far away.

Whatever. He didn't care all that much. It just meant he had to stay on his toes. He was now going through maneuvers he had practiced that made sure not to directly involve himself with enemies. Most monsters he could touch. Bombs, however, literally coated themselves in fire. Not to mention their penchant for blowing themselves up when injured. He would need to be able to take them down in very few strokes, one preferably, all while not touching-

“Ok...Junctioning magic,” Quistis called out, pulling him from his thoughts. He turned to her to see her back in instructor mode. “Now pay attention. This important for fighting elemental monsters-”

“Instructor,” Squall cut her off neatly and as politely as he could. “I'm aware.”

Quistis sighed and pushed back her hair. Out of instructor mode. “I know. I just want to be sure that you've got everything under control. Maybe you want to practice with your gunblade? I know you've been honing your speed attack. I could help you-”

“I already know.” Why was she constantly telling him things that he knew? Clearly he knew how to junction or he wouldn't have passed the written test. Obviously he knew how to wield his gunblade or Seifer would have gutted him already. What was the point of this?

Quistis didn't miss his short tone and frowned as she pushed back her hair again. She sounded dejected when she said, “Oh, ok. I was just concerned. That's all.”

Before Squall could even answer the question to himself if he was supposed to ask what that meant and if she was okay, she was brightening back up again.

“Alright, let's go!”

It sounded like an order if he ever heard one. And that's the entire reason he came out here anyway. He felt relieved that he could finally get to work. It was so boring doing nothing.

He turned back to the path leading to the Fire Cavern and jogged to the robed garden faculty that were watching the entrance. It was hard to differentiate them because of their hats, but it didn't really matter who they were. Sometimes, to amuse himself, Squall imagined that they were all clones of each other and no different at all.

It was a silly amusement, but he didn't really care. And no one else knew anyway, so it didn't matter what his inner thoughts were.

He slowed to a walk before stopping in front of them. They stood there, silent for a moment, and made Squall mend his mental theory a bit. Maybe they were robots and were charging in the sunlight. That would explain the amazingly hindering hats. They were solar panels to charge them up. This pause was only because they were checking their programming for the right response.

It was a fun thought to himself. He banished it quickly and got back to being serious. Not that his inner thoughts ever showed on his face.

“Your objective: To obtain a low-level GF,” one of them said in monotone. “A SeeD member must support. Are you ready?”

He had been ready yesterday.

“I'm ready,” Squall said, his tone dull as he saluted the two men. Official. It was time for business.

“I'm his support,” Quitis also went to attention as she identified herself. “Instructor No. 14, Quistis Trepe.”

“Please select a time limit between 10 and 40 minutes. Choose one suited to your abilities. Challenging, yet reasonable. Know that if you cannot obtain the GF within the time limit, this prerequisite will be considered a failure regardless of whether you do finally obtain the GF or not. Is this understood?”

“I understand. 10 minutes.” Squall wondered how long people were going to waste his time before he could finally be allowed to work. Garden faculty really was rather annoying.

“Understand that 10 minutes is the shortest time limit and that if you cannot obtain-”

“I understand. I choose 10 minutes.” He really needed less than five if the simulations he had been running were accurate. However, they didn't let him choose less than 10 minutes.

“Very well,” the man didn't seem bothered by the interruption. “Your time starts now. Good luck.”

His time already started. Yet the twins took the time to slowly move out of the way before letting him step inside. He could see their shadows moving back in front of the entrance even as he was running inside.

Ten minutes. Easy.

It didn't take but a few strides into the cave for the Fire Cavern to live up to it's name. Heat seemed to billow out of every stone. Squall's vision went red as the lava that flowed like a river in this place provided the light.

Too hot. This jacket had to come off.

No. It was leather. He was wearing it specifically to absorb heat and take potential burns for him. It was just hot. He could live with that. He wasn't going to be in here longer than ten minutes. He was just going to have to deal with the heat.

Even as he had that thought, he felt Shiva protest. She was the ice queen. She didn't do heat. In point of fact, she refused to do heat.

Even as he felt her thoughts, his skin broke out into a shiver as a sudden swirling of cool air layered over his body like a second skin. The heat faded and, behind him, he heard Quistis make a small sound of surprise. Shiva had reached out and enveloped her as well.

“My, that's a strong GF you have, Squall,” Quistis murmured, rubbing her now cold arms. She could see the lava around her, and somehow it felt wrong.

“She doesn't like it to be hot,” Squall said back. Now his jacket was rather useless as she had wrapped the cold around his body rather intimately. Still, better than the heat. Honestly, they had been together so long that he didn't feel the cold much anymore.

“I don't know why I was worried,” Quistis chuckled. “Of course, my job is only to support you in battle. Everything else is up to you. Do you remember why?”

Immediately, he knew the answer even as he was looking around for monsters. “Saber class SeeDs are rarely if ever sent on assignment alone. They need to be able to to work as a team.”

“Very good. Your written test scores were the best, I don't know why I thought I needed to ask.”

Yeah, neither did he.

Squeaking alerted him only a short second before the red bat zipped past his face. Instinct and training took over. Draw. Slash. A single squeak and a dead red bat fell, sliced in half at his feet.

“Very good,” Quistis clapped.

“Watch out!”

She ducked down to her knee as Squall sliced over her head. A second bat fell down dead, his wing severed from his body. Squall brought the tip of the revolver down onto it, ending it's misery.

“Red bats never travel alone,” he quoted from his monster guide. His eyes kept turning around though because two was also a rather low number for red bats. They liked to swarm like bite bugs. They didn't hurt too badly, but they were annoying.

Quistis got back to her feet and admonished herself. She knew that. She needed to stop staring at Squall and remember who she was and why she was here. Her hand went to her waist where her whip waited, curled and ready to be released.

“Let's keep going,” Squal said, turning to keep moving. If he started killing all the red bats populating a cave, he would never leave the cave again.

Quistis fell in behind him as they started jogging down through the cave. The paths narrowed further and the lava river expanded. The cave got brighter and now so hot that Squall could feel it through the layer of cold Shiva laid thick over his body.

He was so serious. Quistis really rather wished he would laugh and enjoy himself more. She knew it was part of his exam, but still...

She smiled as an idea came to her.

“You know, the boys often choke on this test when I come with them.”

Squall stopped dead. He turned to look at her slowly. She gave him a bright smile.

“I guess my charm makes them nervous.”

He blinked. What exactly did that mean?

Well, he guessed if she was accompanying her fan club...

…

He still had trouble accepting that she had a fan club. Still not his business though. Even if it was weird. And inexplicable.

...Whatever.

“I'm just kidding!” Quistis held up her hands when he continued to stare at her with a blank, serious face. She really should have known better. “I'm just...trying to keep you relaxed. That's all.”

Squall didn't dignify that with an answer. He turned and continued his jog. In his mind, he could hear Shiva laughing at Quistis's joke. Well, at least someone found it amusing. Now all Squall could think of was the puzzle that was The Trepies.

“Squall! A bomb!” Quistis called out suddenly, pointing to the right.

She wouldn't have yelled like that if it hadn't already noticed them. Squall fell into his familiar fighting stance even as he was turning to face the threat.

Bombs were so creepy. Creatures of fire that somehow stared with weirdly grinning, yet angry, faces that seemed to be made of both the fire they covered their bodies with and their circular bodies themselves. And they were willing to die to kill you rather than escape to live another day. Fighting bombs wasn't a matter of skill so much as a matter of time.

If he didn't kill it quickly, it would explode. Shiva's cold air was only that; air. If bomb fragments flew at his face, she wouldn't be able to stop them.

“More red bats,” Quistis pointed out, turned slightly away from him.

“How many?”

“Four.”

“You handle the bats. I'll take care of the bomb.”

They moved together as one unit. As long as they had been fighting together, it was just second nature to be able to react easily with one another's moves. Though there was a great deal of emphasis in SeeD training about working as a team – even with people you had never met before – that didn't substitute actual knowledge and experience earned fighting with someone for years.

Four red bats were nothing. Red bats weren't even so much monsters as they were pests. They did swarm, which made them annoying to fight with conventional and ranged weaponry.

Quistis specialized in neither.

She grinned as she let her whip fall loose from her belt. The length of it smacked to the floor with a surprisingly thick sound. Her whip was heavier than it looked. Ringed with chains and tipped with a metal spike, it was versatile, dangerous, and painful.

Quistis drew her arm back and the length of the whip followed the movement. It snapped when it reached it's full length and she swing forward again with a cry of effort.

Snakelike and deadly beautiful, the chain whip slashed forward with a great deal of power. One red bat caught the full force and was split in half. Another behind him had his wing cut open by the tail. It shrieked in pain and fury sending the others into a frenzy.

The trick with a whip was not to let it become still. Always keep it's momentum alive for if you let it die back down you'd need a moment to restart it. A moment that could very well be the difference between life and death.

Quistis turned as her weapon snapped again at the end of it's chain. She spun it around her body, planted her foot, and struck out again. The injured red bat couldn't escape this time. She sliced clear through it's furry brown body.

The chain of her whip sent up sparks as it skittered across the ground as she brought it around once more. She spun it up around and over her head in circles. She stepped forward, casting her eyes around looking for the last two.

One little beast had worked his way behind her. It wasn't a smart creature and it tried to dive bomb past her circling whip. It didn't miss entirely and it's body was knocked off course, slamming into the back of her shoulder.

Disgusted, Quistis slammed her whip down and killed the nasty little thing. She frowned at her back where a tiny stream of blood from it's sharp teeth was already rapidly clotting.

The last bat, unwilling to fight alone, began shrieking as it fly away.

“No you don't!”

Quistis jerked up and her whip followed the movement, swishing past the bat. It shrieked and altered its course. The whip hit the tip of the arc, snapped, and she brought it back down again. The blade at the end cut neatly through the pest and Quistis turned, bringing the whip back in a single, smooth, practiced move.

The familiar action brought it right back into a coil in her hands. She grinned, pleased with herself despite the fact that red bats weren't all that challenging.

She turned back around to check on Squall.

When she had run off to deal with the pests, Squall had ducked and sprinted forward. Under the bomb's floating body. Quistis would need to unfurl her whip and he would rather not be in the way when she did so.

Sure enough, as he sprinted under the bomb, dove, rolled, and came back on his feet, he heard the whip snap in the very direction he had been standing.

The bomb, having marked him as his prey, turned and grinned at him.

It grunted and started puffing itself up. Squall grimaced and turned his sword just in time to catch the fire spell it threw at him with his blade.

Training with Seifer was hard, but no one ever said it wasn't informative.

His Revolver, already coated with a layer of ice, shimmered as he lowered it down to charge again.

A bomb was weakest on its base, where its fire was nonexistent. Its body was exposed there. That was Squall's target.

The beast, anticipating him, growled as it rose itself up out of range of his slash. Squall followed through nonetheless, using his momentum to escape. The bomb came back down and slammed it's body into the ground where Squall had passed under him.

Rocks flew past Squall's face as he turned on his knee and charged back again.

The bomb was just lift itself when Squall ran past, slicing upwards and pulling the trigger on his blade while he did so. Instead of a fiery burst, the blizzard spell coating his blade thanks to Shiva let out an explosive shower of ice shards.

The bomb let out a roar of pain.

Squall hit the ground, rolled and came up once more. He took his stance and watched.

The bomb, growling at him, took in great gulps of air. Oxygenating his flames, growing bigger. Trying to puff itself up to seem more deadly. It would only do that so often before it decided suicide was a better option.

Squall had to defeat it quickly.

He turned the blade and he felt Shiva cheering the death of such a pure fire creature.

The bomb rushed him. Squall didn't move fast enough. He felt the heat of the flames burning and hissing through Shiva's cold air. The force of the blow knocked him backwards onto the flat of his back and the wind rushed out of his lungs. He was down for only a moment. Long enough to feel the lava's heat around him that was far more intense this far in than it had been at the entrance.

Then Shiva was wrapping him in her cool air again. The fire that had barely started singeing his clothes was blown out and he felt cool once again.

He rolled and pushed himself up. As he did so, he swung his sword around in a wide arc. He hit the broadside of the bomb and it fell to the side, angrier now.

As it lifted itself back up, it took in more air. The fire grew bigger and Squall adjusted the grip on the hilt of his Revolver.

He didn't need to charge again. The bomb rushed him. Bolder now as it was starting to consider its nuclear option, it rushed past him and stirred Shiva's cool cocoon. Squall side stepped easily, avoiding the attack. And the next one. And the next.

The bomb kept rushing, attempting to knock him down once more. Squall merely avoided it. Refusing to take or deal any more damage. Just waiting...

For the right moment...

Irritated, the bomb fell back and began taking in another breath. Not to increase in size again but to cast another fire spell. Charging himself, so to speak.

Squall's chance.

He sprinted forward and dove underneath. By the time the bomb noticed him ducking, it was already too late.

Squall thrust up and penetrated the softer underbelly of the bomb. It let out a grunt of pain and he pulled the trigger. Another shower of ice sparks and the bomb exploded. Not in a fiery ball, but in a puff of smoke and ash.

Squall quickly slashed his sword down, using the air to sweep away the ash so it wouldn't coat him. He felt Shiva blowing some away as well. She didn't like to be dirty. He didn't blame her. He wasn't particularly a fan of the feeling either.

“Well done, Squall,” Quistis applauded, coming closer. She had already stowed away her whip.

He didn't reply. He slid his Revolver back into its sheath at his hip.

“Come on. The heart of the cave is this way,” he said, starting forward.

“How can you tell?” she asked, curious as to his answer.

“Because that's where the light is brightest.”

She smiled as he started jogging back down the path. No time for anything else. He needed to get to the GF, defeat it, and claim it. Then he could get ready for the field exam. Really, this was going to be a rather busy day for him.

Quistis let out a breath of admiration to see him moving again so soon. “I guess I was right. You and Seifer are in a class of your own. You both have amazing strength and potential.”

Once again, Squall didn't bother to respond. He could see the heart of the Fire Cavern. The home of the GF he was seeking. He didn't care what it was. He didn't even have to use it. The point was that he was strong enough to obtain it.

Most GF preferred to live inside of a host. As he understood it from Shiva, it was the difference between living in a cadet's dorm room and the headmaster's suite. The head of another was simply more comfortable, more secure.

However, not all GF agreed. Some outright refused to have a master. Some would only accept a master that could best them in combat, proving their suitability as a place of safety. Others didn't like being forced to always do what another wanted at all.

Each GF had a story. Whether it was willing to share it with you was not dependent on whether or not it wanted to share your head. Squall still didn't know Shiva's past. He never asked. She never provided the information. He imagined that was one of the things she liked about him. So a GFs reasons were its own.

The heart of the Fire Cavern, the home of this GF, was by far the hottest part of the cave. Even through Shiva's cooling wind he was feeling uncomfortable. He couldn't imagine having to fight in these conditions without her.

He would if he had to, of course, but he wouldn't have liked it.

A soft rumbling came from a hole in the center of the peninsula of obsidian rock in the lake of quickly flowering lava. The GF was willing to fight with them after having come all the way here.

“Ok, this is it,” Quistis said, looking at his back again. “Are you ready?”

Squalled waved off the question. If he didn't think he was ready, he wouldn't be here. He was more than ready. He was eager. Eager to get this over with. Let the GF come already. He wanted to just defeat it and get out of this exceedingly hot cavern.

“You seem confident enough,” Quistis grinned at his attitude. Sometimes she couldn't help but wonder if he might not have just as much attitude as Seifer. She could all too easily imagine him doing the exact same thing in Squall's position.

Squall would have hated to hear her say that.

The rumbling from within the pit of fire grew louder. Quistis frowned as a large, beast like hand with red fur and deep brown skin reached out from the hole. Claws, black and thick, slammed into the ground and crumbled the rocky isle.

Another hand followed. Then a pair of horns set within a fiery red mane. Then the great guardian lifted its large body from the hole.

Bestial. Dominating. Pouring out heat as though he were part of the lava itself. Great gold bands decorated his wrists and small hoops looped around his long pointed ears. He opened his lion like mouth and let out a loud, earth shaking roar.

Inside his head, Squall felt Shiva's anger crackling at the sight and feeling of his fiery body.

“Plan, Squall?” Quistis deferred to him not because she needed direction but because this was his test and he needed to take control over it.

The beast was tall, almost two full body lengths over Squall. He was well muscled, had wicked sharp obsidian claws, and a large nose that told him he had a great sense of smell. His eyes were smaller though and, besides the metal bangles, he had no means of defense.

“Grab his attention,” Squall commanded her easily.

Quistis unfurled her whip behind her at his words. She yanked it back and snapped it forward again as Squall ducked and ran around to the right.

The great beast lifted his arm and caught the tail of the whip around his wrist, right behind his golden bangle. The chains cut into his skin and the blade at the end drew a small amount of blood. He didn't even flinch.

His hand twisted around and clasped the body of the whip. Quistis only had time to brace herself before he yanked and spun her around. The rocky stalagmite was rough and hot to the touch. Her right side slammed into it and she let out a cry of pain.

She fell to the ground and another cry came from her throat. The handle of her whip remained firmly in her hand even as the tail of it loosened around the beast's wrist.

He grinned, his yellowing fangs glowing in the red light of the lava. His muscles bunched as he prepared to throw her again.

Squall, having climbed up a stalagmite on the opposite side of the arena, launched himself in the air silently. The silver of his blade shined as it sank deep into the muscles of the beast's left shoulder. He let out a roar of pain and fury as Squall braced himself with the blade's hilt like a handle.

The beast released Quistis's whip as he twisted around violently. Squall's boots planted on either side of his blade, his hands holding onto the hilt, kept him from being thrown away. His body was still tossed about as the beast thrashed and attempted to reach behind him. His large muscles, however, took away from his flexibility. He couldn't reach Squall.

Quistis harnessed one of her cure spells and let the sweet numbness of it sink into her skin as she pushed herself up. The wounds would heal slowly, but the pain was gone quickly. She jerked her whip back into hand and took her own stance.

She paused then because she noticed where Squall had landed. The pain of having a blade in his back was making the GF sloppy. He was throwing himself around and Squall was simply hunkering down and letting him do so.

Quistis waited a moment, watching. The beast turned and she let her whip fly. A long streak of red appeared on its chest and began bleeding. He screamed his fury but it seemed that the new pain brought him back to himself.

He stopped his random thrashing and threw himself backwards. Squall noticed the stalagmite coming fast at him and jumped up, twisting as he did so. Using his embedded blade as leverage, he turned and landed against the GF's shoulder. He sliced the Revolver up and out of harm's way just before the lion beast slammed his back into the stalagmite. Rocks showered down over Squall's head but did no damage.

He was within reach now though. He grunted in pain when the beast clutched him in his fist. He squeezed and the pressure combined with the pricks of his black claws into Squall's side made him grunt in pain.

Squall tightened his hand on the hilt of his gunblade, jerking it out when the beast lifted and threw him away with another roar.

Squall hit his shoulder against the ground, bounced, and came up on his feet. He slid backwards and still came up again, taking his stance. The ache of his new bruises and puncture wounds faded as Shiva let out a cure spell into his body.

The beast wiped his feet against the ground, the claws of his hind paws digging deep into the ground and kicking up rocks and dust. He let out a breath and steam came from his nostrils. The blood dripping down his back, dark red and bubbling, was also steaming menacingly.

Fire was in his very blood. Meaning he would only be more susceptible to ice magic.

“Distract him!” Squall ordered, running one way.

Quistis ran the other, sending her whip flying. The sting of its kiss against the beast's chest and arms made it roar and chase after her. She turned, bringing it around. The blade at the end slapped into its face, opening a long laceration against its muzzle.

Squall, ran to the front of the peninsula, skidding to a stop and turning to watch Quistis beating against the GF. It had brought up its arms and was deflecting the blows with the bangles. She was making sure her whip didn't wrap around him again and put her in harms way by backing up and ensuring only the tip of her whip hit him.

Squall paused and took a deep breath. He reached, in a manner of speaking, deep into his own mind where Shiva was crackling with angry, icy energy. She grabbed onto his mental hand eagerly, more than ready to be brought into the battle against this fire beast.

Squall's eyes flashed a bright, icy blue for a fraction of a second. He felt her cold energy flowing down from his brain and into his arm. It should have burned him, but with her junctioned, ice was a sweet caress. The energy built in his palm and Squall lifted his arm to release it at the beast.

GF existed in the mind of their castor. Squall could see Shiva. The blue skinned goddess, empress of ice, clad in crystal shards and too beautiful to be real. She burst into life before him, not truly free from his mind but extended into his body.

Quistis looked over and saw great billows of icy steam escaping his body, but she saw no Shiva. She yanked her whip back and ran. The beast followed her.

Right into the path of Squall's spell.

Only he could see the true form of his GF, but Quistis could clearly see the result of her magic.

The world around him froze as a blast of enormous, freezing, almost anti-energy burst forth from his body. Quistis, wrapped in Shiva's protective embrace, felt nothing at all. But she could behold the path of glowing blue ice shards impossibly set against the burning lava.

The beast let out a cry of agony as the ice wrapped around him. It froze him in place. It stilled his rapidly beating heart. He felt his soul chill from the impossible cold that was Shiva's ice.

Squall's hand closed as the energy ceased. He felt the ice like an extension of his arm. He knew exactly how and where to break it to do the most damage.

The crystals, so perfectly formed, shattered within and without of the beast GF's body. He cried out again as they ripped through his skin, through his heart, through his very spirit.

The shards swirled around, doing more damage as they melted away. Sharp and beautiful. Deadly cold so that it burned. The ultimate ice attack from the goddess of stillness. Diamond Dust.

As the last of the shards melted away, the great beast fell to his knees. Great heaving gasps came from his muzzle as the force of the attack, so opposite of his own power, overwhelmed him.

The pair stopped attacking then, waiting. If he gave up, it would be foolish to continue. They didn't want to keep attacking if he was near the end of his health. The point of this wasn't to kill him. And killing a GF was stupid anyway. It was not only a waste, it was dangerous.

All of the energy in their bodies had to go somewhere when they died, after all. It was usually an enormous explosion composed of their own energy. Squall would rather not die in a fiery ball of lava because he attacked this creature when he was near death.

Instead of surrendering though, the GF lifted its head and glared at him.

“They have Shiva?!” he growled loudly to no one.

You know him? Squall asked his mental companion. His only response was a shuddering of revulsion of the beast.

She knew him. She didn't like him.

Great. He was about to obtain a GF he couldn't even use. There was no way Shiva would be willing to share headspace with a creature of fire.

Well, he wasn't about to give up now. He only needed to obtain the GF, not use it.

He brought his blade back up as the beast got to his feet. The beast shook it's great head, regaining it's composure.

“Hmph! Not bad. For a human,” he growled, rotating his injured arm. Now coated in ice, there was no way it would be able to heal very quickly.

Squall gave him no reply. He continued to stand, ready. Quistis began rotating her whip slowly, putting momentum back into it so she could strike quickly.

The beast ignored her. Squall was his target now.

He charged forward, his massive feet kicking up rocks as his claws tore up the ground. He leapt clear over the burning hole that was his home and into the air.

Squall took a quick step back as the beast began descending on him. It's fist was pulled back, his muscles taut in preparation for landing the blow.

“Squall!” Quistis yelled out for him in worry.

He remained motionless. What was he doing?!

He was coming in closer. Like a meteor strike barreling down on him from the sky. Heat lines were blazing away from his fist like he was entering into the atmosphere.

Wait...

Wait...

“Squall!” Quistis shrieked, running towards him. Why wasn't he moving?!

Just a little closer...

“Impudent humans!” the beast roared.

NOW!

Squall dove to the side and rolled away neatly. He felt rather than saw the impact of the beast slamming into the ground. A shockwave hit his body as he came up again on his toes. Rocks and dust and debris flew and he brought up his blade to deflect the worse of it.

Snarling in rage at his quick evasion, the GF lifted his fist from the crater he had created. Rocks fell from his fist as his body shook from his fury.

“Quistis!” Squall ordered simply.

Her whip flew true and immediately. The blade of it embedded itself into the open wound on the beast's shoulder Squall had gauged out. His back arched as he roared his pain.

Squall charged. His foot slammed down as he brought his gunblade up. Halfway through the slash, he pulled the trigger. A shower of ice sparks hit the beast's fire body and he cried out.

Squall jumped back and charged again. Quistis jerked her whip away as Squall's limbs and blade began moving so fast she lost track of them both.

A silver and black blur as he began slashing in what seemed like a wild pattern but was actually a carefully coordinated and quickly planned series of moves designed specifically to attack open areas in an opponent's defense as the preceding attack opened them up.

The speed attack of gunblade mastery: Renzokuken.

Squall's penultimate slash went up and the beast fell back, breathing heavily. Squall turned to him again and brought the Revolver back.

His boot planted firmly on the ground. The tip of the gunblade sparked along the ground as he brought it up in a wide arc. The gun barrel went off and ice bullets pierced the beast's skin.

His newest attack, courtesy of Seifer. Rough Divide. Pure strength. Intended only to rip an enemy apart without the use of of magic or elements. The bullets carried those, and the weakness the GF bore to the ice in his gun made the attack hit harder.

Quistis let out a breath of awe as Squall fell back slightly. His blade still at the ready.

The GF shuddered once before collapsing down to his hands and knees. He was breathing hard again, shaking in cold from the ice bullets and shards coating his skin so thoroughly.

“For me to lose to a human...” he panted in surprise. His face came up and it was respect that blazed in his eyes, not defeat. “Very well. I will join you.”

Quistis beamed in delight as Squall sheathed his sword, satisfied.

“You may call me Ifrit, master,” he told him before his body disappeared into balls of blue and pink energy that raced into Squall's body.

“No, wait-!” Squall didn't get to stop him in time.

Ifrit's energy raced through his chest and up into his brain. Squall couldn't tell where he settled because immediately he felt a shriek of rage from Shiva that made him flinch in agony. The two opposing forces were not meant to coexist.

“Get out!” he ordered, reaching into his pocket quickly. An Odine Capsule, made to store magical energy, absorbed Ifrit as Squall quickly pushed him out of his mind.

The pain eased. Shiva's irritation did not.

Quistis was trying hard not to laugh as Squall shook his head. Those two were definitely not meant to inhabit the same space.

“Are you alright?” she asked behind her chuckle.

“...Fine,” Squall grumbled, looking at the metal capsule. A single golden ring around the center glowed to tell him that there was magic within. He didn't imagine Ifrit was happy to be stuffed inside, but he was definitely not carrying the two of them in his head at the same time.

He stowed it in his pocket as Quistis hit a timer on her watch. “Impressive. You finished with only three seconds to spare.”

“I finished with ten seconds to spare. You just didn't stop timing until now.”

She laughed. “Fair enough. Need any help with him?”

“I think I can handle it,” Squall murmured, stowing the capsule in his pocket. Though he wasn't entirely sure what he was going to do with a GF that Shiva would absolutely not stand for. At least with Quetzalcoatl she had only complained.

“Well, I can't give you an official report or even really disclose my feelings on your performance,” she smiled at him, crossing her arms as she pulled her whip back in, “but you can rest assured, I think, about this particular fight.”

Squall nodded once as he stretched out his body. A GF obtained, and he was none the worse for wear. A couple bruises and scratches and, since he had already applied a cure spell, those would probably be healed by the time he got back to garden.

“Shall we?” Quistis asked, stepping past him calmly. “Let's not forget that there's still monsters in this cave. The assignment is complete, but that's no reason to let your guard down."

He knew that. He turned and the two of them began jogging away from the heat of the heart of the Fire Cavern. Personally, he couldn't wait to get out.

And take a shower.


	3. Mission Briefing

“Squall.” Quistis frowned at him as the two of them walked down the long road that led to the front gates of the garden. They were well out of the forest now and could relax. The road between Balamb and Balamb Garden was guarded by SeeDs between missions. Mostly it was to protect citizens from Balamb who wanted to visit the school or for potential SeeD clients.

And because of that precaution, it was rare to be attacked on the roads. They could relax, stretch a bit and walk off the workout of fighting through to the Fire Cavern and back out again.

“Yes?” he responded without looking back at her.

“Aren't you forgetting something?”

Probably. It had happened before.

“What?”

“Ifrit. He was injured in your battle.”

“He was.” Get to the point. He was tired. He wanted to rest a bit before he had to gather for the field exam.

“Don't you need to take care of him?” Quistis frowned at his pocket where the capsule that held Ifrit was resting. “He's yours now. He depends on you to keep him healthy and happy. If you don't, he's never going to get better. If you don't junction him-”

“I know that.” Squall's eyes moved left as though he could see Shiva. “She refuses to get out of the way because she knows I want to junction him.”

“But Ifrit-”

“It's fine. I'll deal with it later. He won't die. I just need to reason with Shiva. Besides, she's more mine than Ifrit is. I only needed to obtain him. I don't have to keep him.”

He felt a fierce rush of agreement from Shiva. Something along the lines of throwing away the sulfur stinking, hairy beast. He had to remind her that throwing away his power was a complete waste. There were actions one could take in the event of coming across a GF that you couldn't or wouldn't use. He would simply need to figure out what Ifrit wouldn't mind doing.

Squall controlled Ifrit now. He could pass him off to anyone. But he wouldn't do that. He wanted to make sure that he gave Ifrit to someone that Ifrit would like. Someone that would care of Ifrit and take care of him well.

Ifrit was a responsibility. Even if Squall couldn't keep him, he had to make sure he was taken care of.

But Shiva was very territorial. She clung to his brain, tight and demanding. She hated the thought of anyone else taking space in his mind. Shiva spent a long time without a master simply because she didn't want anyone. Now that she had accepted someone, she absolutely refused to share or give him up with or to any other GF.

That didn't absolve his responsibility though. If she wouldn't let him use Ifrit, then he had to find someone who would care for him and do it in his place.

Quistis smiled at him because she was sure that Squall wasn't going to let Ifrit waste away. He would never shirk his duties like that. He was responsible and dependable.

“You know, Squall, I can't really say this, but I have good feelings about your SeeD exam.”

Squall said nothing, but she knew he was listening. He didn't have it in him to ignore someone.

“I know what it takes to be a SeeD, from both sides of the test, and I know you better than anyone. I just know you're going to pass this with flying colors.”

Squall's eyes moved over as if to look at her. He wasn't sure what to say about that. At Shiva's insistence that it was correct, he decided a thank you would suffice.

“Thanks.”

Quistis beamed as they came under the shadow of the garden gate.

“Excellent work today, Squall,” she praised as they came to a halt. “I have to go give my report on your performance, but you can rest assured that it's a good one. You've still got time, so you can rest up if you want. Just don't be late. The assembly at the first floor lobby is going to be at 1600 sharp and not a minute later. Oh, and you have to wear your uniform. I also shouldn't be saying this, but you're going to a battle zone as part of the garden army. There's no need for street clothes. You need to be in uniform to identify yourself amongst the battlefield.”

Squall frowned, leaning back to look at her. “That seems a bit...excessive. Are you sure you're supposed to be divulging that much to me, instructor? My initial field exam instructions already told me to wear my uniform. I don't need details about it.”

Quistis waved his worry away. “It's not that big of a deal. You probably could have figured it out just based on what you already know.”

Squall continued to frown at her, one hand to his hip. Seifer had bragged to him before training last night about the large scale field exam. It was in a briefing given to those on exam waiting lists this morning, but he had found out about it by eavesdropping on two SeeDs talking the night before.

However, Squall had already known about it. Quistis had dully informed him almost immediately after it was decided that the mission, whatever it was – he would be told when he needed to know – would be a massive SeeD exam. And he didn't think she was supposed to cheat the system and give him extra information about it.

“Go,” Quistis shooed him away with a grin. “I have to go get changed myself. I'll see you at 1600.”

Squall said nothing as she walked past him and back into the garden.

Sometimes, he wondered about her.

None of his business. It wasn't his place to judge others. He shrugged and started back as well. He still wanted to clean the Revolver before he had to leave. No doubt it was covered in ash and soot. A weapon was an extension of a SeeD. He had to make sure it was in just as pristine condition as his body.

Squall's roommate was a medic class student. He rarely came back to the dorms and, when he was back, he was locked in his room with a book and and notepad. Being a medic was less physically demanding than being a fighter, but it required a great deal more mental training. Being a medic SeeD was even more difficult to accomplish and that's what Squall's roommate wanted to be. Because of that, he was rarely ever there.

So, for all intents and purposes, Squall had his own room.

A regulation bed. The case for his blade. Study material set into his in-wall bookshelf. There was nothing decorative, nothing useless. Even his workaholic roommate hung up pictures of his family in Balamb. Squall had nothing but basic essentials.

His school uniform was hung above his window on a hook meant for curtains. Curtains he saw no need for and closet space that was better put to use holding his equipment. He kept extra ammo, magic capsules, his very first, trainee gunblade with no real blade among another such things inside. The first gunblade was the only thing he possessed that could be considered decorative. He didn't keep it for sentimentality though. If he ever made SeeD he might very well be called upon to instruct cadets who desired to learn the gunblade and the trainee blade would be useful then.

Squall set his gunblade upon his bed and slid his jacket from his shoulders. Doing so revealed five red marks around his waist where Ifrit's claws had pierced his flesh.

His gloves joined his jacket on his bed. His hands reached under the hem of his white tank top and lifted it up over his head revealing his perfectly healed skin under the holes in his top.

He made a face at the rips in the fabric and tossed it onto the bed. His line of work was not friendly on fabric. He had extras and, looking at the damage, he was relatively certain that the holes could be sewn closed without looking odd.

He lifted his arms over his head, stretching out his muscles. Hid body was well sculpted and carefully cared for. The scar across his face was among the few he had. Though he had obtained many wounds in his life, in his many monster hunts most of the time he had cure spells aplenty that he could cast upon himself after being hit. The few scars he did have had happened before he had mastered magic or when he had run out of spells and needed to wait to see Dr. Kadowaki.

His street clothes would need to be washed. First though, he needed to be washed. Squall grabbed his uniform from the wall and the drawer of his bedside table and left his chambers.

SeeD members had their own bathroom. Cadets had to share communal bathing areas. Besides breaking them of any body shyness that might hinder their work in the field, the communal bathrooms also taught them to make do with less.

A quick shower later, Squall walked back into his room with a towel over his head and his uniform on but for his jacket which was held loosely in his hand. Shiva was complaining about him taking a hot shower after being in a Fire Cavern. Then again, she always complained when he didn't take an icy cold shower.

He let her complaints fall over him without responding to them.

He tossed the towel onto his bed and his damp hair fell into his eyes. Alone now, where no one could watch and judge him, he reached up and touched the scar across his face.

Though he only received it last night, it felt weeks old. It didn't hurt at all any longer. It marked up his face in a most unattractive way. Like a crease in an otherwise perfect sheet of paper. Not that he thought his appearance perfect, but the scar marred an otherwise symmetrical face. A mark of his own failure in battle.

Though Squall would never admit it allowed, he didn't like the mark. He didn't like that it brought attention to his face. That people would see and whisper and wonder about it. Seifer would brag his own stories, of course, but Squall would not. People would know to take Seifer's words with a grain of salt and they would make up their own theories.

He didn't like that. He didn't like that they would now talk about him. What they would think.

He didn't realize until he felt a rush of comforting emotions from Shiva that she had stopped complaining and was now listening in on his thoughts.

Frowning, not liking even her to hear him say such things even mentally, he banished the thoughts from his brain. He jerked his jacket on over the white top as Shiva pretended to be very focused on complaining about things again.

He spent longer cleaning his blade than he had cleaning himself. And with the sword strapped back to his waist, he stepped from his room. He had planned out his time carefully, and he was officially out of it.

The students that normally populated the central nexus of the garden weren't around. The SeeDs between missions were probably accompanying the cadets as support. The cadets not going on the field exam were trying to stay out of the way of those that were.

As Squall came around to the front of the garden, towards the directory, he saw Quistis standing there already waiting for him. She had a clipboard in hand, her glasses back on her nose, and her whip at the hip of her uniform skirt.

She beamed upon catching sight of him. “Squall! Over here! Most of the squads are already formed. You're right on time though.”

As planned. Squall stopped in front of her as she smiled and checked the board.

“Let me see...Your squad mate is...Zell Dincht. Quite a lively fellow.”

“Lively?” That was a word for it, Squall grumbled to himself, his hand going to his waist. He really would rather not be dealing with him. Dincht was not known for being professional or discreet. If it weren't for his raw power and skill, Squall wouldn't be sure how he had progressed this far in training as to be able to qualify to take the field exam.

“He's just loud. Can't I switch members?”

“I'm afraid that's not possible. Team assignments are non-negotiable.”

Thank Hyne SeeD grading was individual and not team based.

“Over here, Zell!” Quistis called out to the group of cadets waiting for assignment.

Squall turned, already fairly certain of what he would see. Though Zell wasn't in his class, his hyperactivity and spastic personality were legend.

His shoes squeaking against the smooth marble floor of the garden, Zell was pantomiming what appeared to be a rather over dramatic battle against a rather weak enemy. His blonde hair was slicked up in the front. His uniform was rolled up at the sleeves. Most unprofessionally of all, there was an elaborate, vibrantly black, tribal design tattoo across his left cheek. He was certainly never one who would be in stealth and spy courses.

Upon hearing Quistis call out his name, his battle came to an abrupt end. Then, apparently for no other reason but to show off, he began backflipping over to the two of them.

Oh, I really hope he doesn't do that often, Squall thought to himself.

Zell landed the series rather perfectly and came up with a grin and thumb up as though he had been asked to perform that stunt.

His expression faded though when he saw Squall standing there. His hand dropped and he actually took a step back in surprise as his jaw fell open.

“Whoa! I'm with you!?” he gasped out.

Before Squall could ask him if that was a problem, or Quistis could tell him the team assignments were not subject to change, he broke out into a wide grin.

“YES-S-S!” He threw his fist into the air. “I got Squall! Awesome!”

Squall frowned at him, but before he could ask what that meant, Zell started talking again.

“Man, this is going to be great. Hey, hey. You don't get along with Seifer, do you?” he smirked at him. “Heard he whooped you pretty bad this morning. Is that scar his handiwork?

“We weren't fighting. We were training.” Really, with Seifer, was there a difference?

Zell snorted with a smirk. “I bet you he doesn't think so. Look, Seifer's just being a pain in the ass. All you have to do is ignore him.”

Why was everyone telling him that lately? He might accept it from Dr. Kadowaki. She was older and wiser and she had been treating him kindly for a long time. He absolutely refused to take it from Zell Dincht of all people.

“That's none of your-”

“-business,” Quistis finished with a grin and Squall didn't resist the urge to give her a look this time. He really didn't like this new habit of hers.

She cleared her throat, looking between them with laughter in her eyes like she knew a secret that they didn't. “Excuse me, but...That Seifer you're talking about...” She giggled a bit to herself. “He's your squad leader.”

Zell looked like he might have been physically struck.

“Say what?!” he yelled loudly in dismay.

Of course he was, Squall thought to himself.

“It can't be changed,” she replied immediately and robotically. “Seifer! Are you here?”

Seifer, still wearing his silver trench coat and baggy pants, strutted forward with a grin. He hadn't changed for the exam. Squall didn't imagine he even had an official garden uniform. He wore his new scar with pride like it was years old. He didn't even glance at Squall as he came forward.

Two steps behind him, like his personal shadows and valets, were his...whatever they were. Squall wasn't sure what to call them. Friend might be close. Cult members might be closer. They practically worshiped the ground Seifer walked on. Probably why they got along with Seifer since he thought the ground he walked on was holy for him walking on it.

Raijin, a strong man who specialized with a weighted staff. He was carrying Seifer's Hyperion in its case like a servant and he was grinning. Next to him, the silver haired, one eyed Fujin was staring between Squall and Zell like she smelled something unpleasant.

Both of them were excellent fighters. They could probably easily make SeeD. However, they wouldn't even try to apply for SeeD before Seifer made it. Loyalty or cult like fanaticism or whatever, they would never join SeeD before Seifer.

Together, the three of them made up the disciplinary committee. They were in charge of keeping the garden peaceful and ordered. Squall could admit that they did a fine job of it, but they were probably a little over eager about their task.

“Seifer,” Quistis nodded to him in greeting. “You're the squad leader. Good luck to you.”

Seifer smirked at her confidently. “Instructor,” his voice was honeyed and amused. “I hate it when people wish me luck. Save those words for a bad student that needs them, eh?”

“Ok then,” she nodded obligingly. Her head moved deliberately and her eyes fixed firmly on him, her expression serious. “Good luck, Seifer.”

Seifer's reaction was like she had just slapped him. Rage crossed over his features before he was able to school them back into a more acceptable expression. He snapped his fingers to his friends – followers? – and his voice was cold when he said, “Add Instructor Trepe to the list!”

The list? Squall blinked, confused. What list?

Grinning, as though pleased he were angry at her, Quistis continued in instructor mode. “Well then. You're all assigned to Squad B. I'll be the instructor in charge. Don't forget, teamwork is of the utmost importance. You all know this. Following your leader's orders is top priority, and your leader following his orders even more so. Let's just get through this exam, everyone!”

“Listen up!” Seifer snapped at Zell and Squall both. “'Teamwork' means staying out of my way. It's a Squad B rule. Don't you forget it!”

Quistis shook her head as Zell snarled at him. She couldn't help but think that maybe Squall was right about team re-assignments. She was going to have a headache dealing with Seifer.

“Everyone here?”

Though the voice that called out was soft and friendly, it cut through the tension like a knife. It came from a man that didn't appear to have ever been in a battle in his life. Even if he had been, he was far past his prime now. His body had softened, his hair was mostly gray, and he had to squint through his glasses. He was such a fatherly figure that he would probably be more at home in a cozy parlor with a newspaper and his grandchildren playing at his feet.

Squall, Zell, and Quistis all stood a little straighter as he came forward. Even Seifer fell silent before him.

Headmaster Cid.

“It's been awhile, everyone,” he said, a friendly smile on his face as though they were meeting over tea rather than a military debriefing. “How's everyone doing?” he asked, beaming around as though expecting them to answer in turn.

He was a friendly older man that, despite his position of headmaster of the infamous Balamb Garden, had never seen combat before. He probably expected just that.

Quistis smiled at him. She adored how fatherly he was. Zell waved, he liked how friendly he was. Squall nodded to him, respecting his position and what he had built. Seifer smirked, respecting the power that he held over all of them despite his physical inferiority.

He grinned back at the group. No matter what today's outcome, he was proud of all of them for even making it this far. He nodded once and started into his speech. It was half pre-prepared. But it was also improvised because he couldn't keep to a script.

“This exam will involve 12 cadets through Squads A through D. You will be proceeding to a real battlefield. Obviously, the battles are for real.”

He beamed and threw out his hands, getting into it. “Life and death, victory and defeat, honor and disgrace. Each of these go hand in hand. There's only one way or the other. How 'bout it? Are you still up for it?”

He looked across all of their faces, as if searching for any indecision. He stopped for just a second on Squall's face. His lips twitched just a bit more and Squall blinked, confused.

“You will be accompanied by nine SeeD members,” Headmaster Cid continued. “Should you fail, these members shall get the job done. They always do. Well, that's one less worry on your mind.”

He beamed and stared over their heads where other instructors were gathering their cadets. “The pride of Balamb Garden! The elite mercenary force, SeeD! Learn from them, obey their commands, and accomplish the mission. Today is your chance to prove yourself worthy of becoming a member of SeeD. Best of luck. To you all.”

It was as clear a dismissal as they had ever heard. Squall turned to walk away, Seifer already strutting forward. Zell was practically skipping, pumped up by Headmaster Cid's speech. He waved to a couple stray students as they walked to the parking lot.

Squall heard a couple people wishing him well, he kept his eyes forward.

The garden vehicle taking them to Balamb was already revved up and ready for them. The three of them plus Quistis, their supervisor, climbed into the back and it pulled out. The driver was quiet and professional as he took it out onto the road.

Seifer was relaxing with his feet up. Zell was twitching with excitement. Quistis was seated, poised and perfect. Across from her, Squall was silent and staring down at the floor. He didn't know where he was going yet, so he was junctioning Shiva with some simple, mass effective spells.

“Yo, Squall,” Zell spoke up suddenly, grinning at him. “Show me your gunblade, will ya?”

“...”

Zell frowned at his silence. “C'mon, man!”

“...”

He lifted his hands and held them together, begging. “Just a peek!”

“...”

“Tch, fine,” he grumbled, turning away from him. “Yeah, yeah.” He sighed. “Man, why you bein' so selfish?! Scro-o-oge!”

“...” Why was Zell talking to him? Didn't he know that extraneous talking resulted in point deductions for this exam? They were supposed to be being professional and-

-he just realized who he was talking about.

“Say somethin', will ya?!” Zell shook his head as though Squall's silence was baffling. “W-What's on your mind?”

Really, he should give him something just to silence him before he talked himself into failing this exam.

“Nothing.”

“Nothing,” Quistis said with him, snickering to herself.

How long was she going to keep doing that?

Zell looked between Quistis and Squall, confused. But at least he was silent.

Instead of trying to work out their dual reply, he stood up. He needed to work off some of this nervous energy. He was about to take the biggest test of his life. How was he supposed to be remaining calm and stoic?

Figuring it wouldn't hurt any, and needing to get rid of this excess excitement, he stood up and began shadow boxing at the wall.

Zell knew he wasn't the talent that Squall and Seifer were. As much as he hated Seifer, he could admit that he was skilled with his sword. And Squall was such a good student that there had been people begging to be on his squad before the exam. Zell hadn't been among them, but that was mostly because team assignments had been decided in the morning when Zell had been in the hotdog line trying – and failing – to get some food for the day.

Despite his shortcomings though, Zell was strong. Raw strength, power, and the ability to fight without a weapon were what set Zell apart. He was a weapon specialist without a weapon. He could never be disarmed without being literally disarmed. And he practiced his craft religiously. To make up for his faults, he made sure he was stronger than anyone.

“Stop that,” Seifer snapped at him suddenly, his voice deadpan. “It's annoying.”  
Immediately, Zell was irritated. He turned, bringing up his fist as though he were resisting the urge to punch Seifer right there. And, honestly he was.

As though he could see that, Seifer grinned at him. “Chicken-wuss.”

“Ch-?! WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?!” Zell roared furiously as Seifer laughed at him.

Quistis got to her feet, glaring between them angrily. “Knock it off!”

Seifer fell silent obligingly, but he kept smirking. Zell dropped down to his seat, snarling. Quistis fell back onto her own seat, glaring between the two of them.

Well, since it was already bedlam in here anyway, he might as well satisfy his own curiosity.

“Instructor,” Squall started calmly, looking up. “Who was that girl in the infirmary this morning?”

Quistis frowned, bringing her hand to her chin, thinking. She thought back. “Was someone there? I didn't notice anybody.” Honestly, she had been a little preoccupied watching Squall. She hadn't given much thought to her surroundings. “Is there a problem?”

“No.” She recognized him. He didn't like the way she had looked at him. “Not really.”

Seifer was laughing again. Hopelessly this time. “This is great. Just great. I have a chick-wuss and a guy who just reached puberty in my squad...”

Zell was mad, Quistis dropped her head to her hand. Squall was trying to take Dr. Kadowaki's advice and ignore him. Really, it wasn't like he was doing anything bad. He was just annoying.

And, in ignoring him for the first time, Squall felt something strange for a moment.

Indifference.

He didn't care. He didn't care what Seifer was saying. It didn't even really matter. He was probably only saying it to get a rise out of Squall and it wasn't even like it was true.

He was never going to admit to Dr. Kadowaki that she might be right about this.

***

The port town of Balamb was an incredibly peaceful place. It might be the comforting presence of the ocean. It might be that it was a small town and the people were just simply that nice. It might also be that the proximity to Balamb Garden meant that no one was willing to risk SeeD coming out to break up any trouble.

Either way, it was a serene sort of place. In driving through it, Squall could see the happy, curious people out of the window like he was seeing into a different world. What completely different lives he and they lived.

He wondered if theirs was as boring as it looked through the window.

The car drove to the pier, having followed the other vehicles. It pulled to a halt and Squall, closest to the door, was the first out.

The salty breeze coming off of the ocean hit his face. There was a squad of SeeD members standing at the pier, before the open door of the water speeder.

“That's the vessel?” Squall asked, his eyes moving out to the horizon where the other speeders were already rushing off to their destination.

He didn't imagine that their mass field exam would be in Balamb, but he thought they might be taking a train. If they were going by sea, then there was really only one likely place they would be heading.

“Ain't no turning back now.”

Behind Squall, Seifer stepped out of the vehicle. He took a deep breath of the sea air and his eyes lit up with the thrill of the coming battle. He looked over to Squall and grinned. “You scared, too?”

Scared? No. Not really. Focused was a better word. He didn't want to think about it.

“Hey!” One of the SeeD's jogged their direction and waved them forward. “You guys are the last! Hurry up and get in!”

“Don't disappoint me now!” Seifer laughed like they were friends. He smacked Squall against the shoulder as he ran off to board the vessel.

And what did that mean? Squall just didn't understand people.

“Come on, move it!” Quistis ordered as she ran to join her squad. “Hurry, Squall!”

Squall chased after her and Zell. He ran past the SeeD's gathered and down into the water speeder. He cleared the doorway and it closed behind him not a second later. The driver of this vehicle, ready to go, pulled off immediately and they rushed off into the water.

Squall had barely sat down when another SeeD member walked down into the passenger compartment.

Xu was a legend in the garden. The oldest SeeD that remained at the garden, talented and experienced beyond compare, and with unquestioned loyalty. Xu was a bit of a mystery. She no longer went on field assignments. She worked most closely with the headmaster himself. She trained cadets and oversaw the missions going on all over the world. No one knew what weapon she used, though the fanciful minded members of garden liked to say she could kill a man with a look.

Squall didn't know anything about that. He did respect her abilities though and, through the years, he had learned a great deal from her.

As she stepped from the cockpit into the passenger compartment, Quistis stood and they saluted each other in greeting.

“Hi, Quistis,” Xu greeted her like an old friend.

“Well, these are the members of Squad B,” she motioned to the three cadets.

“Nice to meet ya!” Zell jumped up eagerly to greet her.

Squall stood more calmly and saluted respectfully. “Pleased to meet you.”

Xu nodded to him before her eyes moved around his body to where Seifer was relaxing quite at his leisure still in his seat.

“Seifer,” she grinned at him sardonically, “how many times has it been now?”

“Oh, I just love these exams...” he said grandly like it might actually be true.

Squall resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Everyone knew that Seifer had been applying to join SeeD ever since he reached the minimum application age of fifteen. It was also well known that he hadn't managed to pass a single one. SeeD exam results weren't made public. The only one who got to see it was the cadet in question. And since Seifer would never admit to a fault, it was likely that no one would ever know the exact reason he had failed time after time.

But his inability to submit to authority, his selfish recklessness, and act-first attitude probably did not help his score.

Xu didn't have to resist the urge to roll her eyes at him. She gave up on trying to talk to him and walked past the seats to the screen at the front of the ship.

“I'll explain the current situation and the mission,” she told them as she turned. “Be seated! Our client for this mission is the Dollet Dukedom Parliament.”

As she spoke, a map of the country came up on the screen. It zoomed in on the city as she continued.

“A request for SeeD was made 18 hours ago. Dollet has been under attack by the G-Army since about 72 hours ago. 49 hours into the battle, Dollet abandoned their position in the inner city. Currently, they have retreated into the nearby mountains and are re-organizing their troops. That's the current status.”

It was unusual for a country to hire so many SeeDs as to form an army, even a back up one. Dollet wasn't exactly a rich country either.

Thinking about it, that's probably why this was a mass field exam. Cadets on exam were hired out for a fraction of the price since they weren't full fledged SeeD members. The savings Dollet would have made in agreeing to it being an exam were probably staggering.

“Now onto the mission objective,” Xu continued as the map changed and arrows defining the G-Army, Dollet, and now garden troops changed with it. “According to our reports, the G-Army is mopping up the Dollet troops in the mountain region. We're to make a landing at Lapin Beach. We're to eliminate the remaining G-Army within the city and liberate it ASAP. Afterwards, SeeD members will intercept any G-Army forced trying to make their way into the city from the mountain region.”

Seemed fairly straightforward, Squall thought to himself.

“So, what are we supposed to do?” Seifer asked as though her debriefing was irritating.

“SeeD candidates are to eliminate the G-Army inside the city,” she essentially repeated.

“Sounds important!” Zell declared, getting pumped for the assignment.

“Sounds boring,” Seifer countered with a sneer. “So, what you're saying is, we're going to be doing all the little dirty work...”

Zell made a face at him as Xu stared off at nothing. She sighed.

“Oh, it hardly needs to be said, but...” she took a breath and resumed her professional tone. “The order to withdraw takes priority. Do not forget. We're going to be arriving soon. Anticipate a battle as soon as we disembark. Just be prepared. That's all. Any questions, feel free to talk to Quistis.”

Zell and Quistis made way for her again so she could return to the cockpit. Probably trying to get away from Seifer. Squall couldn't blame her.

Squall remained silent. He understood. And with Xu in the next room, he dared not ask another question of anyone. Quistis might not dock him points, but Xu definitely would.

“So, basically,” Seifer translated when the cockpit door closed behind Xu, “all you boys have to do is take orders from me. The captain.”

Quistis frowned at him and Squall wondered about his chances of even surviving this exam, much less passing it.

Zell blew out a deep breath, shaking again from the excitement.

“It's my first real battle,” he said aloud. “I'm getting' pretty nervous.”

Seifer smirked at him. “Better not piss your pants.”

“Hah?!” Zell snarled at him. “You talkin' to me?” Zell was beginning to wonder about Seifer's chances of returning to Garden alive from this exam because he much very well kill him.

Seifer laughed at his anger and Zell snarled.

“...Bastard!”

“Ok,” Quistis cut the two of them off with a stern glare. “Enough talk. We'll be landing pretty soon. Get ready.”

“Roger,” Zell nodded once, nervous but ready.

“Alright,” Squall murmured, ready for it to get started already.

“Yeah, yeah...” Seifer waved her words away. Her grinned over at Squall, rather annoyed by how unaffected he was by everything going on around him right now.

“Well then, Squall,” he said, wanting to get under his skin. “Go see what's going on outside.”

For a moment, Squall considered mutiny. He didn't want to obey an order that was clearly just an attempt to irritate him.

But it would be mutiny. As much as Seifer was abusing his power, he was still captain. As captain, Squall had to obey his orders. Being in SeeD was about obeying client orders even when they were clearly bad ideas. Even if they were done to annoy. As much as he might not like it, he had to obey the foolish command.

“Ok.”  
“Good,” he said, smug and satisfied. “Because it's my order.”

Quistis made a face at him as Squall stood and moved to climb out to the top of the water speeder.  
Dollet, like Balamb, was a port town. It was a hub for artists and gamblers. While not nearly so serene as Balamb, it was still apparently a pleasant place to live.

As Squall stepped out onto the top deck of the speeder, he brought with him a photo of the city and a transparency that folded over it showing the attack point and directionality. The photo was taken before the attack and depicted a city built from earth tone bricks alongside a peaceful long beach.  
When Squall lowered the photo, it was anything but.

Explosion burned through the air, gunshots echoed, and the screams of the dying and fighting to live carried out far across the water. Brown stone was being stained black from gunpowder and fire. The beach was outright destroyed.

Squall took in a deep breath, casting his eyes up towards the full moon for just a moment.

Finally. It felt like he had been waiting for this for far too long.

His SeeD exam.


	4. The Field Exam

Squall had fought monsters countless times. He had trained with SeeDs and cadets nearly every day of his life since he had first picked up a weapon. And fighting with Seifer was never training so much as it was a struggle to survive the moment. SeeD training gave a great deal of emphasis on teamwork and being prepared for anything a battle might through at you. It was a program intentionally designed to numb them to fighting against humans and monsters alike.

Despite all his years of exhaustive training though, Squall still felt a sliver of apprehension as the water speeder rushed through the waves.

He was back in the passenger hold, standing at the ready with Seifer and Zell. The latter of whom appeared eager and nervous. The former looked disturbingly hungry. Squall was trying to ignore that look on his face, brought into sharp relief by the low light.

The speeder gave a great lurch and they heard the distinct crunch and screech of rock and metal shattering. Squall got his footing back as they bobbed almost erratically in the water. Then the shift of sand and the cabin steadied as the speeder drove right up on the beach.

Quistis was already at the entrance, pressing a button to open the outer bay doors. Seifer was out first, Squall and Zell just a step behind him.

Quistis and Xu stepped out. The latter jumped down onto the sand and saluted Quistis before running off. She wasn't going to join the battle. She was one of the deciding factors in who did or did not pass the SeeD exam. She had to observe everything.

Quistis would not be accompanying them either. She threw out her arm, indicating to the far steps as she yelled over the noise of battle, “You three are to secure the Central Square. Don't forget to equip your GF properly before you head into battle!”

“Let's move out,” Seifer called excitedly.

Zell fell in line behind Squall rather than Seifer. Seifer ran ahead, disregarding his team. Squall chased after his commanding officer, his face set in a neutral expression.

The metal and stone staircase leading down to the beach had already been secured by Squad A. Squad B, Seifer furiously leading the charge up, took the stairs two at a time to reach the top.

There were already G-Army soldiers there trying to hold off this new and unexpected wave of attack from an enemy they did not know was coming.

“Dollet reinforcements?” Squall heard one ask as he lifted his standard issue G-Army saber. A rather boring, weak weapon when compared to his Revolver.

“Let's do this!” Zell laughed, charging forward.

It was a rather small group of soldiers. Squad A had already done most of the damage. Each of them had a man all to themselves.

Squall stepped up to his and noted the patch on his blue uniform marking him as captain of this particular group. Though his eyes were covered, Squall could see his snarl.

“You just picked the wrong fight,” he laughed.

Seifer was already playing with his own target, dancing around him and making sure that his hits never landed hard enough to bring to rapidly panicking soldier down. To Squall's other side, Zell was ducking and trading blows using only his fists. There were metal plates in his gloves that allowed him to deflect sword blows, but he seemed to be moving rather slow to Squall's eye.

Not his problem for a moment.

Squall caught the captain's sword against his own and the man snarled.

“You're just a kid!” he snapped, angry at seeing Squall's youthful face up close.

Squall couldn't help it. It was kind of funny. He grinned and was rewarded with a growl of rage from his opponent.

He twisted his blade, knocking the captain's to the side. Before he could recover, Squall kicked out and planted his boot square against his chest. The man fell back, grunting in surprise and pain at the strength of the blow.

“NO!” The soldier fighting Seifer was backing away rapidly on his hands and bottom. He was shaking, bleeding, his weapon had been knocked away. “I-It's SeeD!”

“What?” The captain's eyes went big as Squall stepped in closer. “SeeD?!”

Squall didn't respond to him. He pulled back his blade and took out the captain with a single swipe. The first human life he had ever taken. SeeD training was already in full effect. He felt nothing but the adrenalin pumping quickly through his veins.

He turned to look at Zell even as Seifer was running away from his victim, looking for his next taste of real battle.

Zell ducked and dodged under the slashes of his opponent. The soldier was getting tired while it seemed that Zell was only getting faster.

A long swing down. Zell ducked under the soldier. When he came up again, it was with the man's body. He brought it back down to the ground and Squall heard a crack as his helmet hit upon the cobblestone ground. He didn't move again as Zell came back up.

“Nothin' to it!” Zell gave him a thumbs up.

“Is that a burn mark?” Squall asked, frowning at his sleeve.

“Oh, yeah,” Zell laughed. “G-Army regulation fire spell. I put it out though. You know, you don't really believe that dropping and rolling will actually work until it does.”

“Why haven't you cast a cure spell on it?”

“Yeah, that kind of reminds me. Can you do me a team solid and cast one on me?”

“You don't have any?” Squall frowned. Cure spells were basic equipment!

“It's not that I don't have any,” Zell scratched his head. “It's that I don't have...” he trailed off, mumbling something that Squall couldn't hear over the gunfire.

“Don't have what?”

“I don't have a GF, alright?” Zell looked away, shamed.

Squall blinked. “That's not possible. You needed to obtain one as your prerequisite.”

“Yeah, and I did. But it's a defensive GF! It doesn't even accept magic junctioning. It's too low level. I turned it into the garden faculty for re-purposing to trainees because it was so useless.”

Squall frowned at him for only a moment as Squad A ran up the stairs. It would be their job to hold this place now that Squad B had cleared it of enemies.

“You gonna make fun of me?” Zell asked, glaring at him slightly.

In response, Squall reached into the pants pocket of his uniform. He pulled out Ifrit's Odine Capsule and tossed it over to Zell. He caught it neatly and frowned at it.

“What's this?”

“His name is Ifrit. He's the GF I obtained for my prerequisite at the Fire Cavern.”

“What?!” Zell's eyes went big as he held the tiny, marble sized capsule in two hands now as though he were afraid to drop it. “This is the GF from the Fire Cavern?! But no one could claim him!”

“Let's go!” Squall motioned to him, running past the city gates. They still needed to accomplish their mission.

“W-Wait a minute!” Zell jogged up to him, still staring at the capsule. “You're giving me this?”

“I'm letting you borrow it,” Squall corrected, his eyes scanning for enemies. “If you can use him in this battle and take care of him, I'll probably let you keep him though. If he's okay with it.”

“But...” Zell shook his head, his fist closing on the capsule. “You had to fight really hard for this guy, right? Why would you give him away?”

“I can't use him because of Shiva.” Squall tapped his head where he could feel the ice queen agreeing vehemently with his decision to give Ifrit away. “They don't get along and their elemental affinities are opposites. I can't even junction him for power. You may, if he let's you.”

Zell fell silent for a moment, staring at the capsule. As they were coming up on the pub, Zell pressed the release on the marble sized orb. It burst open and Ifrit's energy sank down into Zell's arm. He smiled as he felt warmth spread up from his hand and up into his brain. He settled into place at the base of Zell's skull and immediately Zell felt warmer. And it felt good.

Ifrit was feeling him as curiously as Zell was and the two of them recognized raw power in each other. It burned through one another, tying them together. Zell grinned as he felt the strength of his limbs starting to climb in response to the new tenant of his mind.

“Oh, yeah,” he grinned, sliding to a stop behind Squall who had stopped upon seeing Squad C through the window of the pub. They were pointing up and saying something he couldn't hear over the battle and through the glass.

He got the general understanding though and his eyes moved up in time to see the G-Army soldiers positioned on the second story walkway jumping down to land at their level.

“Hey, Squall,” Zell stepped forward, smiling at his comrade. “Allow me. I want to get feeling for this new GF.”

“Be my guest,” Squall gestured to the two men.

“They SeeDs, too?” one of the soldiers asked the other, frowning.

“I told you, they're just cadets! Look at their uniform! Stop being a coward and fight!” The other, wearing a captain's patch similar to the Squall's last opponent, snapped to his companion.

“Don't worry,” Zell grinned, stretching out his wrists. “I'm going to be SeeD by the end of the day.”

Squall hung back, silent as Zell lifted his fists into a fighting stance.

Zell had held exactly two GFs in his life. Both of them were low level, defensive GF. The kind of GF that was given to trainees in order to instruct them on how to equip a GF and junction magic. The kind that was returned to the garden staff by the end of the year.

Ifrit was definitely not one of their kind.

The beast of fire. Primal and earthy. As Zell hastily threw some spells onto his power, Ifrit took them in gladly and grew only stronger. The metal and leather of Zell's gauntlets started steaming in the suddenly cool Dollet air as Ifrit's power soaked through his body and into his veins.

This was what being a GF user was all about. This raw power and strength that came with sharing your magic and mind with the guardian forces.

Zell let out a breath that steamed in the air as the soldiers charged at him.

The first swing bounced neatly off of his gauntlets. The second from the captain flew over his head as he dropped low. He came up again and his fist connected with the captains gut. The man spit up as he fell back from Zell's punch.

Laughing with the sheer amount of power running through him, Zell turned eagerly to fall into a fight with the next soldier.

Squall stood back, arms crossed as he mentally critiqued Zell's performance. It wasn't his place, of course, to judge him. However, he wanted to see how his combat skills would increase now that he had a proper, offensive GF to supplement his own natural abilities.

The slowness that Squall had noted before was gone now. With the fire beast powering his movements, Zell was now moving at a speed more suited to a SeeD cadet. The blows landed harder and with the distinct scent of burning metal, fabric, or flesh depending on where he struck.

Zell would earn no points for professionalism. However, Squall could see a absolutely no flaws in his combat ability as he took on the pair of soldiers.

It was a quick fight. The first man, the lower ranked soldier, was felled by a backhanded blow to his head. He collapsed, his helmet smoking and his body unmoving.

The C.O., who a moment ago had been yelling at his man to cease his cowardice, was shaking and sputtering as he backed away.

Zell didn't let him take more than few steps. He ran forward, grasped the man by the neck. He jerked him up into the sky and then slammed him bodily into the ground. Squall wasn't sure if he heard bones or cobblestone cracking but the captain didn't move again either.

Zell stood back up straight, his breath still steaming as his inspiration rate increased from exertion. He grinned and looked at his own smoking gauntlets.

“Now this is what I call a GF. And it's considered low level? HA!”

Squall stepped forward as the smoking and steaming eased as Ifrit's presence pulled back into Zell's mind. The fire would still be burning under the surface, but Zell didn't show it any longer.

“I can't believe you're wanting to give him up!” Zell gushed, wondering how he was possibly going to give this marvelous creature back.

“I can't use him. Ergo, he's useless. Why keep something useless?” Squall asked.

“Well, yeah, technically, but-”

“Forget it.” Squall stepped around him and pointed up the street where Seifer had run off to just a moment ago. “We need to catch back up with our captain.”

“Ugh,” Zell made a face.

“What?”

“Can you not refer to him as 'captain'? I'd rather you not add to his already over-inflated ego.”

“Let's just go,” Squall said before jogging off. He was of a mind to agree with Zell, but it was still his place to follow orders as a potential SeeD member.

As they ran further up main street, following the curve of the road, they spotted Seifer. He was standing still. And for a moment Squall wondered if he had waited for them.

Before he had time to tell himself that that was a foolish thought, Seifer pulled back his blade and drove it forward. A loud grunt of pain echoed just before a G-Army soldier collapsed over on the ground, his blood pooling from the wound in his chest.

Seifer heard their footsteps and turned, a grin on his face. A drop of blood slid from Hyperion's length and splattered against the cobblestone.

“Did you boys hang back to have a tea party?” he asked, grinning at them.

Zell was already growling but Squall said nothing. Exam time. No point in responding now.

Seifer didn't wait for a response. He turned, throwing back the long tail of his coat as he did so and pointed with Hyperion down the street.

“The Central Square is just up ahead. Hey! All you Galbadian cowards out there! Come out'n show your faces! Don't leave me hangin' now!”

Laughing strangely, Seifer sprinting down the road.

Zell watched him go with a curious look, leaning back as though he were seeing a strange subject of a science experiment he didn't understand.

“...What an idiot.”

“Don't fall behind,” Squall instructed him calmly, starting forward.

Zell naturally fell in line with him. Seifer may be an idiot, but Zell had still come up with the luck of the draw in getting to be teamed with Squall. If Seifer was going to abandon his squad to go slay soldiers, then Zell was going to follow Squall instead.

Squall wasn't sprinting like Seifer was, but he still caught up with Seifer before he could charge into battle with the single G-Army soldier occupying the Central Square.

Light flashed off of a lovely little fountain as Squall and Zell ran around to join with their captain who was, once again, toying with his opponent.

“Like that?” Seifer asked, lunging forward. He deliberately only let his Hyperion sink deep enough in the man's arm to draw blood. He wasn't trying to disarm or kill him. That would end the fun early.

Squall didn't have time for this.

Pulling up his gunblade, Squall took aim from the entrance of the square. Seifer, in his dancing, moved around the man again, still laughing in that weird tone.

Squall didn't use his gunblade one handed in melee combat. When he was shooting it from a distance though, he had little choice. The recoil on the Revolver absorbed into his arm and up his shoulder. The soldier Seifer had been tormenting fell over dead.

Seifer came to a staggered halt. He sent a dark look over at Squall as he let the Revolver down. The barrel still smoking from the bullet.

“That one was mine,” Seifer growled.

“We don't have time for games,” Squall returned. Did everyone but him forget this was an exam?

Seifer growled and took a threatening step forward. Like he might very well try to fight Squall for daring to stop him.

“There may be more...” Squall interrupted his stalking. It wasn't a threat so much as a distraction. He was pretty sure getting into a fight with his captain would cost him points.

“Alright.” Seemingly mollified, at least slightly, Seifer swept out his Hyperion and indicated to the area around them. “I want you guys to scout the area for enemies. Bring them to me.”

Squall nodded and started making his way around the square. He could hear Zell in step behind him and, when he looked back, he saw the blonde scanning the rooftops and upper stories for enemies. That left Squall to scan the ground floors and streets.

He recognized the street that split off and led to the mountains where Dollet had retreated to from the maps he had been given. Knowing he hadn't been instructed to go there, he avoided that road and continued on to the next street.

A G-Army standard issue jeep had been parked across the road, blocking it. The engine was off but Squall could hear something clanking around on the other side. As he and Zell approached, their footsteps caught the attention of the soldier making repairs to the downed vehicle on the other side. He came up and spotted them with a growl.

“Hey! Where's Jacobs?” he demanded, looking around the square. “You killed him?! You bastards! I'll destroy you! FOR MY BROTHERS!”

Screaming out like a madman, he leapt over the jeep and charged at them. The move was so unexpected that Squall only had enough time to duck under the swinging saber. Behind him, Zell threw himself to the side, rolled, and came back up again.

The two of them turned and looked back at the crazed soldier.

“FOR THE GLORY!” he yelled this time.

Squall was suddenly worried. Not because of the man's righteous anger. It was the wild and erratic way he was swinging his saber. He clearly had very little if any experience with the blade. And if Squall had learned anything from the underclassman it was that beginners could often land blows that more experienced fighters couldn't simply because they didn't realize they were endangering their own health in the process.

The enraged Galbadian soldier came after Squall. Swinging his blade randomly and without any finesse, he swirled it around almost like a baton. It was wildly ineffective and inefficient and Squall was scared to try to block it because he didn't know where the block would lead. It could bury the blade in the soldier. It could bury the blade in himself.

He avoided the question and ran around to the side. The saber hit the brick of the hotel and shards of metal flew away. Which only made Squall more worried because now the blade was serrated. It would do that much more damage.

“FOR THE HONOR!” He turned again and this time chased after Zell.

He didn't even had a sword to protect himself. Zell followed Squall's example and just ran out of the way. For an enemy like this, it would be best to just let him tire himself out. It wouldn't take long with how much energy he was wasting swinging that wildly.

Seifer walked over to them as the two of them were busy making him run in circles to chase the two of them. The soldier was already panting and his cries for honor and glory were becoming less and less furious.

“F-For...” he panted, trying to raise his saber again. “...Gal...badia!”

Squall ran out of the way again and found himself standing next to Seifer.

“What are you doing?” he asked, glaring at Squall.

“Dealing with the enemy,” he responded calmly.

“Woh!” Zell sprinted away from the soldier again. He turned and started shadow boxing again. “That all you got? Come on!”

“I'm...Whew...” the man had to pause and catch his breath. “You insolent...huff, puff...I will end you!”

“You got nothing!” Zell continued to mock him, checking to see if he had any extra energy that he might use if they finally got in close.

The soldier took some sloppy steps forward and Squall nodded, satisfied that he had tired himself out.

“This one is mine!” Seifer called, running at the soldier.

“End it quickly!” Squall ordered like he might be in charge. He didn't want to watch Seifer playing with his victims. Something he was used to seeing from training but something he didn't want to deal with in the middle of an exam.

“I'm the captain!” Seifer reminded him angrily, trying to play with his new toy. This man was just too tired to do anything more than collapse at the first slice of Seifer's blade. Something that only annoyed Seifer. He wasn't any fun if he wasn't going to scream and thrash about.

Growling, he swept his blade quickly across the man's neck. His body fell back and his head rolled away as Seifer turned and glared at Squall.

Before he could snap, Squall spoke up, infuriatingly calmly.

“I think that's all of them.”

Seifer grumbled something they couldn't hear before rolling his shoulders. “Well then, we're on standby until the enemy comes.”

He strutted forward and walked back towards the fountain.

“Standby,” he growled to himself. “How boring...”

A loud explosion echoed down from the mountains. Squall and Zell both turned and looked up but Seifer kept his eyes on the streets around them.

“Sounds like it's starting,” Squall said thinking that plenty of time would have passed for the SeeDs to get up in the mountains to provide back up for the Dollet Army.

“Bring it on,” Seifer growled lowly.

The rhythmic clicking of claws on the cobblestone rang out in the square. Squall looked over to see a dog emerge from the shadows of one of the doorways and come forward cautiously. He was probably one of the residents' pets.

“What's a dog doing here?” Zell frowned. “Did his owners not bring him into hiding with them?”

Irresponsible, Squall thought with derision. It annoyed him when people didn't take proper care of the things under their care. A dog had no place in a war zone. It should have been hiding out with the rest of the evacuated civilians.

The curious pooch, seeing that they weren't dressed in proper military garb, wasn't scared of them. He came forward, sniffing curiously at the end of Seifer's trench coat.  
Snarling in irritation, Seifer swing his blade out towards the dog. The animal only managed to avoid getting decapitated by a few hair lengths. It whined as it realized they weren't much different at all from the soldiers.

“Get outta here!” Seifer commanded, swinging back for another hit. “Scram!”

The dog didn't need to be told. It was already sprinting away with its tail between its legs. Squall felt rather sorry for it. Though he was glad in a way. Maybe now the creature would find some place to hide for the duration of the battle and wouldn't die.

He didn't have much time to consider the dog. Seifer was running around to the other side of the fountain and looking up at the mountains. He knew that SeeD was supposed to be flushing the G-Army down the mountains and they would have to come this way.

“Hey! Galbadian soldiers! What are you waiting for?! Come show me what you got!” he screamed to the heavens, swinging his Hyperion threateningly.

“What's he doing?” Zell asked Squall quietly from their side of the fountain.

Seifer was still standing there, practically bouncing in anticipation.

“Let him be,” Squall replied calmly. “As long as he's doing that, he's not getting in trouble. Zell?”

“Uh, yes?” Zell stood a little straighter as Squall looked back at him.

“Don't relax. We've cleared the area, but this is still an active battle zone. If the SeeDs succeed in flushing out the G-Army, they'll be coming this way. I want to know they're coming before they get here.”

“Roger,” Zell nodded firmly. “I'll keep an eye out. But, uh, what do we do about...him.” He finished on a whisper, pointing over to Seifer.

Their captain was tense, still waiting with his blade raised.

“Leave him alone,” Squall repeated. “Just keep your eyes sharp.”

“Got it.”

Zell turned to watch his third of the square, Squall on his other side. From where he was standing, he could see up into the mountains. Though not clear enough to be able to see if anyone was making their way down yet.

He made a mental note that, for future missions, it would be wise to bring binoculars if there were going to be mountains involved.

Zell wasn't sure how much time passed, but Squall was. He was marking the passing of it simply because he didn't like not having that information. He liked to know when he arrived at a place and how long he spent there. It just made logging reports easier later.

It took exactly 23 minutes for Seifer to get bored. Which surprised Squall. He didn't think that his normally impatient training partner would last that long. It was probably only the constant fighting sounds echoing down the mountains that kept him waiting. It made it seem like the retreating army would be coming any second.

23 minutes into the wait though, Seifer finally broke.

“Anything yet?” he asked, his body still tense and prepared.

Which was the exact opposite of Zell. Though he was looking around as suggested by Squall, he was doing it while pacing with his hands in his pockets.

Because it was a question from his C.O., Squall looked down the street to see if the G-Army was finally coming down. It was just as empty as it had been earlier.

“Nothing,” he said calmly.

“Hey look,” Zell grinned. “The dog is back. Here, puppy. Come here, boy.”

“Zell, leave the wildlife alone,” Squall told him dully.

“Still keeping us waiting?” Seifer asked, still focused on an impending battle that Squall was sure wasn't as immediate as he would have preferred.

“I think the dog prefers Seifer,” Zell frowned as the curious pooch sniffed cautiously towards the silver trench coat again. “Think maybe he smells like dog treats?”

Squall frowned the hound as it sniffed at Seifer again. Seifer was shaking now, his head lowering in fury. Squall recognized that look. He was about to do something rash and stupid.

“That's it!” he yelled swiping out against the dog again. “I can't take it anymore! What is this, some kind of dog training?!”

The dog ran off, running this time towards Squall. He looked down as the dog approached, frowning at the way it was scenting the air.

“What do you smell?” he asked as though anticipating an answer.

As though he was responding, the dog lifted its head and let out a long howl. Squall frowned as that was followed by another then a third.

Footsteps sounded throughout the square and Squall took a knee. Just beside him, Zell followed suit, getting down on all fours. Seifer didn't kneel but he was obstructed by a building.

The footsteps materialized into a soldier on the other side of the fountain. The dog beside Squall growled at him as he looked around for enemies. Before Squall – or more likely Seifer – could charge at him, he turned and gestured to someone behind him.

He ran past the square, down the road leading to the mountains. He was followed by another. Then another. And another. An entire platoon ran past and Squall frowned. He didn't think the three of them could take on an entire company.

“What is it?” Zell asked. He couldn't see from his angle.

“It's the enemy...” Squall said, watching as the last of them ran down the road. SeeD wasn't driving the G-Army down from the mountains. The G-Army was calling up reinforcements.

“Where the hell they goin'?” Zell asked as they stood back up. Squall looked up towards the mountain where a large, defunct communication tower sat. A relic from a time before his birth.

“Hey? What is that?” Zell frowned not recognizing the technology. No one used towers anymore. Not since the technology suddenly stopped working nearly twenty years ago.

Before Squall could explain that, Seifer spoke up.

He pointed his Hyperion to the dish and grinned hungrily. “That is our next destination.”

Squall turned, his face impassive as Zell reeled in surprise.

“But! That's against orders!” he cried.  
>  
Seifer grinned at him. “Weren't you just saying how bored you were?”

“No,” Zell frowned. “That was you.”

“You were pacing though. I know you're as hungry as I am to test your skills. To prove yourself.”

“Squall!” Zell turned to him expectantly. As though he expected Squall to disagree as well.

He had his orders though.

“I stand by the captain's decision,” he replied calmly.

Seifer gave him a look and scoffed. “Captain's decision? That doesn't sound like you.”

He came forward and Squall regarded him without changing his expression as Seifer stepped to his side. He looked into Squall's eyes and grinned.

“You want to wreak some havoc too, don't you?” Laughing as though they were sharing in something, Seifer grabbed Squall's shoulder companionably.

Wreak some havoc? Hyne, Seifer was so dramatic some times.

Squall jerked his shoulder out from Seifer's grasp. “It's a good opportunity to test out my training. Thanks to you, I feel like I can take on anyone. Even if they do fight dirty. Like you.”

Seifer grinned as though Squall had complimented him. “You'll thank me when the time comes.”

Seriously. Did Seifer get all his lines from old movies?

“What the hell...” Zell looked between them, a frown on his face. “I thought you guys didn't get along? You're like...all buddy-buddy now.”

Squall turned, but Seifer kept on grinning at him. Did they get along? Not really. But that didn't mean Squall didn't respect Seifer's skills. His dedication. His tenacity. They had been training partners too long for Squall to hold any serious grudges against him. Any anger that they felt towards one another was invariably worked out in battle.

In that manner, they didn't get along. But they weren't quite unfriendly either. When they weren't training, they were actually rather civil towards one another.

“Listen,” Zell frowned between them, stepping forward. “This ain't no ordinary battle. It's an exam. An important one! I'm tellin' ya, we have to stick to orders.”

Squall's eyebrow raised, the only mark of surprise on his face. He couldn't actually believe that Zell had remembered that. He had felt like the only one keeping that in mind this entire time.

Seifer, sneered in disgust, rolling his eyes. “You stay here then. I don't need any boy scouts.”

Zell's eyes flashed in anger as he raised his shaking fist. “What was that?!”

“Don't take him seriously, Zell,” Squall told him, heading off the fight before it happened. He turned back to his captain. “Seifer, if we're gonna go, let's hurry.”

Seifer grinned darkly, as though pleased with Squall's response. He turned and pointed with Hyperion and called out in a very official sounding voice. “The enemy is headed for that facility. We, Squad B, are to secure the summit. Move out!”

“Alright,” Squall nodded, acquiescing easily to the obvious order.

Zell, still following Squall shook his head but gave in. “Tch...Fine.”

Seifer ran off ahead again, eager to get to his next fight. Squall, and by extension Zell, followed after him at a calmer pace.

“You know he's going to have us both flunking this exam, right?” Zell grumbled bitterly.

“Not at all,” Squall responded, still at his ease.

Zell frowned. “And what is that supposed to mean?”

Squall didn't answer him.

Dollet was a port town similar to Balamb, with one major difference. Dollet was on a man-made island connected to the mainland by a long concrete bridge. Separated into two lanes – one towards the mountains and one towards the plains – the one to the mountains could only be accessed by walking through the city first.

The road over the water ended at a long, winding staircase up the mountains. It was currently covered in debris and bodies of those killed in the battle. They wore mostly Dollet uniforms.

They didn't get very far up the steps when a rustling behind a boulder to their left had them reaching for their weapons.

One of the Dollet uniforms came crawling out from a bush. He was shaking, his clothes stained with blood and dirt. He caught sight of them and went still like a deer in lights.

Then he stuttered, panicked. “W-W-Who are you?!”

Seifer growled at him, probably angry that he couldn't attack. So it was Squall who answered. His calm voice, in such direct contrast to the commotion around them, seemed to put the soldier at ease.

“Don't worry. We're SeeD candidates dispatched by garden, hired by the Dollet Dukedom Parliament to assist the Dollet Army in this battle.”

The man nodded, accepting that easily. That was what SeeD did after all.

“So what's going on up there?” Seifer asked eagerly, nodding his head towards the summit.

The man addressed Squall when he answered. “The Galbadian soldiers have entered the abandoned communication tower. They've barricaded themselves inside. It's like a siege up there!”

“Man,” Zell grumbled. “Can't be easy, can it?”

“On top of that,” the soldier continued, panting hard now with blood loss. “That place has always been a nesting ground for monsters. If you guys are goin' up be care...”

The man suddenly stopped. Mid sentence. Squall frowned at him. Before he could ask what was wrong, the man screamed again. His body jerked back violently and he reached out desperately.

“H-HELP!”

Squall took the steps two at a time to reach the downed soldier. He was technically their client. It was his job to see to the client's safety.

His hand darted out, aiming for the man's hand. Another sudden yank and the man disappeared into the bushes behind the boulder. Squall hear the sickening, wet brunch of a body being bit into as the soldier's screams suddenly cut off.

Not wanting to risk the same fate, he jumped back down the stairs. His hand went to his Revolver's hilt as he heard the unmistakable 'shh' of scales against stone.

The bushes rustled again as the enormous snake monster slithered out from it's hiding spot. Blood splashed around its lips and against its skin. It's tongue flicked out, tasting their scent as it regarded them through beady eyes that saw in heat rather than light.

Squall knew these monsters from long distance training exercises on the Galbadian Continent. They were quite common in this area, though Squall had little experience facing them. An anacondeur.

“Oh, yes,” Seifer very nearly drooled at the large reptile facing them. “Now this is more like a challenge. Hey, you two can help, but let me have the finishing blow. I want to joy of killing this thing myself.”

“Joy?” Zell repeated, confused.

Squall paid neither of them any mind. His eyes were focused on the serpent that was moving in a very deceptively slow manner just over their heads on the steps. He really did hate giving up the height advantage in a battle. It made everything that much more complicated.

The snake was watching Squall carefully as he was the closest source of heat. Squall was staring at its body, waiting for the moment when it's muscles would bunch up in preparation to strike.

“Here, scaley,” Seifer cajoled eagerly. “Come get some.”

The snake hissed and Squall caught the distinct and rather noxious scent of its venom. It was dripping from its fangs, mixing with the dead man's blood.

The snake hissed a second time, it's head swinging around gently as though trying to hypnotize its audience. All the more reason for Squall to stare at its body and not its head. He would rather not get caught up in those slow, deliberate movements.

The strike came just as quickly as Squall feared it would. The monster barely even reared back. It seemed like he just shot forward like a bullet from a gun. Squall, having been so carefully studying its muscles, still only had enough time to bring up his Revolver. He felt and heard the fangs of the enormous snake hitting the metal.

He fell backwards off of the steps and caught himself before he hit the ground. The snake jerked back and swung its head around as though to get the sensation of its fangs grazing metal out of its head.

“This one is mine!” Seifer yelled, charging up into the fight. The height advantage didn't matter to him, only the thrill of a good monster hunt did.

The snake struck again. Seifer followed suit. It seemed like his blade and the fangs bounced off of each other. Seifer kept pushing forward though until he was on the same level as the snake. He had taken away its height advantage.

“Zell, come at it from above,” Squall ordered, stepping up again. He covered the snake from below. It was hissing again, looking between it's two targets.

Zell ran around the boulder the snake had concealed itself behind. He grabbed the side of it and used his feet and arms to propel himself up. He landed on top of the boulder and grinned down at the snake below. Now he had the height advantage.

“One clean cut aught to do it,” Seifer grinned, pantomiming slicing the snake's head.

Squall lunged forward and sliced across the air. He didn't mean to hit the snake but the snake didn't know that. It reared back, hissing.

Squall didn't expect the tail. He also didn't see it coming. The long length of it whipped around and slammed into Squall's side. The skin was hard like stone and the muscles underneath dense. Squall felt the air rush from his lungs as he was thrown bodily to the side.

The anacondeur hissed at him as though mocking his pain.

“WOO!” Zell yelled like a battle cry as he jumped from the rock. The snake's back was to him, he didn't see the blonde warrior incoming.

Zell hit the back of its head. His legs wrapped around its neck right under its hood which he grabbed like a steering wheel. The snake reared back, throwing itself to the side to dislodge his attacker. Zell whooped again as he held on tighter.

“If I cut you chicken-wuss, don't blame me,” Seifer threatened.

“You better not cut me!” Zell yelled back.

Squall pushed himself to his feet grabbing for his bruised side. Shiva let loose a cure spell into his body and the pain faded. He straightened his torso and rolled his shoulders.

“Ow,” he said lamely to himself.

Squall blinked at the scene before him. How much could change in a few short seconds?

Zell was riding the snake like a bucking chocobo. Seifer was fainting, lunging, trying to get a cut in the snake's skin. The snake kept pulling back, throwing itself around.  
“Someone check my time!” Zell laughed as the snake whipped it's head back and forth.

“I thought I told you to leave the wildlife alone,” Squall said, his face and voice deadpan.

“Hold it still!” Seifer snapped in irritation. “Let me kill it!”

“Hey, you think this is easy?!”

“Watch the rock,” Squall told him calmly.

“Wha-? Woh!”

Zell's legs released and he threw his own body up and over the snake's head to avoid getting crushed against the boulder. The snake smashed itself against it instead and let out a loud hiss now directly in Zell's face.

“Oh, nasty!” he coughed, turning his face. “That is some potent venom. Hey, don't let it bite you.”

“Thank you, Zell,” Squall said sarcastically as Seifer rolled his eyes.

Zell was now holding onto the snake's hood from the front. The snake was biting at him but Zell was using its own hood to hold it back. His feet were planted against it's belly, keeping it at a distance as his head jerked back to avoid the flying venom.

“Will one of you do something!?” he yelled.

“Actually,” Seifer grinned, “I'm kind of enjoying myself like this.”

“Seifer, you basta-Woh! Hey! That was close!”

“You know, if your teammates die, that could be an automatic fail,” Squall told their captain calmly.

Seifer sighed. “Oh, alright.”

Squall was just a step behind Seifer as they charged across the steps towards the snake. It couldn't see them coming since Zell was in it's face. It didn't pull back in time.

Seifer sliced forward. Hyperion cut easily though the anacondeur's skin. However, the dense muscle proved too hard for it. Hyperion's path diverted. The hood on the left side of it's face started bleeding. Zell cried out as the snake reared back in pain.

Squall came in under Zell. The Revolver cut swiftly through. The snake's body was almost like trying to cut through a tree, its muscles were so dense. Squall's blade, stronger than Seifer's was more than up to the task.

Zell cried out as the snake's lost head slammed to the ground. To avoid impaling himself on the still very potent fangs, he swung his body up and over the head. The snake's dark blood started flowing down the steps as Squall moved out of the way.

“Hey!” Seifer snarled at him. “I told you it was mine!”

“Oops,” Squall shrugged.

“Dammit, Squall! That's against orders! You're losing points for that!”

“Actually,” Squall gave him an easy look, “you said to 'let' you have the kill. It wasn't phrased as an order. I didn't disobey anything. You just weren't fast enough.”

Seifer snarled at him and his grip on Hyperion tightened. Once again, Squall wondered if their captain was going to start this fight right here during the middle of the test. He didn't think he would be able to ignore an outright challenge like that.

Zell, either oblivious or ignoring the tension between them, kneeled down at the monster's head. He poked at it with a grimace. “Damn. That thing is ugly.”

“Careful, Zell,” Squall looked at him.

“Why? It's dead.”

“Yeah, but its reflexes could still-”

“AH!” Zell threw himself back as the snake's head jerked as though to bite him. Venom shot from the fangs, dripping down its face.

Seifer chuckled at him. “Good going, chicken-wuss. You were almost killed by a dead snake. You know, it's not an automatic fail if a team member dies of stupidity.”

“Seifer,” Zell growled at him from his place on the ground.

Squall ignored their bickering and let his eyes move up towards the communication dish. He could only see the edge of it now that they were at the base of the mountain.

“Breeding ground for monsters, huh?”

Zell sighed, standing and dusting off his uniform. “That sucks.”

Seifer grinned, looking up as well. “That just means more fun for us. Come on.”

Zell frowned at him as he started up the stairs. “Fun? Puh-lease.”

Squall ignored both of them and began climbing after his captain.

Sounds of the battle between the G-Army, Dollet, and the SeeDs had moved off by the time that they reached the top of the cliffs. On an outlook that gave them a great view of the entrance of the communication tower the three of them lowered themselves to get a better look.

“I see two soldiers,” Squall said, his eyes going over. Only the two. They didn't really need anymore than that. There was only one door.

“Agreed,” Seifer nodded.

One of the soldiers was standing guard, his eyes moving around the terrain to spot either monsters or soldiers. The other was doing something with an access panel.

Even as they watched, the door to the tower opened and a third soldier came out. The gave the others a salute.

“The generating is up and running!” he reported. Though his voice wasn't loud, the acoustics of the terrain brought his words right up to them at the overlook.

“No problem with the boosters,” the second soldier nodded, shutting the access panel.

“The hell they doing?” Seifer frowned.

They were silent for a moment and Squall could practically hear the communications from a third party in their helmets.

“Cable disconnection confirmed,” the first man finally said. “Beginning exchange process!”

“Roger,” soldier two nodded.

All three men ran inside and Squall heard the sound of a metal lock being thrown. The three of them stood back up again.

“Repairs?” he guessed easily. “Why would they try to repair a relic like this?”

“Who cares?” Seifer scoffed before grinning over towards Squall. “This must be your first real battle. You scared?”

Squall shrugged. “I don't know. I try not to think about it.”

“I love battles,” he said, relishing in just saying the words. “I fear nothing. The way I look at it, as long as you make it out of a battle alive, you're one step closer to fulfilling your dream.”

Squall, not expecting the direction this conversation had just taken, looked to Seifer in surprise. “What? Your dream?”

“You have one too, don't you?” Seifer asked, smiling at him.

Dream? Like, a plan for the future? He planned on joining SeeD, fighting as long as possible, then retiring when he couldn't pass the yearly physical. He wouldn't really call it a dream. More like it was something he was just going to do because what else could he do?

“Sorry, but I'm gonna pass on the subject.”

“Yo!” Zell stepped forward eagerly. “Let me in on it, too!”

Like he was interrupting something private, Seifer snarled at him. “Mind your own business.”

Immediately, Zell was glowering at Seifer. That smug look on his face always managed to get Zell's blood boiling. He couldn't even really say why it bothered him so much. Others had disparaged him before, but it still didn't sting so much as Seifer's comments.

He started imagining what it would be like to actually punch Seifer. To feel that smug grin turn to surprise and dismay when Zell's fist slammed against it. In his head, he could feel Ifrit nodding along eagerly with his anger. Ifrit enjoyed the power of anger. He was only encouraging the feeling in the mind of his new master.

“Frickin' hell...” he snarled. He really hated him. He really just wanted to hurt him. He knew Ifrit was influencing that anger and he didn't care. He accepted it eagerly.

Zell didn't even realize he had actually started pantomiming the movements for knocking out a few of Seifer's stupid teeth until Seifer grinned at him about it.

“What's the matter, Zell?” he asked, his voice mocking like he was talking to a baby. “Swatting flies?”

Ifrit was now openly suggesting ripping Seifer's arms off. A suggestion that Zell was finding more tempting by the second. Just seeing Seifer turn and walk away, his trench coat flapping as he did so, was enough attitude to make Zell want to punch him out.

“Damn you...” he snarled. It wasn't too late to catch up to him.

“Zell,” Squall started, trying to calm him down. His gauntlets were smoking again. He was suddenly very glad Ifrit couldn't be in his mind. Shiva agreed most emphatically.

“There you are!”

Squall stopped and Zell jumped in surprise. The cry of a high pitched voice broke through his anger and the smoke eased from his gauntlets as he turned.

Squall was rather sure he would recognize that upturned hair anywhere. The tiny sprite girl from this morning was panting on on the rocks she had climbed over to get to the top of the cliff. Squall was wondering why she hadn't just taken the stairs when she started walking down.

Her steps were uncertain and shaky. Squall wasn't sure if it was her feet or the ground that slipped out from under her. Either way, she slipped. Down she tumbled, rolling like an expert. Her body dumped itself nearly right at their feet and she sat up, grabbing for her head. She caught site of their expressions – Squalls blank; Zell's concern – and she grinned, sticking out her tongue, winking.

“Stuck that landing,” she laughed, getting up. She dusted off her skirt. A move rather useless since all the dust was clinging to her knee high socks.

She nodded and beamed at them, still panting a bit. “Are you...Squad B?”

Squall nodded.

Her face broke out in a wide smile. “Oh, thank Hyne! I'm a messenger and-Hey! Wait a minute. I know you! You're the guy. You know, the one who showed me around. Aren't you? Thanks again! I was able to find my way around garden all by myself after you left!”

“You know her?” Zell whispered, confused.

The girl nodded, still beaming. “Name's Selphie, from Squad A. Your squad captain's Seifer, right? Where is he?”

Squall turned and pointed as a silver trench coat ran into view in front of the locked door. Seifer turned and looked back up the cliff where Squall was still standing. He grinned and held out his arms as though inviting Squall to behold him.

“One of these days, I'm gonna tell ya about my romantic dream!

Yeah, Squall was rather certain Seifer got his lines from old movies and books. Romantic dream? What did that even really mean?

Beside him, Selphie sighed. “Man, this sure is tough. They warn you about the SeeD exam, but you really aren't prepared for it. CAPTAIN! Wait up!!”

Before Squall could stop her, she charged at the cliff. Zell cried out but it was too late. Selphie slammed her foot down against the rocks and leapt forward with a cry of either delight or effort. It was kind of hard to tell. And the mystery of why she climbed the cliff instead of the stairs suddenly made some sense.

Squall stepped forward in time to see her stick the landing. She ran forward a few steps before she realized they hadn't followed her. She turned around and waved her hands up at them.

“What are you waiting for?! Come on! We have to catch up to him!”

“Please tell me we aren't jumping,” Zell moaned unhappily.

“Of course not. The path is this way, come on.” Who would jump from a cliff? Besides a hyperactive sprite girl that preferred rock climbing to stair climbing that is.

It wasn't a very long path down off of the overlook and towards the front of the communication tower but Selphie was already shifting with impatience when they caught up.

“What took you so long?” she asked grumpily. “It would've been much quicker if you'd just jumped!”

“Quicker?” Zell repeated like she had said something crazy. “Puh-lease. You wouldn't normally jump off of a cliff, OK? Ain't that right, Squall?”

“It would be faster,” he admitted making Selphie beam. “But it's far more reasonable to just walk around.”

Selphie scoffed at his logic. “Yeah, but I know how to jump off a cliff. Why waste the time being a chicken walking around it?”

“What did you just call me?!” Zell yelled, suddenly furious.

Selphie, instead of backing down, grinned at him. “Why are you so angry? Cause I called you a chicken? Are you a chicken?”

“What the-ARGH! Why is everyone-! I am not a chicken!!”

Selphie giggled at his reaction. “Well, if you don't like chicken, how 'bout...a PIG!”

“PIG?!”

Squall looked between of them wondering when the right moment to step in would be. Zell looked spitting mad, ready to throw blows. Selphie seemed unaffected, grinning at him and continuing to needle him about what was clearly a sore spot.

“Oh, but you look more like a chicken,” she frowned, her eyes still dancing. “Look, you even have a crest and everything!” She doubled over, holding her stomach as she laughed at him.

“Zell,” Squall said his name calmly. “Your gauntlets are smoking again.”

“Tch!” Zell turned away, forcing himself to calm down. “Chicken, pig, whatever. Call me what you want. I don't care anymore!”

“Don't take it so personally, Zell,” Squall told him, pleased Zell had exercised self control.

He grumbled under his breath but his gauntlets remained smoke free. Selphie was trying to control her giggling but she didn't stop until Squall fixed her with a look.

“Sorry,” she shrugged, not really sorry at all. “Shall we get going?”

She turned towards the door before she seemed to remember something and turned back. “Oh, almost forgot to mention. I'm probably going to need some support. I don't have a GF with me.”

“You went into battle without one?” Squall frowned. He didn't have two spares.

Selphie shrugged looking suddenly self conscious as her eyes moved away. “It's not that big of a deal. I just thought you might want to know if we're going to be fighting together.”

Why is everyone around me so careless, Squall asked himself. He didn't bring it up though. He stepped forward to take point on the mission to reconnoiter with his captain.

Seifer had jimmied the locked door open. Squall could see where he had blasted out the electronic locks to be able to reach within. The three of them stepped into the shadow of the entrance. Zell looked up, fighting back a sudden sense of vertigo to be staring up so high.

“So this is a communication tower? How do you think it worked?”

“Sure is big,” Selphie said, staring up as well.

The screams of the frightened and the pained hit Squall's ears a moment before the jimmied door to the tower slid open and a terrified soldier ran out. He was bleeding from some very familiar wounds to his arms and torso.

Seifer stepped into the doorway, glowering at them while his eyes danced with mirth. “Coward.”

“Hey!” Selphie stepped forward quickly.

Seifer ignored her as he turned to go back in.

“The captain's getting away!” she yelled at the other two, charging at the doorway.

Squall and Zell were just a step behind her. They still weren't fast enough to catch Seifer in the bottom floor of the tower. The scent of rusting metal hit their noses as they gazed about the darkened room. It was cold inside but not silent. Squall could hear some machinery in the distance. Even as he watched, the platform elevator hit the ground from the top floor. No one was aboard.

“Think he went up?” he asked them. Even as the question came from his mouth, he knew that wouldn't be right. If Seifer had gone up, the elevator would have stopped with him. Someone must have called it and left before it arrived. Probably one of the soldiers Seifer had chased off.

“He-e-ey!” Selphie yelled out, her voice echoing metallicaly off of the cold systems around them. It was rather eerie to hear. “Squad B captain?!”

“Let's take the lift,” Squall suggested. It wasn't like there was anywhere else to go.

They stepped aboard and Zell hit the control switch to send them up. There were only two arrows, an up and a down. There were no floor settings which just made things easier.

The platform purred to life and began pulling them. Selphie laughed and leaned out over the edge to watch the floor shrink away from them.

“Wow, this lift is pretty cool.”

Zell grinned at her bent body. “Don't get too excited or you'll fall.”

She rolled her eyes but stepped back cautiously. Her words were still firm when she snorted in derision at his comment. “Like I'm really going to.”

***

The biggest panel on the master control center of the communication tower had been pulled off and set aside. Clad in the red of a superior officer, Major Biggs was growling as he fumbled with the wire cutter he had been fighting with most of the day.

From behind him, his lieutenant, Wedge, crept closer needing to step over and around the ever growing messy pile of tools and parts. He still sore his regulation blue but the patch on his arm identified him as a higher ranked soldier.

He still saluted his commanding officer as he approached. “Major Biggs! There has been a report of a monster-shaped shadow on top of the tower.”

“A little more here...Alright, and cut gently...and pull like-OW! My damn hand!”

“Major Biggs!” Wedge tried again.

“Be quiet!” Biggs snapped at him without turning around. “Can't you see I'm busy?! Let's see...This goes here like this...and...Ugh, geez, what's with these crappy old tools? And this crappy old circuitry? And...and...Why do I have to make all the repairs!? AHH!!”

Wedge hadn't made it this far in the army by not knowing when to leave his S.O.s alone. He saluted him again, unbothered by his anger.

“Sir, I'll just check around myself while repairs are being done.”

He received no reply as he walked away, but he hadn't really expected one.

Biggs continued talking to himself as he pushed another wire into a spot where he thought it looked like it belonged. Which was really how this entire 'repair' job had been going. No one had bothered to ask if he knew how to do this. Or even hire someone who did. So Biggs had been just putting things in places and hoping they worked.

“Let's see...” he growled, looking around for something he hadn't shoved somewhere. He didn't hear the hum of the elevator platform coming up from behind him. “Put this here...and this goes here...and...huh?”

A light Biggs hadn't seen before flashed green, blinking at him through the terminal. The elevator stopped and footsteps announced the arrival of visitors that he still didn't hear. He was so focused on watching that dot and hoping that it would turn blue.

Two...Three...Four blinks later and the light turned a steady, strong blue.

“There!” Biggs very nearly yelled in victory/relief. “It's complete!” He wasn't sure what he expected by announcing it. Maybe applause. He kind of felt like he deserved it.

The tower stared shaking and shifting as nearly ancient technology roared to life for the first time in almost twenty years.

Squall, Zell, and Selphie, having stepped from the platform, looked around in surprise as lights suddenly burst into life all around them. Below, they could hear machines kicking into life and springing to action. It may have been an old machine, but it was well made. It happily and easily started going through its start up functions.

The rush of air from below was Squall's warning that something was coming up. He turned quickly in time to see a long tube of metal shooting up through the hollow center of the communication tower. He took a step closer, craning his neck for a better look.

The tube of metal speared the sky before turning and tilting at an angle. Then the tube burst open like a flower in bloom. The metal plates of the dish rushed out to fill the gaps. Then the dish turned up and a series of antennae shot out and sparked.

Squall could hear something like a hum as the radio tower started operating again for the first time in nearly twenty years.

With the show over, Squall turned back and looked at the major who was staring at the bright lights of the functioning terminal with his hands on his hips and his chest puffed out in obvious pride.

“What do you think you're doing?” he asked gruffly.

The major actually jumped in surprise. He turned and looked at them, confused. He wasn't part of the battle, he hadn't heard that SeeDs and candidates had come to join the fight. He pointed his gun arm at them and growled.

“Likewise, mister! What do you think you're doing?” he frowned and his arm lowered as he realized that they weren't with the G-Army. An army that was currently supposed to be protecting the lower floors so he could get on with his repairs. “H-Hey, what happened to all the soldiers down below?”

None of them said anything. Selphie might have giggled a bit.

“WEDGE!” Major Biggs yelled out. “Take care of these twerps!”

Squall looked around for reinforcements and found none.

“W-Wedge?” Major Biggs turned around looking for his patrolling lieutenant.

Squall crossed his arms as Selphie shifted her weight, grinning. Zell was nearly giggling himself. It was kind of funny in a way. Made Squall glad he wasn't following the graduate program to join the Galbadian military.

Major Biggs laughed self consciously. “I, ah....Well, uh...I seem to be done here, so I'll just be...on...my...”

He paused looking at them as they stared back. His gun came up quickly and nervously.

“I-I'm leaving...Move! Move it! Move!”

He started making a wide circle around them towards the elevator. Squall let him go because he didn't really care about fighting a man who clearly meant no harm.

The humming elevator announced the arrival of another person. Squall wondered if it was the missing Wedge and if he would need to fight after all.

No. And Yes.

It was Seifer. And his first move upon landing at their level was to swing his blade out and knock Major Bigg's gun clear from his arm. He grinned at them.

“Sorry to crash the party,” he laughed, clearly not sorry at all.

“Ah...AHH....AHHHH!” Biggs grabbed at his now bleeding hand. “Are you crazy?!!”

“Just shut up,” Seifer snarled at him, bored already with his yelling.

Yes. Yes Squall was going to have to fight.

Seifer, bored, turned and walked back to the elevator. “I'm so done with these cowards. Squall, be a good subordinate and clean up. That's an order, by the way, in case there was confusion.”

“Didn't doubt it for a second,” he mumbled to himself, drawing his Revolver. “Selphie, I know you're not part of our Squad...”

“You can count on me,” She laughed, reaching for her own weapons. A pair of nunchaku slid neatly from the sheath at her lower back. She twirled them up over her head and caught the other end in her free hand neatly.

Biggs, meanwhile, ran for his downed gun. He snatched it up off the ground and turned to them with a snarl of anger. “Prepare for the worst, you brats!”

Major Biggs carried a regulation G-Army submachine gun. It used the bullets in his arm canisters to fire off a rain of fast moving, small, low penetrating bullets. They were quicker than Squall's own ammunition, but didn't have nearly as much power.

The three of them scattered out of the way as the bullets began pinging off of and through the metal grating at their feet.

Guns used to be the predominant weapon in the world. They were easy to use, fast, and deadly even if your aim was just okay. However, that was no longer the case. Not since Odine had learned how to capture magic, junction it to GFs, and enable its use for humans.

“Shiva, ice shield!” Squall commanded, throwing up his arm. She complied immediately, anticipating his need. Squall made sure to throw it up wide enough to cover himself and Selphie. She took a stop just behind him, grinning as bullets hit the ice.

The hot metal of the bullets either embedded themselves in the ice or shattered pieces of it. But even as it was being destroyed, Squall could keep building up more.

While Biggs's attention was on the two of them, Zell ran around the tower. He actually circled the entire length. As he was running, his gauntlets started smoking. Steam came from his breath as Ifrit released his own bestial power into his limbs.

The two of them hadn't been together nearly so long as Shiva and Squall. However, the love and respect for raw power burned through both of them. Connecting them.

As Biggs was trying in vein to shoot out Squall's ice shield, Zell let out a loud cry of power. He didn't notice the blue uniformed man he ran past. He was so focused on the red target as he circled around the tower that everything else faded.

Zell bent down low, coming in fast and hot. His fist slammed into the major's back. Bullets flew up into the air as Biggs's body shot forward. Squall and Selphie jumped apart and away from the shield just before he crashed into it. Ice shards flew everywhere as his body rolled.

“Major Biggs!”

The three cadets turned as the blue lieutenant ran towards them. “What is the enemy doing here?!”

“Ugh...” Major Biggs had to struggle to stand up. He felt like he had been knocked into next week and it took two cure spells to dull the pain enough to let him stand.

“Wedge!” he snapped, staggered upright. “Where were you?! No pay for you this month!”

Wedge flinched in pain, but he wasn't exactly surprised. He sighed as he brought up his sword. “I knew I should've stayed home.”

“You two,” Squall looked to Zell and Selphie. “Take the lieutenant. I'll handle the major.”

“Got it!” Selphie laughed, running to stand beside Zell.

Squall took a step to the side and raised his blade to the major.

“Ha! One brat?” he laughed breathlessly. It was hard to do it around the pain in his back. He was seriously hoping that his cure spells could fix whatever he felt was broken though he was sure they would only dull the pain. Cure didn't heal fractured bones or ruptured organs. He would need a cura spell to accomplish that and there was no way his army would part with such things to their common officers.

“I think it might be a bit of an unfair fight,” Squall said, noticing the way the major moved. That blow had done some damage. “If I were you, I would just leave. You need medical aid.”

“Don't tell me what to do! I won't let you command a Galbadian officer.”

“It was a suggestion,” Squall said, raising his blade obligingly. “But, if you insist...”

Major Biggs let out another volley of bullets. They were trapped easily in another ice shield that Squall had Shiva summon with an arm gesture. His eyebrow raised and he wondered if Biggs planned on just shooting until he ran out of ammo.

Behind him, Selphie was standing beside Zell as Wedge carefully assessed them.

“Come on,” she grumbled impatiently. “Just attack already.”

“I'm not stupid,” he said, his eyes moving over their clearly professional forms. “I know those uniforms. You two are SeeD cadets, aren't you? I'm not going to rush a pair of SeeDs, not even trainee ones.”

Zell grinned. “I'll give you points for that. First smart thing I've heard you guys say all day.”

“Not that it's going to save you any,” Selphie giggled. “Zell, you prefer rump roast or prime rib?”

“I'm a prime guy all the way,” he laughed, boxing at the air a bit. Sparks came from his gauntlets as they continued to heat up.

Wedge frowned, not understanding the terminology.

“It's all yours then,” Selphie beamed. She tucked her nunchaku under arm before running off to the side and out of sight.

Wedge didn't get a chance to track her movement with his eyes. Zell charged forward as she was sprinting away and he took up the entirety of Wedge's vision. Cautious, knowing who he was fighting again, Wedge blocked the attack with his blade. And the next one. And the next.

Zell grinned. “Hey, you're good.”

“Oh, you don't mean that,” Wedge smiled. He knew they were enemies, but somehow it was still nice to hear such a compliment from someone from the SeeD program.

“No, really.” Zell slammed his fist forward. It connected with Wedge's saber and the sparks went flying from his gauntlet. “I've been fighting G-Army thugs all day, and I have to say you're the only one that's actually been smart in the fight.”

“Well, I do pride myself on my forethought. It's kept me alive this long.” Wedge swung over his head and Zell ran past. He turned with a kick that Wedge blocked with his bracer.

“Clearly,” Zell grinned, stepping back. “That's not an easy feet in the G-Army either.”

“I enjoy a challenge,” Wedge raised his hand, throwing a lightning attack Zell's way.

Zell had no way of blocking it. He cried out as the electric current shot through his body causing pain and muscle twitches. Ifrit let loose a cure spell and when Zell opened his eyes again, steam was coming from his nostrils.

“And you've got a good grip on your magic,” he continued to praise him. “Most G-goons need a few seconds to charge a spell. You must practice.”

“At least an hour every day,” Wedge agreed, taking his advantage to bring a quick assault on Zell.

He had his smoking gauntlets up, deflecting each quick blow as it came down on him.

“I admit it, you're a worthy opponent,” Zell laughed. “Nice to finally fight someone worth the fight.”

“You're too kind.” Wedge kicked out and slammed his foot against Zell's leg. Doing so opened a gap in his defense. Wedge struck forward quickly and a long slice appeared on Zell's shoulder. His blood started staining into his shirt but he didn't feel it because Ifrit gave him another cure spell to stop the bleeding and begin the healing.

“You have forgotten one thing though.” Zell blocked another slice from connecting and slammed his fist forward. He hit the metal chest plate which sent Wedge staggering back.

“And what's that?” he grunted, quickly taking his stance again.

Zell grinned. “Rump roast.”

The long wooden body of Selphie's nunchaku slammed against the back of Wedge's head. Stars burst in his eyes. Another blow, a focused strike, hit his back right over his kidney. Pain exploded in his abdomen and he fell to his knees. His saber slipped from his hands as he struggled to remain upright. He wanted to cry out in pain but suddenly didn't have the voice for it.

“How come no one can work out what that means?” Selphie grinned.

Zell shrugged. “Always seemed pretty obvious to me. Maybe it's the heat of battle.”

“Could be,” she nodded before looking down at Wedge. “Sorry about that. Nothing personal, 'kay?”

“Major!” Wedge cried out, his voice pained. “We can't win this one.”

“Stop your whining!” Biggs hollered over the sound of his own machine gun.

Squall hadn't moved from behind his ice shield. He was waiting quite patiently...

The sudden empty clicking of Biggs's weapon announced to them all that he had run out of bullets. The major knew exactly what that sound meant. Somehow though, he still looked surprised as he clicked it a few more times for good measure.

“Huh,” Squall said interestedly as he melted his ice shield. “You know, our current information says that the standard issue submachine guns for senior officers in the Galbadian army only have enough ammunition for 43 seconds of continuous fire. You easily doubled that time.”

“Shut up, whelp!” Biggs yelled at him, shaking his gun as though that might dislodge a few more rounds into the chamber.

“Maybe it's not standard issue,” Zell suggested, putting his arms behind his head, relaxing.

“I said, shut up!”

“That's a good point,” Squall nodded, pushing hair from his eyes after a sudden change in wind blew it into his face. “Major, is that gun standard issue? Have you upgraded your weapon personally or is that an army wide change?”

“Don't mock me!” he yelled grabbing for his emergency dagger. “I-I can still fight you.”

“Major...” Wedge spoke up, trying to stand. “I think maybe-”

The wind battered at them harder. Selphie squealed and grabbed for her skirt. Squall's eyes narrowed as he looked up for clouds. Was a storm coming?

A gust of stronger wind slammed into them and Squall's foot kicked back to anchor himself into the ground.

“Woh!” Zell yelled, dropping to grab the grating under his feet.

“Don't anyone look up my skirt!” Selphie yelled angrily, ducking down as well.

“What the-?” Biggs didn't follow their example and drop. He turned, trying to fight against the powerful wind with his own body weight.

“Major!” Wedge yelled, trying to hold onto the floor as the cadets were doing. He was still weak from the kidney shot though and his grip didn't last.

Seifer, still standing apart and watching the fight, cried out as the wind threw him back. His head hit against a metal beam and he fell down behind an circuit box, dizzy and reeling.

Squall made himself small against the force of the wind as it got strong enough lift Biggs and Wedge bodily from the metal grating and throw them backwards. Squall didn't see where they landed but it was hardly his biggest problem at the moment.

Waves of wind battered against them as a large shadow descended from above. The enormous winged creature looked like a cross between a duck, a wasp, and a bat. Its leathery wings continued to push around air even as it stopped releasing a tornado from it's strange beak. It had long, spindly hands and attached to them were very thick, very sharp black claws.

“What the hell is that?” Zell cried out as he stood back up again.

With the wind from it's beak ceasing, they could stand once more.

“It doesn't matter!” Squall yelled, lifting his blade back up as he took to his feet again. “Kill it quickly! And watch out for its breath!”

“Zell!” Selphie pulled up her weapons. “You prefer wings or breasts?”

“I told you! I'm a breasts guy!....Wait...”

Selphie giggled at the success of her word trap.

“We'll distract it,” Squall told her, ignoring her game. “You do what you need to.”

“I'm gone!” she announcing, turning and running backwards and away from the fight.

The winged monster lifted it's head to watch her go. Squall could practically see the decision to chase after her crossing its face.

“No, you don't!” Squall lifted the Revolver and let off two quick shots. He aimed for the wings where the skin would be the thinnest.

The monster roared in pain as two holes appeared in it's left wing. As he battered them about, the holes started ripping further.

“That should keep it from flying away,” Squall nodded, satisfied.

“How is that a good thing?” Zell demanded to know angrily.

“Zell, take left!”

“On it!”

Squall ran right, forcing the monster to choose between the two of them. It was massive, easily big enough to swallow them in one gulp. But there was SeeD training involved in fighting monsters much bigger than yourself. Squall figured the mechanics for fighting one of these things wouldn't be too different from fighting a T-rexaur. Maybe with the added difficulty of being a winged monster. And he had never fought a T-rexaur with only three people before. But he wasn't trying out for SeeD because he didn't enjoy a challenge.

The monster went after Zell first. He swept his claws out in a wide arc, chasing after the fleeing cadet. Zell jumped up at the last minute and back flipped over the arm. He landed on the other side and kicked out. The blow landed against the monsters wrist like a pebble.

Zell had to drop to his belly to avoid getting knocked away by the hand swinging back. This time, it was aiming towards Squall.

He stood his ground, calm and staring as the arm came in closer.

Just before it hit him, Squall brought the Revolver up and down again. His finger slammed against the trigger of the sword letting out an explosion of ice energy. It did little but increase the pain of having an arm severed.

“No way!” Zell breathed.

Squall remained standing exactly where he had been as the stump of an arm and the hand split apart and past him. The air was charged with ice crystals that froze the monster's blood before it could come gushing out of his body.

The beast reared back, screaming into the sky. Squall heard a sound like a massive vacuum sucking up a great deal of air. Realization him him almost too late.

“Get down!” he yelled dropped to the floor to grab the metal grate. Zell followed suit, obeying the order because it was an order and not because he recognized what was about to happen.

The monster threw down its head. It's beak seemed to detach from its face like a hing as it let out a long breath. A gust of wind, a tornado, came spiraling from it's massive lungs. It washed over Zell and Squall's prone bodies.

Squall grimaced as he felt it wearing on his flesh like fine sandpaper.

The tornado only lasted a few seconds but it blew away everything that wasn't tied down on the platform. It's beak snapped back into place as it glared hatefully at them. Zell and Squall jumped up at the same moment.

“Ugh,” Zell waved his hand before his face. “That thing smells like it's been eating badamb fish.”

Squall was inclined to agree. “Might be its diet.”

“Gross.” Zell shook his head to clear it of that sickening odor. “Hey, Squall. I'm going to try something. Think you can distract it for a moment?”

The monster was glaring at Squall. It was clearly intelligent enough to differentiate them and remember that Squall was the one that lopped of its hand.

“That won't be a problem,” he said calmly.

The monster roared before striking out with it's remaining hand. Squall ducked under then appendage easily. It was harder for the beast to aim now that its weight had been so changed with the loss of one hand. It let out a hissing breath of irritation.

“Blizzard!” Squall ordered Shiva, throwing up his hand.

A spear of ice erupted from the ground, piercing the beast's...thorax? Yeah, that sounded right.

The ice spell did little more than irritate him. He pulled back his fist and slammed it forward. Squall brought up his blade and caught the hit against the sharp edge of his Revolver.

Squall was thrown backwards. A large laceration was opened against the beast's knuckles.

Dark, tar like blood came out of the wound as it reared back for another attack. Squall rolled out of the way and the fist whooshed by his head.

“Blizzard!” He yelled again, pointing. Another spear of ice erupted from the ground. This time, his arm was low enough to catch it in the meat.

The monster pulled back his hand giving Squall time to jump to his feet.

“Zell, how much longer?” he yelled, watching the monster carefully to see which way it was going to strike so he could dodge accordingly.

“A few more seconds!” Zell's eyes were closed, one smoking fist before his face, the other holding onto the wrist. He wasn't focused on his limbs though. His thoughts were turned inward as he tried to grasp at the new connection with Ifrit.

They didn't know each other. Zell had never called on Ifrit's power before. It was taking him much longer than it would take Squall to connect with his familiar Shiva. It was like trying to dance with an unknown partner. You just didn't know how the other moved and how to adjust yourself accordingly. A new experience had to be taken slowly.

The beast slammed his fist down onto the platform, shaking the entire thing. Squall nearly lost his footing. Which was what the beast wanted. As Squall was correcting his stance, he sliced out. Squall threw his body back. The dark claws sliced across his shirt drawing tiny droplets of blood in the spots that dug beneath the top layer.

“Zell!”

“Just a little longer!”

The beast swept backwards. Squall used the Revolver to deflect the attack. The ping of it's claws against the metal of his blade echoed down his arm.

“Thunder!” Squall ordered Shiva, pointing to the center of the monster's body.

A blast of electricity sparked out and and the beast writhed in pain. Squall stepped back slightly as it growled angrily. It started taking in another breath.

“ZELL!”

“Okay!”

As the monster was drawing in for another attack, Zell's eyes opened. They flashed bright, fiery yellow as a large puff of broiling steam curled up from his nostrils.

Zell could feel the energy built up in his fist. It was burning hot like the sun. The heat of it felt good on his skin. It razed to ash even the memory of the cold. The air around him swirled with heat waves. Ifrit reached out and touched his comrades with his power. Protecting them so that only the target he intended would get hurt.

Shiva screamed in indignation at the layer of heat settling over Squall's skin. Immediately, she brought up her own barrier of cold under that heat to keep it off of him. The monster, his attention caught by the sudden flare of heat from his side, turned away from Squall.

That gave Squall time to close his eyes and focus on calling Shiva. His hand came up as his eyes closed, reaching into his mind to call her out.

Across the platform, Zell grinned as he saw Ifrit burst into life in front of his eyes. The fire beast rose out of a ring of fire that burst into life in front of Zell. He roared his power to the sky as he rose up carrying with him a ball of flame and burning stone that he had summoned with himself.

The flying monster started backtracking, seeing the stone and flames rising up. It let out its tornado breath in an attempt to blow out the fire. It crashed against the fire only serving to oxygenate the flames and make them burn that much hotter.

Zell grinned as he felt the living heat of the flames. It burned within and around him. The heat sank into his muscles and he welcomed it with a large smile.

The molten inferno of the beast of flames.

“Hellfire!”

Zell brought down his fist, bringing the flaming rock ball with him like an asteroid. The wind monster tried to fly away but the molten projectile was aimed directly at him.

The tower rocked when the lava rock smashed into the monster. It cried out, all it's stored breath coming out in a rush as it was crushed into the ground. The scent of burning flesh floated through the air as Ifrit's flames burned out. The monster remained on it's back, letting out a long sound as it tried to pick itself back up.

Squall's shining blue eyes opened up again and he pointed the energy gathered in his palm.

“Diamond Dust!”

Zell cried out from the blast of cold air against his flames but more from annoyance than pain. He wasn't in the path of the ice tunnel that encapsulated the monster. The shock of such heat to such cold deep in his bones sent it into spasms.

Squall's fist closed and the ice shattered. The shards sliced along it's skin.

Zell grimaced as the beast continued to move. “How does he stay alive?”

“Selphie!” Squall yelled out. “Now!”

The tiny girl sprinted in from behind the monster. She jumped onto his forehead and propelled herself forward. She twisted in mid air, swinging out her nunchaku as she did so.

“Water!” she yelled, calling out her magic.

Her feet landed on the dead center of the monster's chest. She lifted her nunchaku up and let the power of the water magic flow down into the creature. Some evaporated from the fire. Some froze with the ice. Most of it clogged in the beast's lungs.

The sudden feeling of drowning made it twist and flail trying to dislodge the feeling.

Her task done, Selphie turned and ran down his body. She crested over the thorax and slid down into a clumsy pile at Squall's feet.

The monster, weakening, was thrashing itself towards the edge.

“Hey, do you hear that?” Selphie asked, turning back.

“I don't hear anything,” Squall frowned, stepped back but raising his weapon.

“It's coming from the monster!”

“Selphie!” Squall yelled out for her.

She didn't heed him. She ran back towards the monster. Drawing back her arm, she whipped one end of her nunchaku back. Then she drove it forward. The puncture wound was as large as her wrist but a mere pinprick to the downed monster.

“Come on!” She yelled, hitting a button on the side of the weapon.

“Selphie! Get back! “Squall yelled at her.

“Just another second!”

“It's falling!” Zell warned, pointing to the edge.

The monster, choking and sputtering, hit the edge, the end of it's balance. Selphie felt her weapon jerk her forward. She jerked back quickly, yanking it away.

The monster suspended there for a second, grasping at it's chest with its own arm. Then, excruciatingly slowly, it tipped over fell with a whisper down towards the rocks at the base of the cliff.

There was a long moment of silence.

“WOO!” Zell yelled out, jumping in the air. “DID YOU SEE THAT?!”

“THAT WAS AWESOME!” Selphie agreed loudly. The two high-fived once, twice, three times in their excitement as they celebrated the victory.

Squall stepped back from the edge and celebrating teammates. He moved around the large circuitry panel and saw Major Biggs's body crumbled there. He was still breathing but otherwise unmoving. It was as much as Squall figured he owed him.

He turned his head and walked to where Seifer had fallen. Already his captain was sitting up, shaking his head and trying to throw off the last blackness of unconsciousness.

“What happened?” he asked, frowning.

“The tower shook when it turned on and you hit your head,” Squall lied effortlessly. He would really rather not tell Seifer about the epic monster he had missed killing. “You alright?”

“Uh, yeah.” Seifer shook his head again and his eyes focused on the mess left of the platform. “What happened here?”

“We fought the major and lieutenant. It got kind of crazy for a second.”

Seifer laughed derisively. “All this for two weak soldiers? Is that what those two are celebrating about? What idiots.”

Squall said nothing as he looked back to where Zell and Selphie were feeding each other's excitement by reenacting their favorite moments from the battle.

Selphie looked over to them and her eyes caught on Seifer.

“Squad B captain?” Her previous task came back to her and she hurriedly ran over to him, jumping over Biggs's prone body. “S'cuse me! I have new orders for you!”

“New orders?” Seifer's eyebrow went up.

Selphie nodded and her back went straight. Her voice took on a slightly robotic as she repeated her message like she were reading it from an official notice.

“All SeeD members and SeeD candidates are to withdraw at 1900 hours. Assemble at the shore.”

A look came over Seifer's face like she had just given him the highest insult imaginable. “Withdraw?! Are you kiddin' me? There are still enemies around!”

Selphie shrugged helplessly. “I know, but I'm just a messenger.”

Squall shrugged as well. He didn't care about this battle. He had no personal investments in it. “An order to withdraw takes priority. I don't want to miss the vessel.”

He turned to walk back to the elevator but Seifer frowned as he thought over the message.

“What time d'you say?”

“Like I said:” Selphie growled in irritation before her back went straight and her voice robotic once more. “All SeeD members and SeeD candidates are to withdraw at 1900 hours. Assemble at the shore.”

“1900 hundred hours...” Seifer repeated as Squall turned back to him. “We only have 30 minutes!”

He looked around and made a face as he took some steps back to the elevator. “You all got 30 minutes to get down to the shore.”

“What?” Zell ran forward as Seifer was hitting the down button.

“Better run,” he grinned leaving his squad behind without a thought.

“He-e-ey!” Selphie peered down into the hole left by the elevator. “Wait for us!”

It was too late, he was already gone and the platform was too far away for them to jump.

“Who the hell does he think he is?” Zell snarled, his fist shaking.

Honestly, Squall wished he could be surprised by the behavior. It was so like Seifer. So he shrugged without interest. “Why don't you ask him.”

Zell gave him a look. “Our captain just abandoned us here! Can you have some emotion about that?”

“It's already done. We don't have a choice but to wait for the elevator to come back up. We'll just have to run after that.”

“Yeah, but...” Zell sighed.

Selphie crossed her arms unhappily. “You know, Squad A's captain is really nice. I liked him a lot. Yours is kind of...”

“Yeah, we know,” Zell shook his head. “Why do you think we're out here and not at our post?”

Selphie shrugged. “Didn't really think of it, honestly. Except to be annoyed that you weren't where you were supposed to be. Thanks for that, by the way.”

“It's not our fault!” Zell protested immediately.

“Enough,” Squall's quiet voice cut them off. “She got the message to us in good order, that is all that's important. We have more than enough time to get down to the beach.”

“Hey, that means the exam is over, right?” Selphie beamed excitedly.

“Not until we are dismissed by our instructor,” Squall shook his head. “Try to maintain your professionalism until then.”

“This elevator takes forever,” Zell grumbled unhappily. “I'm getting Seifer back for this, I swear. And if we miss the vessel, I'm taking him down.”

It seemed to take an eternity for the elevator to return to them. At least it did to Zell.

The three of them stepped onto it and Zell hit the down button. He accidentally used so much power that the button broke and got stuck under his fist.

“Oops,” he frowned as they started down.

The sound of Selphie's laughing echoed up the shaft. As they disappeared down under, Major Biggs's opened his eyes and turned his body back over. Groaning, he reached into the circuit box and pulled out the remote the wind monster had blown back into the box.

“Those little twerps are the targets,” he instructed as he punched in the kill command into the controller. “Now GO! Go and destroy them!”

He lifted his hand, pointing and regretted it immediately. He didn't have the energy to do so and he slammed back down onto the floor again. He was too tired to even try to get up this time. At least he had gotten his revenge on the SeeD candidate brats.

Down below, Zell was looking over Selphie's nunchaku with a critical eye as they stepped from the elevator.

“So, it's got to be based on the technology used in Galbadian armor, right?”

“That's right,” Selphie nodded eagerly.

“But I thought it was impossible to get the device that small!”

“Well, it kind of is,” Selphie nodded. She reached out and took her weapons back. “That's why it's a one-off kind of thing. I can't use my magic twice. If I wanted to, I'd need a GF. But this baby has enough juice to allow me to cast a single spell without one.”

“Impressive,” Squall nodded, pleased with her weapon.

Giggling, Selphie hit the release button on her weapon. A single Odine capsule escaped from a small compartment at the base and fell into her hand.

“So?” Zell grinned at her. “Open it. I want to see what you got.”

Giggling excitedly, Selphie pressed the release button. The wash of blue and pink energy sank down into her fist. The GF she had rescued from the mind of the beast flowed up her arm and seeped deep into her brain. It came to rest just behind her right ear.

Selphie grinned at the sensation. “She says her name is Siren.”

“Siren,” Squall nodded as though greeting her.

“She's happy!” Selphie beamed, stowing her weapons away. “She says she's been in that monster for ages. He made her sing for him all the time.”

Humans were not the only ones capable of junctioning GF. Some of the monsters that possessed higher intelligence could also accomplish the feat. Humans were the only ones who knew how to channel a GF's power and use it to enable magic in an otherwise magic disabled creature. However, the GF could still be forced to inhabit the mind of a smarter monster.

“Oh, this is so exciting!” Selphie beamed. “And I almost missed her! I'm so happy I just emptied that capsule of its water spell. I wouldn't have been able to draw her out otherwise.”

“Odine technology is the best,” Zell agreed emphatically. “That's the only bad thing about my fists. I can't have all the fancy bells and whistles you guys can have.”

“Sure you can,” Selphie assured him, opening the door of the tower. “You're just not being creative enough with-”

“Wait.” Squall held up his hand, cutting her off mid-sentence.

“What's wrong?” she asked, halting in the doorway. She looked around, expecting an enemy. Not that a G-Army soldier would be any sort of challenge at this point.

Squall turned his head too, but he wasn't looking. He was listening.

It took a second but he heard it again. A high pitched, metallic screech. With his companions being quiet, he could place its origin.

Squall's eyes cast towards the sky. He didn't see anything immediately wrong.

Then one of the shadows on the upper platform moved. The metallic screech rang out again.

“What's that?” Zell frowned.  
“I think we should move,” Squall urged, pushing Selphie forward.

“Right!” She started jogging.

“We're not climbing the cliff!” Squall said, heading her off early. He knew that was exactly what she planned to do when she changed direction.

The three of them ran across the small open clearing towards the path. They didn't get far.

The metallic screech whined again. Squall looked back as he ran.

“Incoming!” he yelled out the warning just as the large shadow leapt from the top of the platform.

Zell and Selphie slid to a halt and turned just a step behind Squall. All three of them watched as the metallic behemoth came barreling down. A rain of dirt and rocks showered over them as it crashed into the ground with a deafening blow.

A loud hissing alerted them of hydraulics releasing. The dust started to settle and Squall got a glimpse of a metallic creature. Shaped like a spider with the grill of a semi truck, a red light flashed through the dust like a single eyed monster.

“Um...” Zell took a step backwards, trying squint at what he wasn't sure he was seeing.

“Uh-oh,” Selphie stepped back, frowning. “Siren says she recognizes it. She says the monster spotted it when it was flying around above the tower.”

“What is it?” Squall asked, grabbing for his blade.

“She doesn't know it's name...” Selphie swung her own weapon forward. The dust continued settling around them, revealing more of the mechanical menace. “But she says the G-Army guys brought it up here as a last defense. It's a kill bot.”

“Man,” Zell groaned. “How come the G-Army never makes anything nice?”

“Forget it. Just take it down,” Squall ordered. “We still need to make it to the beach. We're running out of time.”

The whirring of machinery, the slam of spiked feet into the ground. The spider bot stepped forward out of the fog of dirt it had made and scanned them.

“So, Zell,” Selphie laughed nervously. “You more of a grill man, or a tailpipe man?”

“Frickin' hell,” he grumbled.

Selphie tucked her weapon back and made to run around.

The spider moved before Squall or Zell had a chance to take it's attention. It lifted one leg. Hydraulics hissed and spit as it shot forward. Selphie squealed as the spiked foot shattered the cobblestone just in front of her. She slid to a halt, falling to her knees. Her body nearly caressing the leg.

Squall reached out and grabbed her by the upper arm. He yanked back, pulling her out of the way of the rocks that the machine sent flying when it's leg pulled back up.

“Its not going to fall for that,” he told them. “Thunder spells, water spells. Throw your magic at it. Zell, see if you can break through the grill and take out its sensors.”

“Why do I have to?”

“Do you have thunder or water spells?”

“Frickin' hell!”

Zell roared wordlessly as he charged directly at the mech.

“Blizzard!” Squall yelled, throwing up a spear of ice into the path of the leg that was about to spear Zell's body. What he wouldn't give for Quistis and Quetzalcoatl right now.

“Water!” Selphie joined in, throwing a blast of bubbles over the machinery. “Um, Squall. I don't think it's working. They probably water proofed it.”

Of course they would if they were going to take it outdoors.

“Don't suppose you have thunder spells?”

“Just water, cure, and ice. Well, and some esuna, but my doctor told me only to use it when the jitters get to be too bad.”

“Try summoning Siren,” he suggested. “See if she can do anything. Thunder!”

A bolt of electricity shot from Squall's hand and slammed into the bot. The jolt of energy shorted it's systems for a moment. It jerked in place, stunned by the bolt. It was a brief second. The army would have built in redundancies for the possibility of thunder attacks. So it recovered quickly.

But that moment was all the time Zell needed to get in close. He jumped up and threw himself across the hot metal of the engine hood.

“Ifrit. Some help here, buddy?” he asked, jerked back from the metal.

Immediately, the heat of it no longer bothered him. It felt kind of good. The air around him was what now felt too cold. He rather preferred it this way.

“Alright,” he grinned, cracking his knuckles. “Let's see what we can break.”

Zell started pounding down on the mech's chassis. The metal of his gaunlet's sparked against the metal of the hood, but he was making dents.

Across the space, Selphie had closed her eyes and brought up her nunchaku. That was where she gathered energy for GF summoning. She reached deep into her mind, trying to take hold of Siren. She was so brand new, not even in her head for a few minutes. It was like trying to talk to someone that only sort of understood your language.

“Thunder!” Squall threw out his magic again.

The spike leg aiming towards Selphie stopped and glitched from the magic. Squall struck out with his Revolver and knocked it aside. When the machine's systems kicked back into gear, the foot slammed into the ground away from her.

“Ugh, Squall!” Zell grabbed the edge of the hood as the mech thrashed about underneath him in order to pull its leg back. “I can't break through this hood! I feel like I'm trying to crack a kupo nut with my bare hands!”

Squall's eyes ran quickly over the mech, eyes straining for any sign of a structural weakness. The pinchers on the front clacked together ominously as it regarded Squall similarly.

Squall's eyes traced a line along the hood. A seam that could be opened so that it's operators could access the engine. It was sealed shut, but with the right leverage...

The mech jumped. Squall threw himself to the side.

“Selphie!” he cried out for her, coming back up on his feet quickly.

She was standing almost in the embrace of the machine. It was scanning her, backing up slightly so it could grab at her properly. The sharp edges of it's pincers gleamed in the sunlight.

“Selphie! Get back! Forget the summoning and get back!”

She paid him no mind.

The pincers snapped back.

“Thunder!” Squall shot out his spell, catching the mech in the side. The pincers glitched there. It would only give her a few seconds. “Zell, grab Selphie!”

Zell rolled off of the mech, kicking out with his foot as he did so to push it back. He scooped up Selphie in his arms and jumped out of the way. The pincers slammed shut in the air where she had just been standing.

Selphie, still lost in herself, trying to focus, paid no mind to Zell as he pulled her back.

He set her down on her feet and took up a spot in front of her. “Squall?”

“I'm going in. Keep that thing off of Selphie!”

Squall didn't look to make sure Zell followed the order.

“Thunder!” he threw out another spell. The monster glitched. Squall ducked down low and ran in under its pincers.

It didn't hesitate long this time. Squall barely had time to use its pincer to vault himself onto the top before it was shaking back to life.

The bot scanned around and couldn't spot Squall. It saw Zell and Selphie though. It slammed it's feet into the ground and started charging.

On it's hood, Squall looked over the dents Zell had left, trying to find the seam he had seen while standing in front of the beast.

Zell pulled back his fist and flames swirled around his gauntlet.

“FIRE!” His roar was accompanied by a blast of magic that smashed into the mech's outer hull. It did nothing but heat up the metal.

Squall's hand ran along the hood, his fingers searching for the seem. His fingernail caught on it and he hefted up his sword with the other hand.

Apologizing to his blade, he slammed the point down into the crease. The ear splitting screech of metal slicing against metal hit them like a brick. But Squall was in.

Putting his foot down against the joint of the front leg, he pulled up against the seem. The metal screamed in protest as he peeled up a section of the hood.

“Ready!” Selphie yelled.

“Do it now!” Squall ordered.

He yanked his Revolver from the hole he had just made and fell back against the hood. He felt cool as though he had just jumped into a pool of cold water. He lifted his eyes towards Selphie who was gesturing with her nunchaku.

Her eyes beamed gold for just a second as she called on Siren's power. Seemingly from nowhere, a wave of water rushed forward and slammed into the bot. It flinched as water filled its circuits. Squall grinned as sparks started shooting across it's body.

A strange sound filled his ears and Squall frowned. It sounded like someone singing through a wall. Or through water. Distorted and hard to make out.

“No!” Selphie cried plaintively. “Siren's main attack is to strip someone of their ability to cast magic! She can't help us!”

“She already did,” Squall assured her.

Using the pincers as a jumping point, Squall ran off of the back of the mech and leapt forward to join his teammates. He rolled and came up to grin at the mech. It was starting to short with its machine parts clogged with water.

Water conducted electricity.

“Shiva!” Squalled lifted his blade and aimed it at the beast. “Give me thunder on my gun.”

He felt the click in his mind as she obeyed. The Revolver aimed and Squall could feel the charge of electricity in the bullets. It would last longer, pack more of a punch, than a straight spell.

He let loose six quick shots. Three hit the hole in the hull. One slammed into the sensors. The last two hit its leg and body. Each bullet buried itself in the metal and let out a prolonged charge. The water in the system put there by Selphie and Siren carried the electricity. The machine bucked and thrashed uncontrollably as it fell face first into the gravel it had created stomping all around.

“Guys, the time!” Selphie reminded them.

“Let's get the hell outta here!” Zell pointed to the path.

Squall nodded and sheathed his blade. They needed to get to the beach. That was far more important than watching the mech die.

They jogged down the path. Squall could see the beach from here and frowned because there were already groups of SeeDs and cadets, tiny dots from this distance, climbing into the cabins of their vessels.

The cracking of cobblestones, the hissing of hydraulics, the whir of machines stopped Squall dead in his tracks. He and the others looked back to see the spider bot stepping after them. It's sensors flashed across it's face.

“No way!” Selphie cried.

“But we busted that thing up!” Zell shook his head.

“Forget it! GO!” Squall grabbed them both as he ran past. He threw them both ahead of him and away from the machine. He could hear it walking. Not towards them. Away.

They rounded up the path and climbed up onto the overlook.

“Incoming!” Selphie yelled.

The machine leapt from the bottom of the cliff. It soared through the air and came down on top of them. Squall had to throw himself to the side to avoid being speared with a leg. It was at an odd angle now though and couldn't grab them as they ran under and past it.

“Woh!” Selphie wobbled as she ran down the stairs. The machine above them throwing itself against the rocks to escape the spot it had jumped into was shaking the mountain.

“Go slow!” Squall ordered.

Though their instincts were screaming at them to run, they forced themselves to start down the steps more calmly. The shaking as it dug itself out at least told them it wasn't immediately on their tails. It still made taking the steps one at a time hard.

The rocks behind them shattered as they were reaching the bottom.

“Okay, run!” Squall ordered them.

Selphie took the last six steps at a full jump. Zell and Squall jumped about half that. The three of them together sprinted towards the bridge back to town.

Squall could hear the mech charging behind them.

The snapping of hydraulics told him it had jumped before he saw its shadow in the sky. It landed on the other side of the bridge. Its face turned to them and it charge again.

“Back!” Squall ordered turning on the next step and running back. Zell and Selphie remained with him though he could practically hear them wondering how going backwards would help.

They outpaced the mech again and Squall heard the now familiar sound of it jumping.

“Turn!” he ordered even as it was in the air.

They obeyed without question and the three of them ran back towards town again.

“How did you know it would do that?” Selphie asked, amazed.

“I didn't. Just run!”

They sprinted down the streets and Zell chanced a look. Some part of him had rather hoped that it wouldn't still be coming after them. It was too wide for the streets. So it simply turned and half walked on the wall, half on the streets.

“Squall, that thing is still coming,” he yelled, turning back.

“The Central Square is up ahead. We're almost there.” Squall's voice was calm still, but his face was drawn and determined.

“Hey, is that a dog?” Selphie asked, pointing.

“Hyne!” Zell cried out. “Squall, that dog is back again!”

Squall cursed in his head. “You two, keep going!”

They were too well trained to question an order in these circumstances. They took the short route around the fountain to escape the mech. Squall had to run around it entirely to get to the dog that was hunched down against the ground.

“Come on!” Squall grabbed the scruff of it's neck and pulled. He expected the dog to hunker down further but it did not. Happy to follow a human, it jumped up and sprinted along with Squall.

“Go home!” he ordered it next.

The dog barked and took a thin alley that Squall couldn't hope to fit through.

Sighing, wondering what that dog was even doing here, Squall continued up the street. Zell and Selphie were far ahead of him now. The monster was right on his tail.

As he was passing the pub he heard the monster get stuck on the second story path. He turned and saw it trying to claw it's way through. As he did so, the pub doors opened and cadets rushed out. The leader's eyes were huge with fear looking at the mech.

“Squad C, withdraw!” he yelled.

“Roger!” his men agreed eagerly, running away with him.

Squall backed up slowly, his eyes on the mech. It stopped fighting against the pathway and started backing up a few steps instead. Squall cursed as he heard the familiar hiss of hydraulics as it prepared to jump.

He turned and started sprinting down the road. He heard the monster mech land with the crunch of rocks. Then its feet hissed as it chased after him. This part of main street opened up wider and the mech didn't have to side crawl against the wall.

It was faster now.

Squall sprinted past a car that he heard the spider trample under its feet. He turned with the curve of the road and saw Selphie and Zell hanging back behind Squad C. Waiting for him.

“GO!” he roared, throwing out his hand.

The two of them looked unwilling to leave him behind, but they were SeeD cadets. They were taught to always follow their orders.

The spider skidded through the turn, slamming into a house.

Squall's muscles were screaming in protest at the prolonged sprint. Shiva let loose a cure spell to take the pain so he could keep running. He would feel it later, worse now, but he would at least be alive to feel it.

Selphie jumped clear over the stairs leading down to the beach. Zell slid down the bumpers on the side of the steps. Both of them looked back as they ran across the sand.

Squall felt rocks his hit back as the machine slammed through the arch over the exit. He jumped forward as Selphie did. Grateful for the sand to soften his landing, his rolled his body over. He heard the mech pause then, scanning for the target it had lost.

Their vessel was the only one left. Zell sprinted towards it, not stopping until he was safely inside, panting and holding his aching sides. Selphie turned just at the entrance, her face worried as she looked between Squall and the mech.

Feeling sand now in some uncomfortable places, Squall pushed himself to his feet and sprinted after the others. Selphie ran inside the boat ahead of him as the engine roared to life. It started pulling off as Squall was drawing even with it.

The sand was weighing him down. It was so much more difficult to run in sand. The monster's spiked feet had no such disadvantage. It was gaining on him.

“Squall! Come on!” Zell urged him forward.

“Squall! Jump!” Selphie reached out for him.

His feet hit the water and he did just that. He could feel the heat of the exhaust of the mech right on his back. He wasn't going to make it...

The beeping of the targeting system on the turret gun rang out a mere split second before the gun started rapidly spitting out a hail of bullets on the monster. They were of a higher caliber than Squall's Revolver. They were coming much faster.

The machine jerked back as they penetrated its armor. Squall let out a grunt of pain as his abdomen slammed into the edge of the landing gear. He was already pulling himself up before Selphie or Zell could reach down to help.

He rolled and came up, panting hard. The doors were already closing but not fast enough for Squall to miss the fiery explosion as the red hot bullets penetrated the fuel cell of the mech. He heard pieces of it slam into the hull of the vessel even as the speeder was pulling away.

His heart racing, breathing hard, Squall dropped back onto his butt. Selphie was already on the ground, on her knees as Zell leaned against the wall.

“Squall!” The door to the cabin slid open and a breathless Quistis looked out on them. “Oh, Zell. Selphie? Oh, are you all alright?”

“Was that you on the gun, instructor?” Zell asked, grinning through his panting.

Quistis let out a sigh of relief and smiled at them. They were all safe.

“Where's Seifer?” Squall asked, turning to push himself up on his feet. His legs protested after that prolonged workout but he ignored them.

Quistis jerked her thumb back. “He's in there. We might be a bit cramped with one more, but welcome aboard Selphie. Sorry Squad A left without you.”

She harrumphed and crossed her arms. “And I thought he was an okay guy.”

Zell laughed at her as the thrill of the realization that they were still alive set in.

***

Somehow, Squall wasn't surprised to see Seifer's cult/friends already waiting at the docks when the water speeder pulled into a halt back at Balamb.

“Seifer!” Raijin waved at him eagerly. “So? How'd it go?”

Seifer, walking ahead of the others, gave a long suffering sigh. “Man, all they did was get in my way. Being a leader ain't easy.”

“SAFE?” Fujin asked, her eyes worried.

He gave her a look like it was a stupid question. She nodded once, satisfied with that. The two of them turned and followed Seifer towards the car.

“Is he serious?” Zell asked, looking after him.

Footsteps from the speeder told them that Quistis was coming out.

“Good job everyone,” she beamed brightly before looking around. “Where's Seifer?”

Squall looked over his shoulder in time to hear the car they had come in starting up. He was already seated inside, probably being worshiped by his fans.

Qusitis shook her head. “Just be back at garden by sundown. You're all free 'til then. You may consider your exam over. Ok, dismissed!”

She turned to walk back inside the speeder as the three of them started to return to the car.

“I'm telling you, I can't wait to get home and get some food,” Zell said, rubbing his stomach. “That was one hell of a day. I don't think I've ever fought that much in my life.”

“Seriously,” Selphie agreed, sighing.

Really? Squall felt it was more like one of his more prolonged training sessions with Seifer. Yes, exhausting, but he still had enough energy to move.

As they were walking towards the car, it was pulling out. Squall knew better than to think that Seifer was having the car pulled out for them to have easier access. It started pulling away up the street.

“H-Hey!” Zell started running after it, but it was already gone. “Not again, man! There goes Mr. Ego...”

Squall shrugged. “Might as well walk it.”

“Easy for you to say,” Zell slumped over. “I'm exhausted, I feel like I'm going to collapse.”

Selphie giggled. “Do you guys always have this much fun?”

“Fun?” he repeated, looking at her. “Puh-lease!”

“Let's go,” Squall gestured them forward. “The sooner we leave the sooner we get back. We don't want to miss the exam results.”

Zell groaned but fell into step beside Squall. “Man, I wish I had enough money to just rent a car. I hate being broke! And I'm still hungry!”

Selphie was laughing at him as they continued walking through town.

“We can eat at garden,” Squall told him calmly.

Zell made a face. “I'm not really looking forward to nutrition bars after a fight like that...Hey! I know. Let's stop by my place.”

“Huh?” Selphie blinked.

“Yeah. My mom is the best cook in the world. Come on!”

Laughing, Zell started running up the street. Selphie looked at Squall.

“Should we?”

Squall shrugged. It would be better than garden food. “Why not?”


	5. The Inauguration Party

Garden had never looked so welcoming as when the group came upon it after the long walk home from their exam. Though the roads were guarded and they hadn't needed to fight on the trip, the long day was still wearing on them. Squall had been fighting nearly constantly since yesterday when his training session with Seifer first began. Sure, he was SeeD trained, but a body had its limits.

The gates were open, beckoning them forward. Squall could hear his bed calling sweetly for him. He doubted he would be able to seek it anytime soon. It was already almost sundown. Which meant exam results were going to be announced soon.

Zell stretched widely as they approached the front steps. He let out a long, wordless sound of relief to feel his tired muscles pull tight. He relaxed with a groan that wasn't quite of pain or pleaseure. “Finally made it back.”

“Seriously,” a tired Selphie agreed, rotating her ankles.

Zell grinned at them. “Well, I guess we just wait for the test results. 'Til then, Selphie. See ya Squall.”

He stuck his hands in his pockets.

“See ya!” Selphie waved at back him then smiled at Squall before walking towards the steps.

The two of them walked into the garden leaving Squall behind. Not that he really minded. The quiet was welcome from their constant chatter on the walk back. Shiva was nagging at him to take a shower and get all the sweat and grime off of his body. He was inclined to agree.

Stepping back into the garden, he let the soothing presence of the school calm his nerves. It had been his first real battle against other humans on a battlefield. And while his training had prepared him for it, it was still a very different thing from all the battle simulations in training.

The other cadets weren't around as he stepped into the nexus of the garden proper. He did, however, see the headmaster, Xu, and Quistis gathered around the directory.

“Mission complete!” Xu was saying, grinning. She looked positively tickled pink. “I think we did a pretty good job. All candidates are back safely right? No one dead this time?”

Quistis shook her head. “Everyone is alive. Some members of squad C are in the infirmary, but everyone else is fine. We didn't realize the Galbadian Army was going for the abandoned communication tower. That intel probably would have helped.”

“How could we have known that?” Xu asked, shrugging. “It's a useless piece of junk.”

“I received word from the Dollet Dukedom just before your arrival,” Headmaster Cid said with his perpetual smile on his face. “The Galbadian Army agreed to withdraw as long as the communication tower is fully repaired and the uplink remains operational.”

Xu shook her head, confused why anyone would want something worthless like that. “Well, in any case, Galbadia is out of there. We fulfilled our mission objective.”

“Then why do you seem so bummed?” Quistis asked, grinning at her slumped shoulders.

Xu sighed sadly. “We could've made more money if they'd stayed and caused more ruckus. Why does no one ever stay and cause more ruckus?”

Quistis and Headmaster Cid were laughing at her as Squall passed by on the way to his dorm. He didn't really care about the tower. It wasn't his business now that the mission was over.

As he was coming around past the library towards the dorms, he saw Seifer leaning against the railing by a bench. His arms were crossed, a glower on his face. He looked up as Squall approached. Squall thought he looked rather like a kid that had his favorite toy taken away.

“D'you hear about the communication tower in Dollet?” he asked, his voice bitter. “We would've been heroes if it weren't for that withdraw order.”

“You were only looking for a fight.”

Squall turned at the footsteps approaching behind him. Xu and Quistis were walking their way. Xu had a look of distaste on her face as she regarded Seifer.

He was looking at Quistis as she was the one who had spoken. A sneer came over his face and his voice dripped with sarcastic honey when he spoke. “My dear instructor, I'm hurt. Those are rather cruel words for an aspiring student. A mediocre instructor like you will never understand.”

Quistis flinched like she had been slapped in the face, her mouth dropping in shock at the blatant disrespect. Xu growled and stepped forward, pointing an angry finger at him.

“Seifer, don't be so stuck on yourself. You're taking all responsibility for leaving your squad's designated area.”

“Isn't it the captain's duty to take the best possible action?” he mocked, throwing words they had learned in class into her face.

“Seifer, you will never be a SeeD,” Xu spat venomously. “Calling yourself a captain is a joke.”

Seifer's fists clenched and his head dropped. He was shaking with fury. Xu grinned at his reaction carelessly. Deliberately, she turned her back to him. She waved at him over her shoulder and strutted away.

It was more than a threat. Xu was the ultimate determining factor in who made SeeD. She had just blacklisted Seifer from his goals. Squall looked between the two of them, surprised. He didn't think he would ever have seen someone snap like that at Seifer.

Xu passed Headmaster Cid as he came in closer. His face was sad as he regarded Seifer's slumped form. He turned to Quistis and said something under his breath that Squall couldn't hear. Quistis bowed and turned to walk off, her face impassive.

Headmaster Cid looked back to Seifer and sighed sadly. He was much calmer than Xu when he spoke, his voice full of sympathy.

“Seifer. You will be disciplined for your irresponsible behavior. You must follow orders exactly during combat. But I'm not entirely without sympathy for you.”

Headmaster Cid shook his head. He looked heartbroken. Squall's eyes moved from him to over Seifer's head where one of the garden clones/faculty was walking towards them.

“I don't want you all to become machines,” Headmaster Cid insisted, his eyes moving to Squall this time, making him frown.

What was that supposed to mean? What was he looking at him for?

“I want you all to be able to think and and act for yourselves. You are all my chi-”

“Headmaster Cid,” the garden faculty cut him off without remorse. “You have business in your office.”

“Can't it wait? I'm-”

“The results of the SeeD exam must be signed by you personally, headmaster. Before sundown, if you please. The students are waiting.”

Headmaster Cid sighed, slumping a bit. He smiled at the boys before him. “There are so many issues at hand here.”

Squall watched him leave with the garden clone before turning his eyes back to Seifer. His training partner was still slumped over. Squall couldn't tell if he was angry, sad, or what.

It wasn't his business. Seifer wouldn't want his pity and Squall wasn't one to give it.

With one last look at Seifer's form, Squall continued on to the dorms.

Squall's shower wasn't as luxurious as he would have hoped. In his life, he took very few moments to relax and enjoy a moment. A shower, something he and Shiva both enjoyed, was one of those few times. Not today, however. He needed it to be quick on account of he didn't know when results would be read.

The SeeD exam wasn't passed on a percentage scale. It was a simple pass/fail exam. It was just extremely easy to fail. If you managed to complete an exam without an overseer failing you, you made SeeD. SeeD rank was then further determined by a point system that determined pay grade.

Squall collapsed onto his bed back in his dorm trying not to think about it. His eyes were already closed, his mind quickly sinking into sleep – maybe he could take a quick nap – when he heard the loudspeaker crackle to life. It sounded like a garden clone calling out robotically.

“All students who participated in today's field exam, report to the 2nd floor hallway. I repeat: All students who took the field exam, report to the 2nd floor hallway.”

The speaker crackled again as it was turned off and Squall's eyes opened. Well, he didn't get any sleep, but at least he got his shower.

He pulled on one of his spare uniforms – the other was probably not suitable to wear any longer – before making his way up to the second story.

Everyone from Squad A through D were gathered there in various stages of aggravation. All except Seifer. Instead, Fujin and Raijin had come to wait in his place. Squall wondered if they knew what had happened between Seifer and Xu.

It wasn't his business.

He saw Zell pacing along the floor. He spotted Selphie standing back, wringing her hands nervously by herself. Other people had gathered in groups to share the pressure together. No one was really speaking though. It was tense and silent.

Squall stood in the hallway and faced the elevator calmly. It was already done, there was no point in being nervous about it now. That would change nothing.

The garden faculty clone took his own sweet time coming down from the third floor offices. He walked over to the gathered students very calmly. As if he was deliberately testing the straining nerves of the cadets. In his hand was the list of passing candidates. It was no more than a tiny note card. It never needed to be long.

He lifted it to his eyes and Squall felt everyone gathered draw in a breath.

“...Selphie Tilmitt.”

A scream of excitement rang out in the hallway. She pushed herself from the wall and ran down the hall towards the elevator. Squall had never seen anyone smile so wide.

The faculty clone hadn't even lowered the list. As Selphie rushed passed him, he read off again.

“...Nida Lorth.”

One of the students waiting against the wall let out a sound like he was being strangled. He sort of melted to the floor. It took his friends helping him stand again before he could walk over to join Selphie by the elevator.

“...Zell Dincht.”

“OH-H-H-H YEAH-H-H-H!” The boisterous Zell literally jumped in the air in excitement. He sent a jubilant wave at the other students. “See ya!”

He pranced over to the elevator and Squall watched him go. He was actually kind of baffled that Zell had made it. Maybe his combat skills were just that impressive.

“...Squall Leonhart.”

The sound of his own name pulled him from his thoughts and he felt an immediate rush of warmth in his chest that he quickly pushed back down.

He had passed...

Keeping his face calm, Squall stepped forward and followed the others without a remark.

As he passed the garden clone, the man lowered the note card and looked out at the mass of gathered students that all had heartbroken faces. He didn't need to say his next words, they all understood what his movements meant.

“That is all. Dismissed.”

Squall heard the unmistakable sound of heartbreak behind him as he joined the others waiting at the elevator. Selphie and Zell were high-fiving again. Zell saw him coming and his face broke out in a wide grin.

“Hey! You made it! I knew you would!”

“Congratulations, Squall!” Selphie laughed delightedly. “Congrats to us all! I can't believe I did it! I can't wait to tell everyone back at Trabia that I passed!”

“Please maintain yourself with dignity,” the garden clone told them, interrupting their celebration. “You may rejoice later at the inauguration party where you are designated to, ahem, lower your inhibitions. For now, follow me to the headmaster's office to receive your official results and SeeD rank.

Selphie squirmed in excitement in the elevator. However, as they stood in line before the headmaster in his office, it was Zell that was twitching.

All four of them stood at attention as the garden clone stepped to the headmaster's side. He gestured out with his robed hand towards them.

“These are the four students that passed today's exam.”

Headmaster Cid beamed at all of them. He looked genuinely overjoyed to behold them. “First of all, let me say congratulations. You have succeeded in doing what few even try to attempt. You are all the absolute best at what you do. This accomplishment is not a small one and you should all be very proud of yourselves and the effort you have put forth.

“From now on, as a member of SeeD, you will be dispatched to missions all over the world. I am honored to introduce you as SeeD, Balamb Garden's mercenary soldiers. SeeD soldiers are combat specialists. But, the missions are just one aspect of SeeD. When the time comes-”

“Headmaster,” the faculty clone cut him off coldly. “It's almost time for your meeting. Please make this short.”

Headmaster Cid blinked, confused at his speech being derailed. The faculty member did not wait for him to continue. He stepped forward and finished the speech himself in short, clipped, monotone that seemed more at place in from robot.

“SeD is a valuable asset to garden. It's reputation is solely dependent upon each one of you. Handle your missions with care. Is that what you wanted to say, sir?”

“Um, well-”

“Here is your SeeD rank report,” the faculty clone cut him off again.

Headmaster Cid, seemingly used to the behavior, sighed as he grabbed the four reports from the man's hands and stepped forward.

Selphie was first in the line. She was first to receive her report. Her face was glowing as she held it in her hands. Headmaster Cid leaned over and whispered to her.

“I'm looking forward to the Garden Festival, Selphie.”

He leaned back and smiled and surprise lit up her face. She didn't realize he had known she had taken over the garden festival, much less who she was.

He continued down the line to Nida and passed him his report. The young man looked stunned as he took hold of the paper. Headmaster Cid whispered to him as well.

“Do your best, Nida. Even if you don't stand out.”

Nida nodded once, happy to be so personally addressed.

Headmaster Cid stopped before the twitching Zell and laughed softly. He passed him his report.

“Try to control your emotions a little, Zell.”

Zell grinned sheepishly but his twitching stopped.

Headmaster Cid's eyes moved to Squall and his chest came out with pride. He stepped in close and passed Squall his report.

“Finally,” he said to him, his voice low but strong. “A gunblade specialist. I'm very proud of you, Squall. But I knew you could do it.”

“This ends the SeeD inauguration!” the faculty member called out. “Dismissed!”

Selphie was already ripping open her rank report before they hit the elevator.

“AH!” she screamed, hugging it to her chest. “I can't believe I made it.”

Zell was laughing as he tore open his envelope as well. He pulled out his report as the elevator doors opened. Squall and Nida were the first ones in.

“Oh, yeah,” he said, waving his report around. “I made it all the way to rank three. Beat that!”

Selphie laughed at him. “Rank three? Try rank seven!”

“What?!” Zell's jaw dropped when she flashed him hers.

Selphie laughed at his reaction and turned to Squall. “What did you get?”

He lifted his envelope. More to satisfy his own curiosity than hers, Squall opened it. He was slow about it that Selphie twitched in impatience as Zell cried over his low rank.

Squall unfolded his report and Selphie was already there, peering over his arm to get a nosy look at what was actually a very private sort of thing.

“No way...” she breathed.

“What?” Zell looked up from his report. Unable to help himself, he moved quickly to Squall's other side to peek at his results. His next cry wasn't of dismay but of shock. “Shut up! Squall, you made rank ten!”

“So I did,” Squall nodded, looking over the body of his report. He had made perfect marks in every category graded. No overseer had seen a flaw with his performance. SeeD rank ten was the highest rank a new SeeD could hope to obtain right out of his exam. Very few SeeDs made it that high. Xu was the only one known.

All in all, not a bad day.

“So now what?” Selphie asked as Squall folded his report back in the envelope.

Zell laughed. “We have to give a speech to the other cadets.”

Oh, Hyne. Squall had forgotten about that part.

“Then, the inauguration par-tay!” he threw up his fist eagerly. “It's going to be sick! I'm eating everything at the buffet table until I puke.”

Selphie laughed at him. “That's gross!”

“We get fitted for our SeeD uniforms tonight,” Zell told her as the four new SeeDs stepped from the elevator. “They'll have them ready by tomorrow. Then we can wear the dress uniforms down to the huge party. I can't wait!”

As Selphie and Zell were debating the pros and cons of eating everything at the party, they all stepped out into the hallway on the second floor.

And Squall froze to find himself face to face with Seifer.

Like he had taken a page from Squall's book, Seifer's face was completely impassive as he regarded the new SeeDs that were stopped before him. On his right, Fujin looked furious. On his left, Raijin looked betrayed.

Seifer lifted his hands and started clapping.

Unprepared for such a show of humanity from his long time training partner, Squall was taken completely taken aback.

Then Fujin joined in, reluctantly. Then Raijin. Then the other students in the hall. Zell laughed sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head while Selphie glowed bright red. Squall looked away uncomfortably.

They were set apart from the others. They had proved themselves to be something better. They had become SeeD.

***

Squall hadn't slept so well in his life as he did that night. Getting fitted for his uniform was a quick process. They already had his measurements from his regular school uniform. It was just a matter of making sure the new, tailor fit SeeD uniform fit properly.

The entire garden was practically shut down as people prepared for the party. The cafeteria closed its doors early and served food in the hall as the large room was fitted with decorations. People were talking excitedly about what to wear and dates were picked rather quickly.

It was the same thing that happened after every SeeD exam. Normally, of course, it wasn't done on so massive a scale. So usually the party was really for one person. Tonight, however, they were celebrating four new entrants into the SeeD ranks. The party had to likewise go up in pomp. It was all very blown out.

Squall spent most of the next day with Dr. Kadowaki letting her treat the wounds he had sustained while at Dollet. His cure spells prevented scarring but healed slowly. Her much more powerful healing magic had him back in top form.

He also slept a lot. Ate enough to kill a chocobo. Then he did some light training in the training center just for the workout. It was a very relaxing kind of day. He was probably just working off the annoyance at being forced to attend the party. It was his party – his and three others – he was obligated to attend. Unfortunately.

As it got dark, Squall took a shower. As people from Balamb started coming to the garden for the festivities he was pulling on his dress uniform. He left off his gloves, but he slipped his silver lion fing over his finger to keep with him.

Though stiff and formal, the SeeD uniform was actually very comfortable. The fabric was specifically designed to look like it fit tightly, but be roomy enough to allow free movement. Though SeeDs rarely wore their uniform on missions, it still needed to allow the opportunity to fight. It was clothing tailored just for him and Squall felt quite at ease within it.

His gunblade was left in his room. Shiva he allowed to rest in her Odine capsule for the night. He would rather not force her to endure his negative thoughts at what should have been a fun event. Fun for anyone else but him.

But also because he didn't want her nagging at him to have fun at the party.

The architecture of the garden was beautiful at the most common of times. For the inauguration party though, the cafeteria/ballroom was shined to breathtaking opulence. Sheer fabric was hung from the windows, the glass dome was cleaned to perfection, and the food was actually edible for once. It was like a miracle.

Maybe Zell was right about eating until they were stuffed while they had a chance.

Squall, Zell, Selphie, and Nida were all introduced at the start of the ball. They were officially congratulated again by Headmaster Cid. Then he gave the signal and the live orchestra – because they hired a live orchestra – started up.

Blown out.

This party was a big deal. Cadets dreamed of having this party because of what it signified. To Squall, it was just a night he was duty bound to attend. At least tomorrow he would be given a SeeD mission and he could go back to things he knew.

He walked away from the platform Headmaster Cid had taken to and made his way to one of the columns away from the dance floor. At least there he could lean back against the wall and not be bothered. At least, that was his hope.

He had been standing there only about five minutes when one of the servers came around. She asked him if he wanted a drink and he accepted a flute of champagne with a soft thanks.

Squall fully intended on standing there for the remainder of the night. Or at least until it wouldn't be an insult to duck out and return to his room. Since he wasn't exactly sure how long that was, he had chosen to wait by a place that he could see the entrance from. He would wait until someone left to return home and take that as his cue that it was alright to leave himself.

“Yo!”

Squall's eyes moved away from the door to see Zell jogging up to him. In his SeeD uniform, he almost looked like a professional. Almost. That tattoo really detracted from the effect.

“S'up, Squall,” Zell grinned at him. He had never looked so smug and self satisfied. “I guess we're both SeeDs now, huh? Put it there, man.”

Zell held out his hand for Squall to shake it expectantly.

Squall took a sip of champagne and said nothing. Maybe if he said nothing, Zell would go away.

The blonde fighter laughed. “Hah, even as a SeeD, you're still the same. Well, that's typical of you. I might even be disappointed if you weren't. I guess I'll just leave you to your mussing then. See ya later, Squall.”

Surprised, but pleased he had picked up on it, Squall let out a breath of relief as Zell started walking away. He didn't get far before Squall heard Selphie call for him.

“Oh, hey, Zell. You look good.”

“Thanks. You too. Congrats.”

“Heehee, thanks. Oh, hey, you want to join the garden festival committee-”

“UH! Sorry!” Zell cut her off quickly. “I, uh, just remembered something I hate to- G-Gotta go. See ya!”

“Hmm...” Selphie recognized someone trying to get away from her when she saw it. That didn't discourage her. Headmaster Cid had encouraged her just yesterday about this. She wasn't going to let a little negativity stop her. She was going to hold this festival come hell or high water.

“Squall!” She cried out his name in excitement and ran towards him. “Hi! Looking good, Squall.”

She knew that he had just heard her try that exact tactic with Zell, right?

“Wanna join the Garden Festival committee?” she asked sweetly. “You can help out whenever you have time. Please?”

Squall had to admit, he was a bit impressed with her. The last person in charge of the Garden Festival had not worked nearly so hard on it as she was. In that manner, he was almost tempted to say he would help out if she needed him.

But he didn't want to deal with any of it. It was an aggravation. He made the mental compromise that he wouldn't join but if she asked him for specific things, he would help out.

Once again, he said nothing. He took a drink of champagne. It was a clear no.

Selphie was no more discouraged by his response than Zell's. Her eyes moved over and she caught sight of the next victim of her crusade.

“S'cuse me! You, right there!”

Finally. Now maybe people would leave him alone...

Squall's eyes moved up to the dome glass roof overhead. He could see the moon from this angle. Its bright golden glow lit up the sky, mesmerizing him.

He let out a long breath. Alright, this wasn't so bad. The music was nice. The people around him were enjoying themselves. He was still kind of tired, but this wasn't so horrible.

His gray eyes stared past the moon to the stars. A bright streak of gold flashed cross the sky. Squall's gaze automatically followed the falling star across the glass dome. The star landed, like it was a pointing arrow right over the head of a girl standing in the center of the dance floor by herself.

What was she doing there?

The creamy color of her dress seemed to glow in the soft light around them. Her hair had fallen back away from her face as she looked up, admiring the same moon he had just been looking at. The golden highlights in her long bangs framing her face shined as she moved.

Sensing someone looking at her, her face turned over to spot Squall staring at her. Her face broke out into a smile like they might be sharing a secret.

She was rather pretty...

As he watched, she lifted her hand and held up a finger. Squall's head tilted, confused at what that was supposed to mean.

Her smile widened at his reaction and she turned towards him. She started walking his way, her footsteps purposeful and confident. Her hips swayed and the silver ring on a chain around her neck bounced as she came in closer to him. Her heels clicked softly on the ground. And as she came in closer, Squall got a better look at her.

She wasn't from garden. Was she from Balamb? She was no fighter. Her skin was flawless. Not a single mark that would indicate previous battles marring her bare arms or legs. She didn't really have much in the way of muscle tone either. The look in her eyes, though, was intelligent and determined. Like she might get into mental battles at any time and wanted to be ready.

As though they hadn't just spotted each other randomly, she stepped in front of him. She tossed back her hair and her large, doe brown eyes blinked at him sweetly.

“You're the best looking guy here,” she opened with immediately. Her voice was melodic. Like she might start singing in a second. “Dance with me?”

Oh, Hyne.

Squall took another sip of his champagne, turning away from her.

Not dancing. Anything but dancing. Why couldn't she just want to talk?

“Let me guess,” she laughed at his lackluster reaction, “you'll only dance with someone you like?”

No. That wasn't it.

“Okay then,” she slapped her hands together, drawing Squall's gaze again. She reached up and took hold of his chin and Squall's body locked down in surprise.

She was touching him. Her hand was soft. She definitely didn't wield a weapon.

Her melodic voice took on a low, hypnotic quality. “You-are-going-to-like-me...You-are-going-to-like-me...”

She drew her hand back and grinned at him with sweet a head tilt. “Did it work?”

Damn. That was weirdly cute. He had no idea he'd be into that.

But damn. She still expected him to dance. Why dancing?

He sighed softly, looking away from her. “...I can't dance.”

“You'll be fine.” Taking liberties with him, she reached out and snagged his hand. She wasn't that strong but she pulled suddenly, yanking Squall unexpectedly away from the wall.

“My drink,” he warned, trying to hold up the champagne without spilling it.

She turned and took it from his hand. She passed it off to a random passing person making them look at her, baffled.

“Come on,” she pulled on him again. “I'm looking for someone. I can't be on the dance floor alone.”

“I said I can't dance.”

The girl outright ignored him and continued to pull in such a way that he was either forced to follow her or land straight on his face.

Without any warning to him, she suddenly stopped and turned. Squall stopped as well but not before his balance regaining steps had his chest nearly touching hers. Beaming at his confused reaction, she grabbed for him.

One hand she put on her waist. The other she took hold of in her soft but firm grasp.

“Perfect,” she beamed. “Hold me just like that. And we go!”

Go? Go where?

Squall knew men were supposed to lead a dance. He may have never danced before, but he at least knew that much. She took complete control as she guided him into a series of steps that he was completely unfamiliar with.

“Put your foot here, like this,” she directed. “See, that's not-woh!”

She pulled back against him too suddenly. His face flew forward. His chin caressed against her breast accidentally.

He pulled back quickly. But it was too late. The damage was done. He knew what her breasts felt like and now that was stuck in his head.

She didn't seem to even notice. She was already grabbing for his hands and placing them back on her body. The smooth curve of her hip. The warmth of her hand, so tiny and soft against his calloused and battle hardened grip.

Laughing, she started pulling him into it again.

Okay, wait. There was a pattern here. Looking over her shoulder, he could see what the others were doing. Besides simply moving to the music, there was a pattern to the footwork. The pattern came in sets of threes. Left first...no, right? Wide step, narrow step...

Then she broke the pattern. He wasn't sure if she pushed him or herself out. But she jerked against his hand to pull herself back in. All she succeeded in doing was jerking him back towards her. He lost his balance again.

He fell forward. There was no other way to say it. He face planted on top of her breasts.

His weight falling against hers had her falling a few steps back, a small sound of surprise coming from her mouth. She looked up at him, her doe eyes wide and unreadable.

Damn. See, this is why he didn't want to do this! And now he really knew what her breasts felt like and he needed to go kill something to get the thought from his mind.

Shaking his head, fully intending on doing just that, Squall turned away from her and began walking off quickly. He was going to the training center. He wasn't even changing. He was going to kill grats until his fingers went numb.

At least it would be better than dancing.

A series of quick clicks from her heels warned Squall that the girl was chasing after him. Her hands closed over his and she pulled back. She was laughing again.

“Come on, don't give up. You were doing well that time.”

Seriously? Was she not seeing this? Squall hadn't looked so clumsy and ungainly since the first time he had picked up a sword.

She released one of her hands and held their joined arms up together. She fell back in line with the other dancers. They all turned around each other with such grace. Squall was trying to figure out what was going on as she moved around him.

Then she stepped in close again and his hands resumed the position automatically. Her body was a lot softer than he was used to in the females around him. He couldn't say he didn't like it. He could say that it made her seem curiously fragile.

“There you go,” she laughed, looking down at their feet.

He had started moving in time with the pattern he had memorized just a second ago.

They were both so focused on his footwork – she was admiring how quickly it was correcting itself and he was focused on making corrections – that they forgot to steer. Squall felt another body slam into his side and he jumped back quickly.

The SeeD he had run into – and his date – gave him looks of confusion and distaste.

Squall looked at his senior awkwardly. He was being helpless led around by a girl who he could probably throw with one hand.

“Watch where you're going, rookie,” the SeeD snarled at him.

“How about you mind your own business!” the girl snapped back.

Squall looked back at the fragile thing controlling him for this dance to see her throwing the senior SeeD a threatening look. Like he wasn't a SeeD at all.

She had guts. He could admire that. Even if he imagined that it would get her into untold amount of trouble.

Scoffing and muttering to himself, the SeeD and his date moved away from them. The girl in the creamy dress turned back to him and smiled again. Like they were sharing another secret.

Okay, maybe it wasn't her 'hypnosis' that he found cute. Maybe it was just that smile...

“Shall we try again?” she asked, grinning at him, her voice dripping with challenge. “You're not ready to give up now, are you?”

“I've never given up on anything in my life,” he assured her, almost annoyed by the accusation.

That smiled spread wider across her face. “Oh, so he does speak. Well, then, handsome. Why don't you take the lead this time?”

She stepped back from him slightly, holding up her hand, the challenge in her eyes now.

Squall let his gaze move out over the crowd of couples dancing. There was a pattern. It wasn't all that fast moving. The music itself was a director for when to move. Put all the pieces together and it didn't matter that he had never danced before. He could learn it quickly.

He looked back at her and her grin had only grown wider. Like she knew what he was thinking. That he was breaking down the movements of everyone around him.

Squall could never resist a challenge.

He reached out and took her hand in his. Even as he was stepping in closer to her, the other dancers around them fell into a similar position.

It was like a battle. The constant movement. The checking of the placement of each limb at all times to be sure it lined up perfectly – either to land a blow or avoid one. With the people dancing around him, it even gave him a clue of where to move and how. He could see by the way their muscles would clench in anticipation what direction they would go.

The girl he danced with, her grin grew wider as he fell into the steps naturally. Like he had been practicing for hours instead of minutes. He was still a bit unpolished, but he wasn't throwing himself into her body any longer.

If there was one thing Squall was good at, it was learning how to move.

As the men spun their women out, Squall could tell where his partner was going to move. She broadcast her movements easily further convincing him that she was no fighter.

He spun her out once and she twirled in again. Her back hit his hand gently and he pushed her out once more. She laughed as her hair spun with her. He pulled her back in again.

This time, their bodies did press together. The lights around them dimmed suddenly, but Squall barely noticed it because her eyes were shining with the light of the moon. She was beaming, surprised and delighted at how quickly he had picked up the dance.

For just a second, a second that stretched into minutes, they stared into each others eyes. Squall had to know. He needed to get her name. The question was on the tip of his tongue.

A loud whistle followed by a crackling pop had both of their heads swiveling. The lights had dimmed in anticipation of the fireworks show.

Damn, but that was good timing. Squall actually found himself grinning as he looked up at the explosion of lights going on above their heads.

He didn't notice that she wasn't staring at the fireworks. She was looking at him. Watching the expression on his face with a gentle smile. Like she knew that him grinning was a rare thing and she wanted to witness it.

Her eyes slid past him and over his shoulder. A great smile broke out on her face. The movement caught Squall's attention and he looked away from the fireworks.

Laughing, like she was caught up in a joke, she pulled herself free of his grasp. She held up her hands, winking at him, before she walked right past him. She didn't even look back. Squall knew because he watched until she disappeared into a crowd.

She walked right out of his life just as quickly as she had walked into it. And he hadn't even gotten her name.

The crushing sense of disappointment washed over Squall like a tidal wave. Right on its heels came anger and derision. Not at her. At himself.

Of course she had left. The first thing out of her mouth was that she was only waiting for someone while dancing with him. He was something to do to pass the time. Did he really expect anything to come from it?

He turned away from where she had left and himself walked away. She had walked off towards the door though. Unless he wanted to risk passing her, he had to go the opposite direction. That led to the open doors out on one of the three balconies of the ballroom.

Even as he was berating himself for being a fool, he was still disappointed. Though he couldn't imagine why. It's not like he could expect her to stay. No one ever stayed. Eventually, everyone left. She just left sooner than most.

If nothing else, it was a good reminder of why he chose to stay alone.

A set of footsteps, fast paced but short stride, came up behind him. He knew Quistis's walk so well. He desperately didn't want to talk to her right now.

Squall so rarely got what he wanted.

“You really are an excellent student,” she admired quietly in the still night. “You finished that dance perfectly.”

Silence.

Just go away, he thought. He didn't want to deal with her. He wanted to be alone. Really, was that such an impossible thing to ask for?

She stayed behind him leaving him no choice but to respond.

“Thank you.”

More silence.

She was still standing there. Didn't she claim to know him well? Hadn't she been proving that lately by mocking him as he was speaking? How could she not tell that he wasn't exactly inviting people to come talk to him tonight.

Why was everyone so damned and determined to be around him?

Letting out a soft, frustrated sigh, he spoke again. His voice was clipped and he couldn't keep the irritation from showing.

“Yes?”

Quistis frowned at his tone and the implication behind it. “Oh, so you'll dance with someone you don't even know, but you can't stand being around me?”

Damn. He should have just left it alone.

“...Whatever. You're an instructor, I'm your student. It's kind of awkward when you stare at me and don't say anything.” His words were filled with meaning. Trying to tell her that just because he hadn't said anything before didn't mean he hadn't noticed all the time she had been staring lately.

It flew right over her head.

“I suppose that's true,” she nodded, looking up at the sky with her arms crossed over her belly. “Though I guess that won't be a problem anymore...”

Why? Because he was SeeD? Well, that did mean he wasn't required to attend classes anymore. He still needed to apply for graduation though. Making SeeD and graduation were two different things. SeeDs could automatically graduate since they attained SeeD. He still needed to apply for it though. Just another pain to add to his list of things to do.

“I've come to give you an order,” Quistis said when he remained silent. “You and I are to go to the 'secret' lookout in the training center.”

Squall frowned. “You don't mean the place where students meet up after curfew, do you?”

“Yes. That's the one.”

Squall resisted the urge to roll his eyes. That was the premier location for students to meet up for some illicit PDA. Being inside the training center, no garden faculty clones would go there and so no one would be able to order them to stop. And since the training center was always open, anyone could go there at any time – except the underclassmen, of course.

He really rather hoped Quistis was not implying what he was afraid she was. He was in no mood to put up with it tonight. Not with his mind filled with a raven haired girl with a secret tucked in her smile and who had breasts like pillows.

And now he was thinking about them again. Maybe a couple rounds in the training center would be good for him after all.

Still, with Quistis...?

“What do you want to do there?” he asked gruffly. “Are we going to tell everyone they're violating curfew? Forget it. Leave that for the disciplinary committee.”

Quistis didn't take his hint. She started laughing like he told a joke. Not for the first time, Squall wondered why people always laughed when he wasn't joking but never when he was. One of the reasons he didn't attempt to joke with people often...

“Go get changed,” Quistis told him, still laughing. It was undeniably her instructor voice though. “Then meet me in front of the training center. This is my last order as your instructor.”

Technically, her hold over him as an instructor ended when he passed the SeeD exam. And her seniority as a SeeD only gave her authority in mission situations not in garden.

However, it was an excuse to get out of the ballroom and away from the chance of running into the girl with soft hips and breasts and that cute smile on those pink lips just begging to be-

Yeah, he was leaving. Training center, cold shower. Maybe he could even get Shiva to wrap him in ice to calm him down. Hyne, maybe Seifer was right. Maybe he was just reaching puberty.

Squall's eyes scanned the ballroom carefully for the creamy dress girl as he walked through. He didn't spot her, thankfully. And once he left the ballroom and was safely back in the garden nexus, he let out a breath of relief that he wouldn't run into her again.

It felt good to get out of his uniform – no matter how tailor fit – and into his casual clothes. He felt more himself, more steady, wrapped in his familiar black leather. It felt good to cover his hands in his gloves, to put his necklace and ring back on. It felt even better when he broke open her Odine capsule Shiva latched eagerly onto his brain and a cool wind caressed his cheek in greeting.

“Ready for some late night frustration treatments?” he asked, lifting his Revolver out of its case and running his gloved hand gently along the gleaming silver body.

“Hm,” he mumbled, feeling it over again. “Damn.”

The spider bot had done a number on it. There were scratches on the blade now. He supposed he was going to have to have it repaired. Maybe it was even time to upgrade it.

Well, he wasn't going to do that tonight. The scratches were only cosmetic, nothing that would compromise the strength of the sword.

He grabbed a case of ammo and attached it to his belt and walked out. He was trying not to think about what Quistis could want to talk with him about in the training center.

The laughter and music of the party echoed dully through the garden nexus as he made his way over towards the training center. Garden faculty clones watched him from under their hats – or maybe not, maybe they were in standby mode unless someone tried to pass them to closed areas – as he made his way across.

Squall looked back towards the cafeteria only once as he was approaching the entrance to the training center. He couldn't see anyone from here, not that he really expected to.

He was never going to see that smile again. He needed to get over it.

Smacking himself mentally, Squall put more purpose in his steps. Quistis was leaning against the wall when he approached. She had retrieved her own weapon while he was gone. Her mouth upturned just a bit into a ghost of a smile as he approached.

“Squall, I was just thinking. You've fought the T-rexaur before, right?”

“Not with only two people,” he said, securing his blade at his hip.

She nodded. “You have any sleep spells?”

“I stocked up on a few.”

“T-rexaurs are strong, but they're extremely susceptible to sleep spells. I have a few myself. If we cast sleep on it before we attack, it will be rendered helpless. Not exactly a fair fight, I'll admit, but it's quite a strong monster and I've never fought it with only two either.”

Someone had gone to a great amount of trouble to make sure the monsters in the training center were as comfortable here as they would be in their own natural habitats. Besides the enormous metal gates segregating them from the garden proper, it was a jungle out there. The dirt path wasn't paved, the plants were allowed to grow over everything, and there were marks of past battles all over the place. It was as close to the wilds as a person could get indoors.

The predominant life form in the training center were the ugly plant monster grats. They were one of the few that could survive in an environment beside a T-rexaur because their predominant form of attack was to release sleeping spores, taking advantage of the T-rexaur's weakness.

They were practically cannon fodder for Squall at this point. They offered him no challenge and his mostly ice based attacks meant that defeating them was easy.  
The 'secret' lookout in the training center was at the far end of the center. On the opposite side of the simulated forest. It could only be accessed by a tiny door that neither grats nor T-rexaurs were small enough to fit through. It led up a staircase and to a large lookout station. Originally, it had been meant for garden clones to watch over training students in safety since they couldn't fight. However, since just coming here meant fighting through the training center, that idea was abandoned.

Now, the look out was a romantic hot spot. Its beautiful view of the training center forest and the glowing garden itself was breathtaking. Squall and Quistis weren't the only two there either. There were already two other couples getting cozy near the rails. Both of them were so wrapped up in each other that they paid no mind to either the scenery or Squall and Quistis.

Bored, wishing the grats had put up more of a fight, Squall walked over to the railing. The scent of fresh leaves and trees washed up over him. Calming him. The training center felt more like home to him than the dorms ever did.

Quistis was just a step behind him. Her voice was sentimental as she looked around. “I haven't been here for a while.”

She took a spot next to Squall at the ledge. They fell silent. She didn't know what to say and he didn't care to say anything. He was thinking about fighting again. Trying his hardest not to think about that girl back in the ballroom.

…

He wasn't doing that well.

“What time is it?” Quistis asked, pulling him out of a fantasy of dancing with her again.

He was obsessed. He needed to stop already. No more thoughts about her. He was done.

He checked his watch, angry that he hadn't already tracked the time as he usually did. “It's 00:04,” he said, the military time coming to him easily. He honestly had trouble using standard time.

“Oh, well...” she let out a long sigh, her head slumping over. For just a moment. Then it came back up again and her spine straightened. “I, Quistis Trepe, am no longer an instructor as of now!”

Um...okay?

She turned to Squall and smiled. “I'm a normal Seed member now, just like you. Who knows, maybe we'll end up working together some day.”

She had lost her higher paying job and her luxury dorm on the third floor. But she was a SeeD once again. She was Squall's equal again. She could talk to him without that barrier of rank between them and it was was a rather good trade off in her mind.

Squall said nothing for a long time. She waited patiently.

What came out was less than inspiring.

“Oh, really?”

She frowned. “Is that all you're going to say?”

“If that's how it was decided, you have to abide by it,” he shrugged.

She knew that. She hadn't expected him to leap to her defense and go to demand that they give her her job back. Still, she was expecting at least something else...

“They told me that I failed as an instructor,” she told him, frowning as she looked towards the garden again. “Basically, that I lacked leadership qualities.”

Since Squall didn't really know exactly what that was, he remained silent.

Quistis took that as an invitation to start talking again.

“I was a Seed by 15. I got my instructor license at 17...It's only been a year...” She frowned as she thought back on the last year. She had fun. She enjoyed teaching people. She figured it was a good position for her. “I wonder where I went wrong...I did my best to-hey!”

Quistis looked over to Squall and was distraught to see that he had actually turned his back to her. Just like he always did, he didn't look back to her.

“Are you even listening?” she asked, her voice heartbroken.

Squall sighed. He so didn't want to do this. “Are you done yet?”

Quistis flinch like he had struck her. “Squall...?”

“I don't want to talk about it,” he gave her a look, his cold eyes flashing. “What exactly am I supposed to say about other people's problems?”

“I'm not asking you to say anything,” she hurried to say. “I just want you to listen.”

He scoffed, rolling his eyes. “Then go talk to a wall.”

The barrier of rank between them was gone. He no longer had to hide his disdain for the way she constantly treated him. Quistis didn't even realize that was what had kept him impassive, tolerant of her, until this moment.

It was not a good realization.

“Aren't there times when you want to share your feelings with someone?” she asked, feeling near tears at this change in him. She hadn't expected this. She hadn't anticipated it. And she thought she knew him better than anyone...

“Everyone has to take care of themselves,” he said like he was reciting something he had already said a hundred times before. The look he gave her was distant, untouchable. “I don't want to carry anyone's burden.”

Just like that, he turned and walked away from her.

The heartbreak that Quistis had been feeling numbed slightly with the realization of what Squall had told her. How could she had been so blind not to have seen that he wasn't just a loner. He didn't simply prefer to be alone. He was genuinely broken inside over something.

She was his instructor. She knew him better than anyone. Yet she had never been able to see something like that until this moment when he chose to show it to her.

“No leadership qualities,” she repeated, her lips numb as Squall returned to the exit. Looking at his back had never seemed so cold before.

“Failed instructor.” She hadn't been able to help him like he deserved. She hadn't realized that he was damaged and needed more than someone to just talk at him.

Cold certainty settled in her gut. “Perhaps they're right...”

Because people were advised never to go through the training center alone – in fact, it was a rule – Squall waited at the exit for her to catch up. Neither of them said a word though as they started walking back towards the garden nexus. Quistis was staring at his back again and he was pretending not to notice her doing so, again.

He was going to leave the moment he hit the hallway. And new SeeD's were usually sent out on their first missions early so as to acclimate them to the work. This would likely be the last time she was going to spend this much time with him unless they worked together.

Quistis tried once, then twice to say something. She hesitated both times. If Squall noticed her attempts, he made no sign of it.

Taking a fortifying breath, Quistis told herself to just get it over with. She opened her mouth-

“Someone! HELP!”

The panicked cry stopped them only for a moment. Their heads both moved towards the exit out of the training area where it had originated. After a year spent as an instructor, often leading students through this place herself, Quistis moved before Squall did.

“Come on, Squall!” she urged, sprinting towards the exit.

A high pitched screeching told them that a monster had cornered someone. The buzzing of wings told Quistis which monster is was.

“It's a granaldo!” Quistis yelled, releasing her whip. “Keep watch for its raldos!”

The wasp type monster never traveled along. It tended to keep it's larval form – the raldos – around and used their rock hard shells as a weapon. They were rare to spot in the training center simply because there was an effort to kill them out when it became obvious that having a winged monster was not a wise idea.

Monsters were so hard to exterminate though.

Just like its ancestors had done, prompting the call for their extinction in the training center, this one had flown over the protective gates. It had gotten out and cornered someone that wasn't inside.

Squall hesitated as he recognized the pixie girl from the infirmary. She was cowering from the granaldo and its raldos in a corner between the door and the fence. Her chest was heaving as she tried to back up further. Their footsteps caught her attention and she turned her gaze down.

“Squall!” She reached out for him, her terrified eyes turning up at the winged monster. She looked back at him, near tears. “Squall! Quisty?”

“Quisty?” Quistis repeated, confused.

“I'll take out the raldos,” Squall ignored the nickname, pulling out his blade. “Quistis, you deal with the granaldo.”

Quistis had a moment of surprise at hearing an order from him. He had never given her an order before, even in battle. He would always request something of her.

She didn't realize how much the rank barrier had meant to him.

Deciding that was also something meant for later, Quistis focused her eyes on the large insect. Though the bigger of the enemies, it was better for her to fight. The raldo's harder bodies wouldn't take much damage from her whip while the winged mother would.

“This way, ugly!” Quistis yelled. Her arm drew back and with a grunt of effort, she shot the bladed tip forward.

The insect was already turning at the sound. Quistis accounted for that in throwing her whip forward. It landed true, striking against one of the beast's four wings.

It hissed/screeched in fury as it bobbed from the sudden loss of wing power. Its tail snapped out automatically and smacked against one of its larvae.

The raldo could curl into a ball. Which it did at having its mother hit it. The boulder like quality of its exoskeleton could do a great deal of damage with the power of a granaldo's hit. The larva skidded against the ground towards Quistis.

Squall jumped in front of her. He flipped his blade around in his hand. As the raldo approached, he swung his Revolver like a bat. The flat side of the blade hit the raldo. Squall couldn't overcome the granaldo's force to send it back, but he did stop the raldo in it's tracks.

As the raldo tried to right itself, Squall stepped closer to it. He planted one foot against its shoulder, forcing its arm out. He slammed the Revolver down through the things neck, slicing through the tender skin of its underbelly, he jerked it sideways, severing the spine.

The granaldo squealed in fury as the first of its three larva went limp.

Squall jerked his blade out and stepped back.

“That's what you get for throwing your children into battle,” Squall told the buzzing mother.

Quistis stepped up again, whipping her weapon around. She swung it out. The granaldo buzzed backwards, avoiding a clear hit.

The second raldo, seeing what happened to its sibling, charged on its own. It wasn't hit forward by its mother, significantly reducing any power it could have.

It raised its claws and jumped, intended to spear Squall as it came back down. Squall ducked underneath. He turned and pointed the Revolver. The blast of his gun landed a bullet directly in the larvae's heart.

Its momentum carried it forward. It crashed into a heap on the ground and Squall came up again, calm and untouched.

Quistis tried again to hit at the granaldo, but the wasp was done with her. It was concentrating its fury on the SeeD that had killed her offspring.

The giant insect reared up, roaring its high pitched squeal. It turned then and started to dive. Squall turned and ran towards one of the metal doors that closed the training center.

Quistis stepped forward automatically to deal with the last remaining raldo. Its mother and siblings gone, it didn't know how to react. It sliced out for Quistis, afraid.

She dodged the attack easily. Her whip snapped out, encircling around the thing's neck. She jerked back, slicing the chains on the whip through the thing's skin. The force of the jerk snapped its neck as the chains cut its throat.

It dropped with its siblings. Quistis turned to check on Squall.

The insect was gaining on him fast. He was coming up on the door. There was no way that it would open in time for him to reach it. Which he planned on.

As he drew even with it, he dropped down to his belly. The enraged granaldo's claws soared over his head. He heard a hollow thud as the insect plowed headfirst into the thick metal doors.

Squall rolled away as its body dropped down. Stunned from the blow, trying to gather itself back together, it was weak for a moment. A moment was all Squall needed.

Standing up, Squall brought up his Revolver. With a cry he sliced it down across the insect's neck, blasting his gun as he did so. The sword cut through most of the neck, the gun blast shattered the rest of it. The granaldo stilled and its limbs went limp.

Squall stepped back, breathing hard.

Yeah. That was exactly what he needed. The rush of battle filled his veins making him feel right again. Just what he wanted.

The sound of running feet had him turning in time to see two men in white uniforms sprinting down the entrance hall towards them. No, towards the pixie girl laid out on the ground.

Squall didn't recognize them or their white uniforms, but he definitely recognized the eyes and movements of a fighter.

They slid to a stop before the tiny pixie girl. One reached down and gently helped her to her feet. The other was scanning her critically for any wounds.

“It is not safe here,” the one helping her up said, his voice firm. Much in the same way that a mother would chastise her errant child. “Please, let's go.”

The pixie girl looked up at Squall. There was deep emotions in them, just like when she had regarded him in the infirmary. He still wasn't comfortable and he shifted under that gaze.

She turned and nodded to the man holding her up.

“Alright.”  
The pixie let them lead her away, but she still turned back to Squall one more time. Like she couldn't get enough of looking at him. What was with her?

Quistis frowned at her back. “Who was that?”

Squall shrugged. If Quistis didn't know, it was likely then that no one did around here. He might never find out. Which was fine with him. He didn't like the way she looked at him. It made him uncomfortable in ways he would rather not think about.

They were out of the training center now though. Squall didn't have to stay with Quistis any longer. He started towards the exit, fully intended on leaving her. She didn't let him though. She continued walking just a step behind him towards the garden nexus.

As they were nearing the end of the long hall, she passed by, her arms crossed over her stomach and a sad look in her eyes. She stopped before him, forcing him to stop as well. She hesitated there for only a moment before turning those sad eyes onto his.

“Squall...It's not like everyone can get by on their own, you know?”

She gave him a look like she was trying to tell him something. Something that he didn't understand and didn't care to try to decipher.

Sighing, she turned and walked away.

“Says who?” Squall asked no one, honestly confused as to why she would say so. He was doing just fine by himself. The world would probably be a better place if everyone got by on their own. It wasn't like people weren't always on their own anyway.

Why was he even thinking so hard about this? It was irrelevant.

Angry now that Quistis had brought this all up, Squall started back to the dorms. He just really wanted to get some sleep and forget this whole night. He didn't want to see anyone. He didn't want to talk to anyone else. He didn't want-

Damn, Zell was running right for him.

“Squall!” he yelled, laughing. “Finally! There you are. Where the hell have you been? I've been lookin' all over for you!”

“Some late night training,” Squall mumbled.

“Seriously?” Zell laughed. “Man, even on a day off, you can't relax. Well, whatever. Hey, I got a message for you from the dorm manager.”

“And?”

“Yeah, he told me to tell you that while we were at the party, our stuff was relocated to the SeeD side of the dorm halls. We got out own rooms now, baby! Here's the card to your new room.”

“Thanks,” Squall took it without looking at him. It didn't bother him that the garden staff had taken all his stuff without telling him. If he wanted privacy, he would be living in his own house. If he could afford his own house. Maybe one day. For now, he didn't care.

“Your new room number is F8, it's right across the hall from mine! Hey, you better not be one of those loud, obnoxious kind of neighbors,” Zell laughed, nudging him as the two of them walked down the hall towards the dorms.

Squall really wasn't in the mood to joke around with him.

His new room was just as spartan as his old room. He actually had less room here. Though he had no roommate, he also had no common area outside of his personal space. Now he had only a single bed and – this was new – a desk. Squall frowned at the mess the garden staff had made. They had just thrown his stuff cross his desk or laid it on the floor.

He really probably should clean it up.

“...I'll just go to sleep,” he mumbled. He didn't want to bother with it right now.


	6. The Train to Timber

“Squall! Squall, wake up!”

The excited, frantic knocking on his door had Squall shooting up in bed. His hand was reaching out for his blade even before his eyes were fully opened. The fighting instinct that had been beaten into him for the last decade had him ready even before he knew there was a problem.

It was only once he had a foot outside of his bed, raising his Revolver that he recognized Selphie's happy voice. His body kept moving.

“It's our first mission, Squall!” she continued yelling delightedly. “We're on it together!”

Squall was already on his feet, ready to fight as he realized what she was saying.

Letting out a breath, he ran his hand over his face.

“We're going to Timber!” Selphie yelled, oblivious to Squall's reaction beyond his door. “We're meeting by the front gate for our debriefing. Hurry! We leave at 07:30!”

Squall could hear laughter as she ran off down the hallway. Even as she was running away, he heard the communicator built into his desk beep as he received a message. Probably the instructions for the mission.

When he looked at it, his Revolver still in hand, he wasn't wrong. Selphie had gotten the message before he had. Even hardwired into the building, communication was still so difficult. He heard stories that it didn't used to be over twenty years ago. Before radio waves stopped working. Probably why someone had sent Selphie to tell him.

Whatever. He had gotten the message either way.

Sighing, wondering how he had managed to sleep so late, Squall set his blade down on the bed. He ran a hand along the back of his neck as he continued to wake up more slowly. His muscles eased off of readiness and his mind came into focus.

07:30. He had thirty minutes.

Squall, when not on assignment, tended to prefer wearing only a pair of loose fitting, thin fabric pants to sleep in regardless of how cold it was. That was because when he was on assignment, often he was forced to sleep in whatever he was wearing at the time. Either because he had no access to pajamas – or even a bed – or because he didn't want to try to wake up and fight in his underwear. So when he was in garden and there was such a small chance of needing to be awake and fighting in a second, he wanted to wear little and enjoy it.

Besides, no one was there to judge him for doing so.

Grabbing his clothing from the closet where the garden clones had hung it – despite the fact that he clearly didn't hang up his clothes in his old room – Squall left to take a shower. Not even ten minutes later, he was back in his room, fully dressed and running a towel through his hair to catch the last of the moisture that clung to the brown locks.

He grabbed Shiva's capsule and let her loose into his mind. She took her place eagerly then hissed in anger because his body was still hot from the heat of the shower. Without her with him, the cold water hadn't been pleasant. Immediately, he felt a rush of cool air over his body completely negating the effects of the hot water. He was far too used to it for it to bother him.

He grabbed his other Odine capsules that held his stocked magic and put them into the belt pouch he used to store them in on extended missions. He packed a few empty ones just in case and locked the pouch onto one of his belts.

From a drawer in his desk – why had the clones put them there? – he took a few boxes of extra ammo and attached those to his other belt. His Revolver's sheath clicked on next and the gunblade was stowed away inside of it.

He debated for a moment packing his blade cleaning kit. It was of most importance to ensure that his blade was always in perfect repair. At the same time, he didn't want to take it if it wasn't needed or if it would only weigh him down.

After a moment, he grabbed the case. It was compact by design anyway and he had brought it with him on missions before. That went into an inner pocket in his jacket.

Squall turned and walked over to his Revolver's case. He wouldn't be taking that with him, however there was something very important, very expensive, in the storage space. It was a space usually reserved for ammo, but Squall never kept it there. Instead, in that spot, Squall kept something thats value was so great and who's construction so difficult that most people would never even get a chance to see one, much less use one.

The Inorganic Nanocompressing Vector Enhancing Non Temporary Optimization Retrieval and Yield Device by Odine Brand Products. Or INVENTORY for short.

Shaped like a simple rectangular pencil case, it was designed to be able to hold a vast amount of inorganic material in an impossibly tiny space. Squall's was top of the line and he was promised it would hold 1800 individual items. That was impossible enough, however it also managed to do so without adding more than a few grams per item to the case.

Inside it, Squall had already stored a great many potions and items. He used it now to adsorb the rest of his ammunition. Then, because he could, he also absorbed his Revolver case. He grinned as he tossed the tiny device up and down.

Odine Brand really did make the best in magical goods.

He slipped that inside the other inner pocket of his jacket.

He was as ready as he was going to get. It was time to start his first SeeD mission. To first mission of the rest of his life.

***

“I am so excited!” Selphie was squealing next to Squall at the front gate. The two of them were waiting there with Headmaster Cid and a garden clone.

“Squall, aren't you excited?” she asked, grabbing his arm.

“Thrilled,” he returned dully. His expression didn't dim her happiness.

“This is the greatest day ever! I mean, really! I think I'm actually going to throw up! AH! I haven't been this happy since the first time I killed my first snow lion!”

As Selphie was speaking, she was pulling up her overly large, loose fitting boots. Since her yellow dress was too short to bend over in, she had to do so by lifting her feet behind her and pulling. She didn't have her waist sheath for her nunchaku today. They were collapsed and stored within those large boots. It was a good way to hide her weapons and really completed the innocent, harmless look that Selphie could no doubt use to her advantage.

Squall certainly couldn't pull that off. His blade was too big to hide and wasn't collapsible. He just had to deal with having the sheath at his hip. So he wore black to let people know to stay away from him. If he couldn't hide the fact that he was dangerous, he might as well broadcast it.

Squall let the small girl continue rambling on at his side. It didn't bother him overly much, especially considering that she expected little to nothing from him in return conversation. It was enough for her to be able to talk around him. It was the best sort of conversation Squall could ask for besides simple silence.

The garden clone waiting with them lifted his arm and looked at his watch. “One more minute...”

Zell was late. Of course he was. How was Squall unsurprised that Zell was late?

Headmaster Cid didn't appear unhappy. He was rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet, smiling peacefully like they were taking a stroll through a garden. He would look over to Selphie and Squall occasionally, his eyes shining with pride.

Headmaster Cid had no children. However, he always seemed to treat his students like they might be his children. Squall wasn't sure if he liked that or not, but it was what it was. He certainly wasn't going to tell the headmaster that he couldn't.

The whirring and whooshing of machinery and air alerted them of Zell's approach. Selphie poked her head out from behind Squall to see the blonde rushing towards them on a T-board of all things. His long, baggy shorts flapped in the wind as he raced their way on the illegal contraband.

How had he even gotten it in the garden?

Letting out a cry of success, Zell zoomed around them in an arc, letting his momentum run out, before stopping before the garden clone. He stepped from the hover board. Using one foot, he kicked it up into his hand and grinned a them.

“Made it!”

“T-Boards are prohibited within garden,” the clone told him, his voice laced with disapproval as Cid smiled good naturedly behind him. “Have you forgotten?”

“Oops! Yeah, sorry,” Zell scratched his head sheepishly like he might have actually forgotten. “But this thing is really cool! It may come in handy on a SeeD mission someday.”

“We'll be the judges of that.” The clone reached out and jerked the board from Zell's hands.

“But, wait-”

“Confiscate it,” the clone held it out. Like he knew it was going to happen, another garden faculty member stepped forward and took the board from his hands. Without even glancing at Zell, he turned and walked away with it.

Zell watched him go with a wide eyed look of horror. Squall didn't blame him. T-boards weren't cheap nor were they all that easy to get a hold of.

He did break the rules though. Squall had no pity for him.

“All of you are members of SeeD,” the clone told him, his voice firm. “Nevertheless, you are also still residents of this garden. Furthermore, because you are SeeD, you must set a good example to all others and abide by the garden's rules. Understand?”

Without waiting to see if Zell did understand, the clone turned and nodded to the headmaster. Cid stepped forward, smiling at Zell apologetically but making no effort to call the clone back.

“Well then, your first mission. You three are to go to Timber. There, you will be supporting a resistance faction for Timber independence. That is all. A member of the faction will contact you at Timber station.”

“This person will talk to you and say, 'the forests of Timber sure have changed',” the clone instructed, his voice low and unmistakable. “At this time, you must reply, 'but the owls are still around'. That is the password. Repeat.”

Dutifully, all three of them, even the dejected Zell, repeated the password in unison.

The faculty member nodded, satisfied.

Cid took over again. “Just follow the faction's orders within the bounds of the contract. That is all that you need to do.”

“Um,” Zell looked around, confused. “Just us three?”

“Correct,” the faculty member nodded. He sounded quite snobby and almost disgusted. “We have agreed to accept this mission for very little money. Hence the reason we're sending three rookie level SeeDs. Normally, we would never accept such requests, however...”

The clone looked over at Headmaster Cid pointedly, but he remained smiling and unaffected.

“Enough about that. You three need not worry about the financial side of things. That's my job. So then, Squall, you are the squad leader. Use your best judgment based on the situation at hand to serve the faction and protect your squad. Zell, Selphie, you are to support Squall and give your all to carry out the faction's plans. I'm sure I don't have to tell you, but their goals are yours.”

“You are SeeD and the only thing you want is what your client wants,” the clone said coldly. “Just because you have made SeeD doesn't mean that title can't be stripped from you if you fail to perform adequately.”

“You'll do fine,” Cid laughed. “Oh, and Squall, I have something for you.”

“Yes, sir?” Squall said as the older man stepped forward.

In his hands was what looked like an oil lamp made of black metal and red glass. It was pulsing with a dull, weak light from behind the red glass. There was a wick at the top, pure white and still coated in wax, waiting to be lit.

“It is a cursed object,” Cid said, placing it gently in his hands. “I've been holding onto it for a while.”

“What am I to do with it, sir?” Squall asked, turning it over in his grasp.

“You don't have to do anything with it at all,” Cid beamed, rocking on his heels again. “In fact, it would be remiss of me if I didn't tell you that using that object could very well kill you. However, if you are strong enough, you may tame the power trapped, sleeping, within that lamp.”

Tame?

“Is this a GF, sir?” Squall frowned, staring harder now at the lamp.

“A very old one, I'm told. Quite resistant to having a master. However, Quistis told me that you're having difficulty finding a GF your Shiva is willing to share with.”

The immediate flash of contempt told Squall that Shiva still was. And that wouldn't change no matter what GF was within that bottle, she promised.

“If you ever feel like you want to increase your power, try releasing that GF. He will fight you in a realm of darkness, but if you earn his loyalty he will make a great ally.”

“Thank you, sir,” Squall nodded his head. He slipped the lamp into his jacket and pushed the button on his INVENTORY to absorb it.

“Off you go now,” Cid beamed. “And good luck to all of you.”

The three of them saluted the headmaster before turning and walking from the gates.

“Do you want to summon the GF now, Squall?” Selphie asked eagerly.

“Yeah, summon it now!” Zell agreed, nodding. “I bet we can take it.”

“No,” Squall said firmly. “I'm not forcing a battle I might not be ready for. We don't need a new GF now anyway. I'll save it for later.”

Zell agreed sadly and Selphie pouted, but neither of them argued.

Balamb was a tiny island nation. It was a power in the world only by virtue of SeeD. Not only were they too strong for armies to want to fight, but they were a necessity. There were SeeDs serving in every country. They had made themselves invaluable and therefore no one wanted to risk making them mad and losing their support.

So Balamb was tiny, but they were considered untouchable. Their only connection to the outside world was the train system that would take them through Timber. From Timber, the train system connected to the rest of the Galbadian Continent. They weren't traveling far for this mission.

The three of them walked through Balamb. Squall stopped for only a few minutes and placed an order at the junk shop. He was promised his order would be ready soon and he could pick it up the next time he went through Balamb.

Squall then used his first SeeD paycheck to buy their train tickets and carried them himself. The waiting locomotive was already ready to go. The conductor welcomed them aboard in the last car. The car that was technically free to ride.

“Wow!” Selphie breathed, coming inside. “This train is awesome! So much prettier than the one I took down from Trabia!”

“An intercontinental railroad, baby!” Zell yelled proudly like he might have been the one to have built it. “It runs through an underwater tunnel to get to Timber. There's lights along the way too so you get to see some pretty sweet sights. Pretty cool, huh?”

He looked at Squall, his eyes beaming.

“Sure is,” Squall said dully, nodding along without caring.

Zell deflated. “Guess you're not interested...”

Selphie was ignoring them. She had walked over to the door that led to the train proper. From here, you couldn't see outside or even sit anywhere but the floor. She shifted between her feet, staring at the door pointedly like she expected it to magically open.

“You have to use the tickets to get inside, Squall,” Zell said, pointing.

He was nothing if not obliging. He walked over to the ticket taker and let it scan their tickets. It beeped, a light going across the passes.

“Confirming...” it said in a robotically female voice. “Access granted.”

“Tee-hee!” Selphie laughed in delight as the door slid open. “Thanks! I'm gonna go check out the front! I want to see the underwater tunnel!”

She ran through ahead of them.

“Shall we, Squall?” Zell asked, grinning. “I want to see the cabin.”

Squall let him go first. He followed after him to see Selphie standing in front of the large window on the side isle of the train. Though there would be windows in their private car, the ones out here were wider and offered a greater view as the train moved along.

It jerked gently as it pulled from the station and started out from Balamb. Selphie laughed loudly in delight because the train almost immediately went down into the underwater tunnel. Lights lit up as it passed showing a marvelous view of the ocean as it drove by.

“Yo, check it out!” Zell stopped before the first door. “SeeD's private cabin.”

He pointed at it with his thumb. It was locked, access only allowed to verified SeeD ID's. SeeD ID's being, usually, something that wasn't obviously an ID. There was no point broadcasting what they were.

Zell's 'ID' was a tiny microchip at the front of his wrist, under his glove. He waved it over the scanner and it beeped before sliding open to let him in.

“WHOA!” Zell took a step back to regard the room in awe. Then he ran in. The door slid shut again but it didn't stop Squall from hearing Zell yell, “OH-H-H YEAH-H-H! AWESOME!”

As Squall passed Selphie she was singing something under her breath. It sounded like a song about trains. He didn't really want to know.

Squall lifted his hands and grabbed hold of the lion necklace around his neck. He turned the pendant towards the scanner and the microchip hidden under the outer coating of metal caused the scanner to beep before allowing him entrance as well.

Squall stepped into SeeD's private cabin to find Zell giggling, bouncing up and down on the fine leather couch in the large room.

“This is so-o-o-o cool,” he said, running his hand over the leather. “Ah...so soft.”

Squall let his eyes travel around the cabin. There were two beds and, just from looking, he could imagine that the couch could unfold into a third. Given the size, he wouldn't be surprised if it could actually make two more. Everything was made of the finest materials. The scent was of leather and wood and cotton flowers.

Squall looked back towards Zell to see him practically purring on the couch.

“I'm glad you're so excited,” he said, deadpan.

“The magazines kind of suck, but who would even read in here? There's a TV behind that panel right there! This is pretty damn amazing! It pays to be a member of SeeD!”

SeeD was the best. They gave the best at all times. In return, they were given the best. They got private rooms, access to the private cabins, and privileges others did not. It was Headmaster Cid's belief that if SeeD gave it their all, they would get only the finest luxuries in return.

Squall walked across the room – the carpet was like a cloud under his boots – and took a seat on the other end of the L-shaped couch.

“Hey, Squall, y'know anything about Timber?” Zell asked, grinning.

As a matter of fact, he didn't. He didn't really care to involve himself in politics or other such matters in other countries. He barely kept track of things in Balamb. However, if he was going to be working for a resistance, it would behoove him to learn.

“Not too much,” he admitted.

“Thought so,” Zell nodded, a very sagely look coming over his face. “You've come to the right place. Let me fill you in. Timber used to be a country surrounded by deep forests. But 18 years ago, Galbadia invaded. Timber was a peaceful country, they fell easily to Galbadia's superior technology because of their old trade agreement with Esther. So now Timber is under Galbadian occupation. Galbadia claims they're now a territory of Galbadia, but Timber doesn't agree. It's said there's a whole bunch of resistance factions all over Timber.”

Zell fell silent and Squall looked up at him.

“And?”

“Nope, that's it,” Zell grinned, proud of himself.

Squall blinked at him. After all that, he kind of expected a lot more. Zell just continued to smile at him oblivious to his inner thoughts.

Well, it was more than he knew a moment ago. Squall looked away from him.

“Thank you, Mr. Know-It-All-Zell.”

“Hey, no prob, captain!”

“Don't call me that.”

“Why not? You don't like it? You called Seifer captain.”

“That was a military situation on an active battlefield. We're trying to remain undercover. My name is fine.” Honestly, he didn't like the title, but he had a legitimate excuse not to be called captain. He grasped onto it gratefully.

Zell was grinning at him when the door beeped gently. It slid open and Selphie walked inside. She was rubbing her eye with one hand, taking the other back from the scanner from where she had let it read the microchip in her wrist band.

“I'm not...” she swayed a bit on her feet, her eyes fluttering. “...feeling well...”

Squall frowned and stood up to look at her. Had that seemingly inexhaustible well of energy she drew from finally run out? “You should get some rest if you're tired.”

She said nothing, still rubbing her eyes, swaying in place. “...I'm really sleepy...”

Squall stepped towards her, concerned now. “You okay?”

“Selphie, what's-huh?” Zell, who had been standing up stopped in place and grabbed for his head as he started swaying too. Squall's head darted over to him as alarm bells sounded in his head.

“What the...” Zell's eyes fluttered like he was having trouble keeping them open. “Somethin's wrong with me, too...I...feel...sleepy...”

Zell dropped back onto the couch, his head falling backwards. Selphie staggered over and collapsed into a tiny ball right beside him. Both of them fell asleep just like that.

“What's going on?” Squall stepped back, his eyes looking around for some sort of attack.

A painful, terribly high pitched whistle started in his head. Building. Growing louder. Squall cried out and grabbed for his forehead. He heard Shiva yell out in surprise. Then her voice faded away alarming him further.

“What is...this?” he ground out through his teeth.

His vision started graying and he felt his body rock as his knees hit the ground. The sound reached a new pitch and he cried out again. His vision went black as his body fell forward. He slammed into the ground. Shiva's voice was completely silent.


	7. Laguna Part 1

(Hmm...?)

Three soldiers wearing Galbadian uniforms were running across what looked like a forest that had been recently set on fire. Some parts were charred, a great deal was still green, just waiting to burn. None of them were wearing their regulation helmets. The man in front, with long black hair, had an open smile on his face as he jogged easily across the forest terrain. The machine gun strapped over his shoulder was outdated but in pristine condition as it jerked against his equally old armor.

The darker skinned man behind him was watching his back critically as he followed. Three long, thin braids fell down his back, bouncing as he sprinted. He had a pair of unadorned katar daggers at his waist, gleaming in the light with a slight sheen of monster guts that he had yet had a chance to clean away.

Behind him, a very large man in both girth and height just looked a little alarmed. He kept glancing back as though he expected someone to be following them. Strapped to his back was an enormous harpoon with a spear that kept biting into the dust under his feet.

All of their armor looked so...outdated.

(What the...?!)

(Huh?)

“Uh, Laguna,” the concerned man in the middle finally spoke up as they ran through the trees. “Are you sure this is the right way?” He had a Galbadian accent.

(Where am I?)

(Dream?)

(?)

The man in the back sighed when the man up front gave no answer. Which was enough of an answer for both of them.

“Ho-boy. Not again.”

Still laughing without a care, the long haired man in front turned on his heel and used the protruding root of a tree to cross a small, quickly moving stream.

(?)

(?)

(?)

(?)

(?)

(?)

(?)

“Hey, uh, aren't we here to fight a war?” The man in back asked, frowning up at him. It seemed a strange thing to need to remind a person of. “You know, against the almighty Timber army? Any of this ringing a bell?”

“Yeah, why are we wasting our time running through this forest messin' with these animals?” The man in the middle asked, stopping to glare with his hands on his hips.

The man with the machine gun stopped as well and turned, scratching his head awkwardly. He laughed and it was a pleasant sort of sound, even sheepish as it was. “Well, you see...It's just that, uh...”

That was really all the man in the middle needed to hear. Kiros tossed his braids over his hair. “Don't tell me that we're lost again.”

Laguna cleared his throat and looked forward. Deliberately not answering. “A-Anyway, we're goin' home! Deling City, here we come! Get your fun hats on boys!”

He started running away and Kiros and Ward shared a look.

“He's totally lost,” Ward mumbled.

“Remind me why we follow him around,” Kiros responded just as dully.

Ward shrugged, shaking his head. “Wait up, Laguna!”

Laguna was completely, totally lost. Nothing he could say or would ever say would convince either of his comrades that he wasn't totally lost. So when they chanced upon a military jeep in the middle of the woods, no matter that he said that was his intended target all along, they knew it was an accident.

Laguna always seemed to stumble on just what he needed at any given time. He was the personification of the phrase that it was better to be lucky than good.

The soldier who's jeep got stolen, not so much.

***

Deling City was the capital of progress and beauty. Old world architecture met with the very best minds of the age to create a wonderful utopia of a city. Their hometown. A more wonderful place surly couldn't be found anywhere.

Laguna stopped his stolen jeep right in the middle of all of it.

“H-Hey!” Ward gaped, staring between the jeep's controls and his friend who was already climbing out of it. “You can't park in the middle of the street! Laguna!”

“Chill, man, it's cool,” Laguna laughed like he was silly. “Aren't you just happy to be alive? Mm, take in a deep breath of that city air! We're home from war! So how's about a drink?”

Immediately, realization came over his friend's faces. His act hadn't fooled them a bit, though he continued smiling at them innocently.

“Whatever,” Kiros threw back his braids again, grinning at him as he stepped from the jeep. “Like you even drink. We both know you're not in it for the drinking. Just be a man and admit it already.”

“Yeah,” Ward laughed good naturedly, putting his foot down onto the pavement but leaning back into the seats. “You're just going to drink some juice like a weenie. Then gawk at the piano lady.”

Laguna sputtered, his face turning bright red. “D-Don't call her 'the piano lady'! That's it! Forget it! I'm not going!” He turned, crossing his arms over his chest.

The display only had his friends laughing.

“Yeah, sure,” Ward nodded as though he might be agreeing.

“We all know you will,” Kiros grinned.

Laguna stood strong for only a few seconds more. Then, ignoring his friends, he turned and began walking determinedly up the street. He didn't uncross his arms and his friends at least pretended to stifle their laughter at him.

They followed him down to the Galbadian Hotel. More accurately, to the lounge underneath the Galbadian Hotel. They had the best drinks in the city.

Not to mention the best entertainment.

“Welcome!” The pretty waitress beamed as they came down the stairs, looking up from the drink menus in her hands. A smile lit across her face as he recognized them in turn. “Oh, Mr. Loire. Mr. Seagill. Hey, Ward. Your usual table?”

They were very familiar words. Laguna knew that he knew all of those words and that they came together in a simple, comprehensible sentence. Something was lost when they hit his ear and traveled to his brain though. He was suddenly so confused.

(Huh? Excuse me?)

“Huh? Excuse me?” he repeated, shaking his head to get the fuzz out.

Kiros frowned at him. “What's wrong?”

“Ahh,” Laguna scratched at his ear in discomfort. As though he might be able to physically dislodge the fuzz. “I'm not quite sure...”

“Wait a second,” Ward frowned at the move. He very dearly wanted to do the same thing. “Is your head buzzing?”

Laguna jumped, turning with wide eyes. “W-What? You, too?”

“Yeah,” Ward nodded quickly, hitting at the side of his head almost hoping to be able to dislodge the annoying sensation. “Ever since we left Timber.”

They looked to Kiros and he frowned, nodding.

“Yeah, me too.”

They stared at each other, worried for a moment. Then Ward grinned.

“H-Hey, we're just tired, that's all. We'll be fine after a drink or two. Or three. You know, whatever.”

“Right,” Lagune laughed, still touching at his head. It wasn't a pleasant feeling.

“So, Jan,” Ward turned to the server girl. “Our usual table would be just fine.”

“Absolutely,” she said, hurriedly putting a smile back on her face. “This way please.”

(What is this?)

“Just shut up, please!” Laguna yelled, knocking at his head. “This buzzing is going to drive me crazy.”

“Ignore it, Laguna,” Kiros told him pointedly as they made their way to the table. “Ward is right, we're probably just tired. We did just leave a war, after all.”

“Right...” Laguna nodded, lowering his hand. Really, so long as he wasn't focusing on it, the buzz wasn't really that terrible. Sort of...

(Is this a dream?)

(Laguna's pretty cute!)

(What's goin' on?! W-What's happening to me?!)

“At ease, men!” Laguna called officially as they stood over their table. As a unit, the three of them dropped down at their favorite spot. Well, Laguna's favorite spot. The two of them really just tagged along because he wanted to be here. “We're going all out tonight, boys! Everything is on me, so you just drink up!”

“May I take your order?” Jan the waitress asked. She didn't bother to pass out the menus. She already knew what they would say.

“The usual!” Lagune beamed.

“Me, too,” Kiros nodded, thanking her.

“Keep 'em coming!” Ward laughed. “Thanks, Jan.”

A sudden silence over the room told them that she had come down. Lagune was doing his best impression of a statue, staring down at his feet like they were suddenly the most fascinating things in all the universe.

“Ah, Laguna,” Ward grinned, leaning back. “The paino la-uh, Julia is making her appearance. And she's wearing that stunning red dress again. Oh, yeah. That's a good one. You goin' for it tonight?”

Oh man, not the red dress. That one was a knockout.

“Go for it,” Kiros nudged him smiling.

“Whatever, man. Can't you see she's working?” There was gentle clapping from the crowd punctuating his sentence as she took her place on stage.

“C'mon, go wave to her. You don't want to just stare at her for the rest of your life, do you? You have to try something.”

“Give me a break...” Laguna sounded sick to his stomach.

“So you say, but we know you'll do it,” Ward grinned.

Laguna lifted his head as Julia the piano lady sat down at her instrument. It was said that the owner of the hotel had moved that gorgeous grand piano down here just for Julia. People said that to hear her play was to listen to the angels sing.

And to look at her face was a surefire way to loose your heart.

Julia Heartily was easily the prettiest woman in all of Galbadia. Deep ebony hair down to her shoulders framed a heart shaped face with a delicate nose and a deep pair of stunning brown eyes that could cut a man down to the soul. Her willowy body was always wrapped in a delicious, thin dress that usually revealed the skin of one of her long, creamy legs.

Laguna had been a fan of hers before she had been invited to play at the Galbadian Hotel. He attended every concert and performance that the army didn't interfere in. He cursed the mandatory service laws that forced him into the military because they took him away from her. Even if they had introduced him to his two best friends.

Gathering his courage, what little of it he had, Laguna got to his feet. Behind his back, his friends shared a grin. He tried to block them out, block everyone out, as he neared the stage.

The closer he got, the prettier she was. He couldn't tell in the low light of the lounge if she could see him or not, so he kept moving in.

Ah, to be this close to Julia...

(Is this guy serious?)

Laguna froze in place as he felt a familiar, debilitating pain shoot up his calf. His leg curled upward with his foot as he hunched over in pain. Crap! His leg was cramping! He was too nervous being this near her! Argh! It hurt so much...

Oh, no! She was staring at him now!

(Sad...)

Laughing nervously, Laguna gave the beautiful pianist a wave. Then he turned and quickly began limping back towards his table. The cramp began letting up the further from her he got and the less nervous he felt.

“Good work, Laguna,” Kiros nodded, trying hard not to laugh at him.

“Mission successful!” Ward agreed. “Technically.”

“Take your seat,” Kiros indicated next to him. Laguna plopped down gratefully. His heart was racing so fast he thought it might leap from his throat.

“I didn't think you'd actually do it,” Ward laughed, contradicting his earlier words. “Our popularity rating's definitely gone up a full point for that.”

“Yeah,” Kiros raised his eyebrow at Laguna rubbing his leg. “You cut a pretty pitiful figure up there though. I'd say you're about a negative three on the manliness scale.”

“He was a negative three on the manliness scale before,” Ward laughed loudly.

“Say what you want,” Lagune threw himself back into the seat, breathing hard like he had just escaped a big battle. “Man...Julia sure is pretty...”

They were so busy congratulating him and nursing bruised egos that none of them noticed that the music had stopped.

Kiros looked up as he spotted something on the edge of his vision. His eyes went wide as his body locked up. Ward looked up as well and his mouth fell open.

“Aaa...”

“Huh...?” Ward cleared his throat quickly, gathering himself. “Hey, Laguna, we're taking off.”

“Huh?” Laguna turned to his friends to see them standing. “H-Hey? What's the rush?”

“It's on us tonight,” Ward said to a frowning Laguna that had jumped to his feet. “Relax and stay a while. You must be tired from all those battles against the almighty Timber army.”

Laguna looked puzzled. “What are you talking about?”

“May I?”

Her voice was sweet and melodic. Far more rhythmic than he would have expected. Laguna jumped and turned. A wordless, strangled sound escaped his throat as he realized that Julia – the Julia – was standing right there! SHE WAS RIGHT THERE!

Pain sliced through his calf as the nervous cramp came on once again.

Laguna limped over to make room for her in the booth. Kiros and Ward had already bailed. He was both grateful and desperately needy for them to return.

“Did I interrupt anything?” Julia asked, tilting her head adorably.

“N-N-N-Not at all,” Laguna stuttered terribly. He cleared his throat to get rid of it. “P-Please, s-sit down.”

Smooth...

She slid in beside him with all the grace and elegance of a queen. Wow, she was pretty. AH! He could see all the way up the slit of her dress right to her creamy thigh! And he could smell her perfume! And those eyes were devastating up close!

Oh man, oh man. It was really her. She was right there! What was he supposed to do! Kiros! Ward! Why would they abandon him right when he needed them?! What was he even supposed to say! Hyne, she was so pretty...

(What is this guy thinking?)

“Are you okay?” Julia asked kindly.

“Okay?” No, he was not! Julia was right there!

“How's your leg?” she clarified with a smile.

“L-Leg?” What was that thing again? “Oh, this! Y-Yeah, no it's fine. It happens all the time when I get nervous.” He coughed and looked away quickly as he realized that maybe that wasn't the most charming thing he could have said.

Julia was smiling at him though. “Were you nervous?”

“Oh, yeah,” he laughed nervously, as though to drive the point home. “I still am. Kinda...”

“You can relax,” she said, leaning over the table towards him. And he was anything but relaxed. “You don't have to get nervous around me.”

“S-Sorry,” he said lamely. He was dropping points so fast on the manliness scale.

“Say,” Julia looked around before dropping her voice to a whisper. “Would you like to talk somewhere more...private? I have a room here-”

“Y-Your room?!” Laguna belted out, leaping to his feet. Oh, man, his leg hurt.

(Seriously...?)

“Well,” Julia looked around with an amused grimace. “It's pretty hard to talk freely here. Everyone is listening in.”

Laguna looked up. He had been so focused on the fact that Julia was right there talking to him that he actually forgot about the other patrons at the bar. All of them, including Kiros, Ward, and Jan the waitress were not even trying to hide the fact that they were eavesdropping.

“If you'd like to, please come by. I've been wanting to talk to you.”

Laguna said nothing, trying to process what was happening. Julia turned back to him and her face fell slightly, those big eyes got, if possible, bigger. “You don't want to?”  
“Of course I do!” Laguna hastened to assure her. He was rewarded with a sweet smile.

(It is a pretty smile. I can give him that...Still pathetic though.)

“Then I'll go ahead and wait for you,” Julia stood, straightening the skirt of her dress. “Ask for my room at the front desk, okay?”

Laguna nodded, his whole body going numb. He just kind of stood there, his cramping leg on fire, as he watched as she calmly moved back towards the stairs and up. He could still see the skin of her bare leg and it tempted him so.

Was he dreaming?

(This is a dream...This is a dream...)

No! It couldn't be a dream!

(This is too weird to be a dream...)

Julia? She wanted to talk to him? That would never happen in his wildest dreams!

(...He talks to himself too much...)

And just the two of them! Woo-boy. He really needed to get it together.

(Whatever.)

Laguna shook his head, clenching his fist in determination. He always screwed things up with women by talking too much. They didn't like that. But not this time! He was all ears for Julia! It was time to dust off his manly charm and show her what a good listener he was.

“Ugh, I think I'm going to be sick,” he mumbled, clutching his gut.

Kiros and Ward were trying to be good friends by hanging back by the bar now. With Julia gone and therefor the show over, they were sipping at their drinks and pretending they weren't watching him critically to see what he would do.

It took Laguna a couple minutes to actually work up the courage – and work down the leg cramp – to be able to move towards the stairs. He could feel everyone's eyes on him as he took the very same path Julia did to the ground floor and the reception desk.

As he got in closer, the man working the desk smiled at him.

“Welcome! Are you checking in?”

“Ah...” Laguna let out a long, wordless breath of air. He cleared his throat. “Um, er...well, um...hehehe, it's not that, um...”

The receptionist cocked his head, his eyebrow going up in confusion.

Laguna cleared his throat and tried again. “Whi-Whi-Which r-r-room is J-Ju..J-J-J...Ah...”

(Is he really going?)

“Uh,” the receptionisht looked confused. “Mr. Laguna Loire?”

AH! He knew his name! Which meant that Julia knew his name! AHHHH!

(Calm down.)

The receptionist smiled through Laguna's reaction. “I've been expecting you, sir. Let me show you to Miss Julia's room.”

The receptionist led Laguna up to the third story of the hotel. Laguna counted each step.

The receptionist knocked on the door to her room. Laguna held his breath.

“Come in,” she said from beyond the wood.

The receptionist opened the door. Laguna almost tripped over his cramping leg.

The door shut behind him and Julia smiled. She was still wearing that gorgeous red dress, but she had taken off her heels. Somehow, the sight of her pretty little bare feet was arousing.

“Thanks for coming,” she smiled.

“No, not at all.” Laguna felt like a total tool in his uniform. He really rather wished he had thought to change into his street clothes before coming here. “Thank you for inviting me.”

...Smooth.

“Please, have a seat,” Julia swept out her arm, indicating to any spot in her room.

Laguna nodded and walked past to one of the double beds. He took a seat at the foot of it.

Wait a minute? She wasn't going to think he was taking liberties by sitting on her bed, was she? Maybe she thought he was being rude!

Moving quickly, Laguna jumped up and walked over to one of the seats on the table set near the window offering an unparalleled view of the city.

He took a more proper seat there only to look up and realize that Julia was laughing at him silently from behind her hair.

And he was no more comfortable on the chair than he had been on the bed. He stood up quickly and walked over towards her instead.

Still in front of the door, she thought he might be trying to leave. “Going so soon? We haven't even talked yet?”

“No, it's not that,” Laguna shook his head, stopping before her. “It's just that...I'm such a big fan of yours, you know? So I'm really kind of nervous.”

She smiled. “So is that why you come to hear me play so often?”

Laguna's spine straightened suddenly in fear. “Y-You mean...You saw me?”

Julia nodded.

Freaking out, Laguna started pacing quickly back and forth in the room. Because she had seen him! He had come to so many of her performances that she had recognized him! And now she probably thought he was a creepy stalker!

“You were always smiling while listening,” she said softly, surprising him into stopping. “You have beautiful eyes. Especially when you smile. They look a bit scared now though.”

She laughed gently at him again. “Don't worry, I'm not going to puck 'em and eat 'em. I just want to talk. Gazing into those eyes.”

She walked over to her end table, completely comfortable with him already. “Would you like a drink? Wine perhaps?”

“I must be dreamin'...” Laguna mumbled to himself in disbelief.

***

“Yeah, I don't really like fightin' too much,” Laguna said, scratching his chin as his captive audience of one gazed at him from the foot of her bed. “But I get to travel a lot, y'know? Seeing new places n' stuff. And it's fun, 'cause Kiros and Ward are always with me. Hey! We should all go out drinkin' sometime! Whaddya say?”

Without giving her a chance to say anything, he rambled on.

“And, uh...What was I talkin' about? Oh, yeah! So I'm going to quit the army the minute my mandatory service years are up so I can be a journalist! I want to be able to tell people 'bout all the things I've seen on my travels.”

(Well, he's loosened up...)

“So, like, the other day, one of my articles made the reader's column in the Galbadian Gazette. Pretty cool, huh? Yeah, that was way cool...” He nodded in agreement of his own statement.

Julia smiled. “I'm happy for you.”

“Oh, yeah, and then...”

***

“I'm so sorry,” Julia was saying apologetically to Laguna who was now laid out on her bed. “I didn't know wine made you sleepy.”

Laguna mumbled something as he opened his eyes up again. Julia giggled at him.

“You look adorable when you're asleep.”

“Ugh,” Laguna sat up, grabbing his head. “How'd I fall asleep?”

Oh, crap! He fell asleep!

(Manly charm at its best.)

Clearing his throat, he nearly jumped completely out of her bed. She was smiling at him from her place seated at the edge of the second bed.

“Up and around so soon?” she smiled, her hands folded gently on her lap.

“I, uh, must have fallen asleep,” he grimaced sheepishly. “Talking on like that...So, tell me about yourself. Like, your dreams for the future.”

“I...” Julia hesitated. For the first time that night, she hesitated.

Slowly, she stood from the bed and walked over to the window, trying to hide the blush creeping up on her face. “I want to sing. Not just play the piano for the rest of my life. I want to sing, too.”

“Oh,” Laguna smiled. Her voice was already so melodic and sweet. “I'd really love to hear it.”

“But I can't,” she continued, frowning at her hands. “I'm no good at writing lyrics.”

“Hmm,” Laguna frowned, crossing his arms. “That's a tough one.”

She turned and smiled brightly at him. “But, thanks to you, I think I can come up with something.”

“Huh? Thanks to me?”

“Yes,” she nodded once, stepping closer to him again. “The many faces you've shown me. Times when you were hurt or worried or felt pain deep inside. Your smile, your laugh, your eyes. You've shown me something beautiful. I think I can come up with a song now.”

“Wow...” Laguna breathed, unsure what to say. “...I must be dreamin'...”

Julia reached out and took his hands in hers. Her big brown eyes turned up towards his and he fell deep into them. “It's not a dream, is it?”

“Laguna!” Hard knocking sounded at the door, shattering the moment, as Kiros called out to him. He sounded official. “We've got new orders! We have to meet by the Presidential Residence on the double!”

Julia's smile turned sad but she didn't question his need to go. “Can we meet again?” she asked instead.

“Of course!” Laguna beamed at her, twisting his hands so he was holding hers instead. “I have to come back to hear you sing!”

***

Squall's eyes fluttered open to see Selphie's large boots shifting nervously in his sight. A ringing in his ears had him worried for a moment that he had been hit upside his head. But the ringing was followed by a robotic announcement.

“Next stop: Timber...Timber....Next stop: Timber...Timber...”

Squall's eyes opened fully and he pushed himself up. He felt tried and heavy. Like he really might have just traveled between Timber and Galbadia in an incredibly old military jeep.

He looked around to see Selphie and Zell both on their feet, looking to him. Selphie's eyes were wide with fear, Zell appeared nervous.

“Were we...” Squall paused to clear his dry throat. “Were we all asleep?”

Selphie nodded.

“Maybe someone released sleeping gas?” Zell suggested, appearing uncomfortable at the thought. “There's lots of people who resent SeeD.”

It was a possibility. Not one that Squall liked.

“Anyone missing anything?” Selphie asked. “Anyone hurt?”

They paused for a moment to check themselves. Squall could feel no pain anywhere. He felt for his pockets and belt pouches but everything was where he had left it. Shiva was still in his mind, crying out in wonder for where he had been. It was like his consciousness had been taken from his body in a way that not even sleep could mimic.

“I've got everything,” Squall said finally.

“I'm not hurt,” Zell agreed.

Selphie let out a sigh. “What a relief. Everything's cool with me!”

She giggled slightly as she turned and made her way to the L-shaped couch. She sighed dreamily as she took a prim seat on the edge. “I had such a nice dream...”

Squall had a dream too. It wasn't nice though. He dreamt he was a moron.

“We will be arriving in Timber shortly,” the train robot announced. “For those getting off, please be sure to have all your belongings and children with you.”

“Seriously though,” Selphie continued to sigh in bliss. “Sir Laguna was so-o-o cool...”

“Hey!” Zell jumped. “There was a Laguna in my dream, too! He was a Galbadian soldier!”

Oh, Hyne...

“Laguna,” Squall said softly. “Kiros. And Ward.”

“Huh!?” Zell turned to him, wide eyed. “That's it!”

“That's what?” Squall asked, suddenly irritated about the whole conversation.

“That's the dream!” Zell pointed at him. “You had it too, right? The lounge? The girl?”

“Julia,” Squall supplied easily.

“Holy Hyne!” Zell looked like his mind had just been blown apart. “That's it! What the heck is up with that?”

Selphie shook her head quickly. “There's no way we can understand this. Let's just...concentrate on our first mission! We have to do this right!”

She wasn't wrong. And Squall really didn't want extra confusion right now. He wanted things to be simple and focused.

“We'll put this incident on hold,” he declared to his squad. “I'll report it to the headmaster once we get back to garden and they'll do a sweep of the cabin to see if anything went wrong. For now, let's focus on helping the resistance.”

“We're pulling up then, eh?” Zell smiled, stretching. “Here we go! Psyche yourself up, baby! Zell is coming to town!”

Squall was going to have to have a talk with him about calming down, he thought to himself as Zell left the private cabin.

Selphie giggled as she stood to follow him. “Still a little sleepy.”

Squall said nothing for a moment before following them out. He really didn't care to know. He just wanted to get this over with.

His first SeeD mission.


	8. The Forest Owls

Timber was a slightly backwater country. Everything seemed to move slower there. Even Balamb, for all that it was a relaxing port town, seemed to move faster than Timber. Timber was more of a way station than anything anyway. It was a stop between train stops.

As Squall stepped from his train and looked around, he was rather unimpressed. There was just train tracks, stone buildings, and bored looking people going about their daily lives. It looked nothing like the political hotbed Zell had promised.

Well, he supposed that there could be anything lurking underneath.

“Pretty,” Selphie beamed, just a step behind him. She stood up on her toes, shading her eyes so she could get a better look at the town. “Hey, you can see the forests from here!”

“Yeah, you sure can.”

The three SeeDs looked over to see a rather nondescript man standing up from a crouch halfway up the stairs. He had a blue beanie cap pulled down over his eyes. Aside from his yellow vest, he really sort of blended in with the scenery.

“It's a shame though,” he sighed sadly, looking off towards the forests as well. “The forests of Timber sure have changed.”

Selphie and Zell smiled at him leaving Squall to reply.

“But the owls are still around.”

“Welcome to Timber, sir,” the young man bowed his head, turning to face them.

When he did so, he flinched back. Because Squall, standing in front, looked far too menacing. So much so that he barely noticed the other two behind him. Squall stared at him expectantly, his eyes dark and cold.

The man shivered and rather wished he hadn't said the password. “C-Come this way, sir!”

Squall and the others followed him as he led them down and across the next set of train tracks. He motioned for them to stop as he beckoned someone forward.

A train car with a single locomotive drove around at his gesture. It was as bright yellow as his vest and Squall lifted an eyebrow at it. It was the most obvious base he had ever seen before and he came from a glorious, rich garden that made no attempts to hide.

“Okay, keep comin', keep comin',” the nondescript man said. “AH! No, too far! Look out!”

Squall made a face as the train slammed on its breaks. The brakes squealed unpleasantly against the wheels as the train came to a halt barely a foot from the nondescript man.

The door opened and another guy came running out. He was shorter than the nondescript one, but he had a stronger build.

“What are you doing?” he yelled at him, annoyed. “How many times do I have to tell ya not to stand in front of the train!?”

He paused as he caught sight of Squall and the others. Selphie and Zell were standing back behind Squall, making it clear that he was the leader in the situation.

Clearing his throat, the second guy walked closer to the other nonchalantly. Or what he thought was nonchalantly. It really wasn't at all.

“Hey so...that them?” he asked his friend on what he thought was a whisper. It wasn't either.

The first one nodded, looking at Squall hesitantly. “They said the right password, sir, but, uh...that one there looks kind of...scary.”

“Ugh! Who cares?” The second one pushed him back. “Just call 'em over here. We're payin' 'em a fortune, we can't hav'em leave now, no matter how scary they look.”

The first man smiled at them then, still a bit uncomfortable. “Please follow me, sir!”

Zell and Selphie shared a look as Squall crossed his arms.

“Hey, come on,” the second one waved them forward towards the door of the train. “Please excuse him. This way. Right through here.”

SeeD was all about following orders. Squall led the others over to the train and stepped inside just behind the first man. Selphie was giggling to herself as she looked around the inside of yet another train, though this one wasn't nearly so fine as the first. Zell came in last right behind the first man who closed the door behind them all.

The train lurched as it pulled away from the station.

“So, you guys are SeeDs?” the second man asked eagerly, looking at them.

“I'm the squad leader, Squall,” he nodded once. Gesturing to them in turn, he continued, “This is Zell, and Selphie.”

“Nice to meet ya,” the man gave a careless two fingered salute from the forehead. “I'm Zone, the leader of the Forest Owls.”

He stepped forward, his hand out like he expected Squall to shake it. Squall ignored it completely and just nodded in greeting.

Zone looked uncomfortable and moved on to Selphie instead. She happily shook his hand. Beside her, Zell wiped off his glove in preparation to shake his hand as well. Zone ignored him accidentally. Zell deflated and turned away, irritated.

Squall nodded again considering the introductions over with. This was the guy he answered to then, it was time to get to work. “So, let's get on with it. What do we do?”

“Woh,” the leader laughed in surprise. “Just take it easy. Here, let me introduce you. You've already met Watts. So, I guess it's just our princess then.”

“It's the princess' nap time, sir,” Watts said happily.

“Ah, man,” Zone deflated before turning to the SeeDs. “Hey, Squall, sorry, but could you go get the princess? She's in the last room up those stairs. Some of our other guys are in the room just before it. They can show you if you need 'em to.”

Squall's frowned deepened as he felt genuinely insulted. “Were we hired to run errands?”

Zone and Watts both froze at the icy chill in his voice. Neither of them said anything.

“Well?” he prompted.

“A-Are you...angry?” Zone stuttered as though surprised.

They weren't gophers. They were SeeD. Special forces. They hadn't gone through years of training and buckets of blood and sweat to be fetch boys.

“Seriously?” Zell whispered behind his back.

“You tell 'em, Squall,” Selphie agreed, frowning. Neither Zone nor Watts heard because, unlike them, they knew how to whisper.

Glaring back at the leader, he said precisely, “This is the last time for this kinda thing.”

Suddenly groaning in pain, Zone, the self proclaimed leader, turned and ran to a corner. He bent over clutching at his stomach like it was aching. Since he wasn't looking, Squall felt safe rolling his eyes at him.

Was he for real?

Now filled with apprehension at the 'princess' these two spoke of, Squall turned and started up the stairs. Zell and Selphie stayed back, talking to each other quietly. Squall didn't really pay attention to what they said, but they didn't sound any more complimentary than his own thoughts.

The instructions were incredibly easy to follow. It was impossible to get lost in a straight line. Squall passed the second room that held three men all hunched over a something spilling out circuitry. He didn't care to look further.

The last door on the train was already open. As he came closer, he could see inside. It wasn't plain gray metal like the rest of the train. Someone had actually taken the time to paper the walls in that room and they had chosen a dusty, rosy pink.

He had really been hoping that when they said 'princess', they had been kidding.

The pink paper turned into pink carpeting with dark hardwood paneling. There was a vanity in the room that held make up and perfume. A large, cozy bed was placed in one corner. Though there was a pink blanket to go with it, the occupant had kicked it off.

Squall stilled just inside the door.

That heart shaped face. That black hair with golden highlights. The subtle curves of a body and bare arms that bore no signs of ever having been in a battle.

It was her.

The girl from the party.

The train started coming into a turn and the motion of the train rolled her over in her bed. Which, in turn, roused her from sleep.

She blinked sleepily and Squall found himself staring into those same brown eyes that he thought he had purged from his mind. The eyes he had really been hoping he would never see again.

She smiled sleepily upon seeing him, then greeted him like he was expected. “Hey...”

She sat up and blinked a few times and he could see the fog of sleep lift from her eyes. As it did so, a recognition of reality came into her face.

“You're...” she gasped, lowering her leg from the bed. “You know, from the party...”

Squall nodded once.

“So, does that mean...” a grin started on her face. “You're a SeeD!?”

He stepped forward, all professional. “I'm Squall, the squad leader. There's two others with me-”

“YES-S-S-S!” She jumped from her bed so quickly Squall was surprised. “SeeD is here!”

He grounded himself just in time for her to throw herself at him. Her arms went around his neck and he automatically spun her around to release her momentum. She was laughing in his ear, squeezing him tightly.

Squall pulled her arms off of his neck so he could step back away from her. It didn't diminish her excitement in the least.

“Take it easy,” he said, trying to keep her from jumping him a second time.

Because now he knew what her body felt like pressed so tightly against his. Her breasts pushed into his chest, her arms around his neck. The subtle, flowery scent of her perfume that clung to her hair. It was wrapping around his senses now. Suddenly, that was all he could think about. He needed to keep himself calm and maintain his professionalism.

“It's just that,” she nearly twirled right there, “I'm so happy! I've been sending requests to garden for SeeD support forever, but nothing! I'm so glad I spoke to Cid directly.

“Oh,” Squall suddenly understood. And why was he happy to hear it was his elderly, fatherly headmaster she had been seeking? “So you were looking for the headmaster at the party?”

“Well, not exactly,” she laughed. “Do you know someone named Seifer?”

Did he know Seifer?

…

“...Yeah,” Squall said neutrally.

She beamed. “He was supposed to introduce me to Cid at the party, but he didn't show up for some reason. So I just found him myself. Cid is such a nice man. I really didn't think SeeD would actually come out to help a measly little group like ours, even if I asked personally. But after I explained our situation to him, Cid gave the go ahead right away!”

Squall wasn't surprised at all. The garden faculty usually fielded SeeD requests. Few actually brought up the matter directly with the headmaster. Probably because the faculty forbade it. They knew the headmaster well. They knew he was a nice man. He would never be able to say no to a plea given right to his face.

No wonder Squall had come out here despite everything.

Laughing happily, she made her way over to her vanity. “Now that you guys are here, we'll be able to carry out all kinds of plans! This is so great!”

Squall watched as she moved the make up and perfume out of the way. From within the desk of the vanity, she pulled out a small PDA and, to his surprise, a weapon.

Looking at her now, Squall was beginning to doubt very much that Zone was the leader around here no matter what he claimed. This girl had gone to garden. She had been the one requesting SeeD both in writing and in person. They called her princess and clearly deferred to her. Just by the way she acted and moved he didn't see her in the chain of command.

Zone might be the leader, but she was the one in charge.

He watched as she strapped the weapon onto her arm, using her blue cloth bracers as a cushion so it didn't touch her bare skin. It was a ranged weapon that folded up into the long, thin device. She never had to hold it. Accounting for her lack of callouses. He still didn't believe she had ever been in battle though. Nor was she battle trained. If she had been, there was no way she would have kept her weapon tucked away out of sight and in a difficult position to get hold of.

She was his boss, he realized a little too late. She had been looking for Seifer at the party. It didn't matter that she was cute or that he could still feel her body in his arms, he had to keep his distance from her. He definitely didn't want the added complication a girl like her would bring into his life. And there was no way she wouldn't bring complication. She oozed difficulty.

“Hey,” he said, catching her attention.

“Yes?” she turned, smiling.

He pointed over his shoulder. “I'm goin' back to the others.”

“Okay, let's go!” she beamed, stepping closer to him. She hesitated, biting her lip. “Um, Squall. Is he here?”

He blinked at her, not understanding.

“Seifer,” she clarified, laughing nervously.

Yeah, there was definitely something between them. Hyne, of course. The first girl he had ever been seriously interested in and she was already taken. By Seifer of all people. Well, at least that interest was completely private. No one had known and no one need ever know.

“No,” he said, wondering how to phrase himself gently. “Seifer isn't a member of SeeD.”

“Oh.” To his surprise, she looked surprised. Her 'oh' wasn't one of disappointment, it was like he had said something to her that went against all her beliefs.

She stepped past him, thinking about that. She hit the door and turned at the last moment. The light from the hallway framed her like a halo and Squall felt something like a punch to his gut.

“Oh, yeah,” she laughed at herself like she was silly for forgetting. “My name's Rinoa.”

She reached out and, before Squall realized what he was doing, he was shaking her hand. Even through his glove, he could feel how soft her skin was.

“Very pleased to meet you, Squall,” she said. He rather liked the way his name rolled off her tongue and the way she smiled at him when she said it. She stepped away slightly, holding her arms behind her back, and smiled at him. “SeeD members dance quite well, don't they?”

Hyne. He had made a complete fool of himself in front of her. That was fine before she was his client and boss. He cleared his throat surreptitiously, standing straighter.

“Approach your target inconspicuously at a dance party. There may be missions requiring this sort of subterfuge. It's expected of SeeD to learn various skills.” Yeah, that sounded legit and overly complicated. 

“Oh.” Rinoa's face fell with her shoulders. “So it's work related. That's too bad...”

Squall frowned at her, but before he could ask what that meant, he heard the clicking of claws against metal that quickly turned to the thud of paws on carpet. Rinoa turned and smiled at the dog that had come into her room.

It stared at Squall. Squall stared at it. There was an instant dislike.

“Here, let me introduce you,” Rinoa said, kneeling to pet the pooch's head. “This is my partner Angelo. Angelo is really smart! He knows how to fetch and track and attack and seek help. And he knows a whole library of tricks! He's a lot of fun.”

Squall nodded. “Dogs are very useful.”

Rinoa seemed surprised to hear him say so. “You think?”

“Absolutely. They have superior senses of hearing and smell. In the field, they can prove to be the difference between life and death by acting as an early warning system of enemies approaching. You could try to use magic or technology to achieve the same effect, but there's really no substitute for eons of evolution and survival.”

Rinoa was smiling at him in that way again. That way that made his gut clench. “You know, no one has ever actually agreed with me. They all just think I want to keep my pet around.”

Squall looked over Angelo critically. The dog did the same.

“He's got a good form. His fur is well groomed. You take good care of him. But he's also muscular, and see the way his ears twitch? He's listening. That's the sign of a good watch dog.”

“Don't forget that he's smart,” she smiled, standing up.

Squall nodded, agreeing with her. “The best ones are.”

Rinoa looked down towards her dog, still smiling. “I have some important work to do now. Be good, Angelo. Come on, Squall.”

She stepped from the room leaving Squall and Angelo to glare at each other.

“What?” Squall asked him crossing his arms.

Angelo bared his teeth, growling slightly.

“Yeah? Well, get used to it.”

Still eyeing each other, Squall stepped from the room, following after Rinoa.

She was waiting for him at the top of the steps. She gave him that adorable smile as he caught up and he really rather wished she would stop.

He went down the steps ahead of her and pointed to his squad mates. “This is Zell, and Selphie.”

“Hi, everyone,” Rinoa beamed as the two of them stood up. She wouldn't have marked either of them as battle hardened warriors – especially not the tiny girl in yellow – but who was she to say what a person could or couldn't do?

“This way,” she waved them forward, following Zone and Watts into a small room.

It had a toy train track in it. What was with Timber and trains? There were some aspects of people that Squall would just never understand.

“Just stand anywhere you want,” Zone said, throwing out his arms.

It took Squall a second to realize that this was a debriefing room. There was a picture of the map system of Timber and what looked like the president of Galbadia and nothing else. Nothing else at all in the entire room besides a single crate by the door.

Squall said nothing as he, Zell, and Selphie went to stand near the back. Selphie immediately took up her post looking out the window. Zell stared at the picture on the cork board. Squall turned back to Rinoa and the others to await his assignment.

“This here is a full-scale operation,” Zone announced grandly. “Our resistance, The Forest Owls, will be forever known in the pages of Timber's independence! Exciting, huh?”

Not nearly.

“It all started when we got a hold of top-secret info from Galbadia,” he whispered for dramatic effect.

“I got the info, sir!” Watts interjected eagerly. Like a puppy.

“There's a VIP from Galbadia coming to Timber.”

“Super V-I-P!”

“The guy's name...” Zone paused for dramatic affect, “...is Vinzer Deling! Our archenemy, the president of Galbadia!”

Had he been watching the same old movies Seifer had?

“Vinzer Deling is a scoundrel!” Watts chirped in again. “He's a dictator, not a president. Not even popular in Galbadia, sir!”

Well, that was debatable, but let the angry resistance members believe what they wanted.

Rinoa spoke up this time, calmer than the boys. “President Deling is taking a private train from the Galbadian capital.”

“Our plan,” Zone picked up as Selphie turned from the window, “is to-”

“Blow it to smithereens with a rocket launcher?!” she yelled loudly and excitedly.

“Ah!” Zone fell back in surprise.

Well, it was a messy plan, but Squall couldn't deny that it would get the job done.

“Not quite,” Zone laughed nervously.

“So get to the point,” Zell said, turning from the cork board. “Just tell us what to do!”

“Shall we begin?” Rinoa asked, gesturing towards the train set.

Wait, it had a purpose?

“This model holds both our train and the president's locomotive. That yellow train up there is our base connected to the dummy car. The dummy car is an exact replica of the president's car. This is their train here. The locomotive, the first escort, the president's car, and the second escort in that order.

“Our ultimate goal is to seize the president in his car using our base. That means we'll have to switch our dummy car with their president's car. We're going to be using the two switch points leading up to Timber to carry out the operation. I've distilled it down into seven steps. So listen up.”

Rinoa hit a button on the side of the tracks which sent the little train minis into motion.

“First we'll get on the roof of the second escort by jumping from the roof of our dummy car.”

We? What was this we?

“The second escort car is equipped with sensors, sir,” Watts told them.

“I'll tell you about those in a second,” Rinoa waved the information away. Squall would rather have it now, but it wasn't his debriefing.

“Second step, we sneak across the sensors. Third step, we sneak across the president's car. He doesn't like having sensors or guards, so you don't need to worry about that one.”

“Deling hates his guards the constant security of the sensors,” Zone explained. “He makes sure to keep them well away from him. All the better for us.”

“Fourth:” Rinoa continued, “the first big step. We uncouple the first escort car from the dummy car. We have to complete the uncoupling before the first switch point. If we don't...

“Boom!” Selphie filled in easily. “Game over. Right?”

“Yeah,” Rinoa nodded, frowning with worry. “We'll have to move fast. I'll tell you how to uncouple the cars in a second. Step five: When the cars are uncoupled, our car and the dummy car come in and sandwich between the first escort and the dummy car. Our trains will be linked. This is the most dangerous part of the operation, so we need to minimize the time spend on this step as much as possible, okay?”

“Step six: We uncouple the second escort and first escort again. We'll need to detach ourselves from their train on both ends. And that leads us to step seven, and my personal favorite step, we escape with our base and the president's car leaving behind our dummy.”

Squall said nothing as his eyes moved over the board taking in the steps of the simulation. Personally, he felt it was rather over complicated and needlessly dangerous. It wasn't his mission though and it wasn't his place to question.

“If all goes well,” Rinoa continued, “we should be able to escape without them suspecting a thing. After that, we return to our base and prepare to confront Deling. We have exactly five minutes to complete all seven steps. If we fail, our train will collide with theirs at the switch point and it will all be over. Like, 'massive fireball' over. Don't forget that.”

“Five minutes?” Zell frowned. He wasn't sure about the scale on the train set. “You sure that's enough?”

“According to the simulation we've run,” Zone said, “it should only take three minutes to complete the operation. Piece of cake for SeeDs, right?”

“Of course!” Selphie laughed, getting excited at the prospect of the danger. “Too easy!”

Squall said nothing as he continued observing the tracks.

“Alright, Watts has all the information on the sensors. Watts?”

“The two guards on the train will have a sound sensor and a temperature sensor,” he said immediately and quickly. Like he was eager to get out as many words in a minute as possible. “Any sound will trigger the sound sensor that the lower officer carries. The temperature sensor will go off if you remain in one place for too long. The senior officer carries that one. The range of the sensors is pretty slim, so you shouldn't have to worry too much.”

“Next,” Rinoa took over again, “uncoupling the cars.”

“Question!” Selphie raised her hand. “How can you uncouple cars from a moving train?”

“Um, you can't normally. It's not so easy as when it's still. We have to do it indirectly.”

“We have to tamper with the control system that manages the coupling,” Zone said knowledgeably. “If we temporarily disable the circuit for the connection, the car will uncouple automatically as the system reboots. To disable the circuit, you need to be able to enter the emergency override codes into the panel on the side of the car.”

“And we have the codes!” Watts yelped eagerly. “Rinoa has them, sir.”

Well, that explained the 'we', Squall thought as he looked back to her. She was grinning proudly.

“I'll be in charge of relaying the codes to Squall. Squall, you'll slide down on the side of the train using a cable and enter the codes into the system. It's going to be hard to hear me over the sound of the train moving as we'll be so far apart, so I've come up with some hand signs for each of the four number possibilities on the keypad.

“1 is this,” she closed her hand into a fist. “Two is this,” she crossed her first two fingers. “Three is this,” she held up her flat palm. “And four is this,” she split her four fingers into a 'V'.

“So if the code is say, '3124', I'll do this.” She flashed her fingers precisely and carefully through each of the four hand signals she had given him. “Also, you have to be quick. You'll only have five seconds to enter the emergency override codes. If you take too long, the system will shut you out and we'll have missed our chance. And we have to do it all before the switch point.”

She grinned, cocking her hip out at Squall with a challenging grin. That same grin that had gotten him to dance at a party he hadn't wanted to be at.

“Ready to practice? Make sure you have all the hand signals?”

Squall nodded once.

“Confident,” she laughed approvingly. “I like it. Okay tough guy.”

She gave him four hand signs without a word passing through her lips. Squall listed them off flawlessly. She grinned and gave him a second set. He didn't hesitate. She did it a third time and Squall was already answering her before she finished.

“Absolutely perfect,” she admired. “You know, I heard SeeD was good, but I have to say that I'm really impressed with how quickly you pick things up.”

It was a simple substitution cipher. It was the kind of puzzle that underclassmen did for fun. It wasn't anything impressive. It wasn't even particularly long. They hadn't even used all ten possible digits. Why was she impressed with that simple thing?

“Don't forget the time limit, of course. I'm going to do my part to make sure everything goes as fast as possible. So look alive, guys...Um, that's all.”

“Hey, another question:” Selphie raised her hand a little more sedately this time. She used it to point at the track. “This model is nice and all, but the president's car looks kinda...shabby. Why is that?”

Watts, once again, jumped in happily. “Rinoa made it. That's why. We bought everything else at the gift shop in town.”

“Oh,” Zell snickered. “I thought some kid made it. The paint job sucks too.”

…

Yeah, it kind of did.

“Oh, shut up!” Rinoa snapped, her cheeks blazing red. “I made it look like that on purpose. It represents my hatred towards Deling!”

“Hatred, eh?” Zell continued to snicker disbelievingly. “Yeah, right.”

“It is one of the....ugliest things that I've ever seen in my life,” Selphie admired. “You must really hate him.”

Squall said nothing.

“Are you guys finished?!” she stomped her foot in anger. And Hyne if that wasn't adorable. “Enough about the model! Can we get on with it now? Do you understand everything?”

“Yes,” Squall said immediately. Overly complicated, but still relatively simple. It shouldn't be that major of a problem.

“Great. Zone, Watts, do either of you want to come up to the roof and help?”

Their reaction was instantaneous. Zone jerked back like she had hit him.

“Gathering information is my specialty, sir!” Watts yelled quickly as he was backing out the room.

Zone meanwhile was howling in pain as he squatted in the corner again, grabbing at his stomach crying about it hurting.

Rinoa had her hands on her hips, shaking her head at them. It was a move that Squall was inclined to agree with. However, they weren't the first to hire SeeD to do the things that they were too scared to attempt. Squall was pretty sure that was the bulk of SeeD clientele actually.

“I guess that leaves just us,” she smiled back at the SeeDs. “We should be coming up on the zone soon, so let's get ready on the rooftop. You shouldn't need to bring your weapons. They'll probably only slow you down up there. You can leave them in here if you want. No one is going to mess with them, I promise.”

Then Rinoa was forced to stand there with wide eyes as the three of them disarmed themselves. It wasn't just as simple as Squall pulling his blade from his waist or Selphie setting down her nunchaku next to it. The three of them were armed to the teeth.

Squall set down his pouches of ammo, cleaning kit, and the belt with the extra ammo and Odine capsules. Zell had managed to stuff his pockets with what looked like every Odine capsule ever invented along with spare gloves and the raw materials to make another pair. Selphie couldn't stop pulling bombs hidden about her person and placing them down.

“Um,” Rinoa started frowning at the growing pile. “You know, you didn't have to stock enough to win an entire war all by yourselves.”

Squall grinned to himself. “What do you mean? We packed light for this trip.”

“Oh,” Rinoa grinned. “That's a good one.”

Selphie was frowning at her pile. “I don't know. I still feel like I should have packed my secondary weapons. Guns may not be as useful as they used to be, but they can still do some damage. Especially my RPG launcher. I just got new sights for it.”

“Selphie,” Squall gave her a cool look. “When would you ever need an RPG?”

“Um, when would you not?” She returned like he was ridiculous.

“Oh, Hyne, you weren't kidding,” Rinoa said, her lips numb. How was it that she and this group of people were the same age and species?

“We're ready,” Squall nodded to her, turning from their pile of stuff.

“Uh, yeah,” Rinoa shook her head, pointing over her shoulder. “The hatch to the roof is this way. Watts should have already gotten it open. Follow me.”

Squall was right behind her as she stepped from the room. Watts was standing by the ladder that would lead to the top. He smiled at them.

“Have you seen the dummy of the president, sir? It's like a piece of art.”

“Whatever,” Squall said, looking up at the hatch. Pretty windy. “Rinoa, is the entry panel a touchscreen?”

“Um, I think so? I'm pretty sure.”

Without another word, Squall reached up and pulled his jacket off with a quick jerk. Rinoa blinked at him as he pulled a silver ring with a monster engraving from his hand. His gloves, which would make it harder to press buttons, followed after it. He put those in the pocket and passed it off to Watts.

“Put it with my stuff for when I get back,” he ordered, reaching out for the ladder.

Rinoa blinked as he put his bare hands on the rungs and started climbing. His undershirt was sleeveless offering her a view of what his uniform and then jacket had hidden from her view before. Though it wasn't obvious with his large clothing, Squall was muscular.

Rinoa's eyes tracked the movement of those muscles as he climbed up to the top. She had felt those arms around her and couldn't remember those muscles before. Maybe she just hadn't been paying attention. She was very focused now.

She thought back to that moment that she had jumped around his neck earlier. Now in thinking about it, she realized that he had carefully guided her back to the ground. He hadn't just dropped her or let her fall on her own.

Rinoa really hadn't considered herself an arm type of girl before, but Squall had a nice pair. She wondered what it would be like to wrap her hands around his biceps and feel him flex them. She bet he was taut like spun steel under that battle hardened skin.

His boots disappeared over the rim of the hatch and Rinoa quickly jumped in front of Selphie to climb up after him. She moved familiarly up the ladder and somehow was surprised to see Squall crouched there at the edge.

He reached down as she got close and grabbed her hand to help her up. His hands were just as rough as she remembered, yet still held her hand just as carefully.

The wind of the moving train whipped her hair about her face as she climbed up over the lip of the hatch and crouched down before him. At least until he moved in front of her and used his body to break the wind from hitting her so directly.

He didn't make a big deal about it. It didn't even look like he thought about doing it. Just like he didn't appear to think about reaching out to hold onto her waist so she didn't slip and fall while waiting for the others to climb up. He just did it.

Zell climbed up last, shutting the hatch behind him. Rinoa nodded and yelled out over the billowing of the wind around her face, pointing for emphasis.

“Squall, over there. We'll catch up to the second escort soon. It's going to be a bit of a big jump from our car to theirs so give yourself some room to run.”

Squall started to jog, at a crouch, to the other side of the train. He kept himself in front of her so she wouldn't be in the wind too much. Rinoa stayed behind him, grinning at the taste of her upcoming victory. SeeD was here, how could everything not be perfect?

President Deling's train was cruising along the tracks straight from Galbadia. Their train had zoomed out here from Timber just to catch up with them. The parallel train tracks were rather close. Still, the gap was rather daunting from up here than it had been on the ground when she and Zone had initially mapped out the plan.

They zoomed past the first landmark.

“Alright,” she yelled out to her SeeDs. “From this moment, we have exactly five minutes to complete the operation. Use every second you have! Squall!”

On command, he took his stance. His eyes gauged the distance between the two trains. As their base came in closer, he took off. It wasn't such a great distance. The hardest part was landing. He hit hard against the second escort and paused, waiting for some sign he had been spotted.

When none came, he turned back and waved the rest of them forward.

Selphie eagerly jumped after him, because of course she did. She landed perfectly, like she might have been jumping trains all her life. She was laughed as she ran past Squall and crouched behind him. Zell came next. He wasn't nearly so graceful, but he landed without issue.

“Eyes on the guards,” Squall yelled at them over the wind.

“Dibs on blue!” Zell yelled, running towards the edge.

“Hey, no fair!” Selphie ran after him.

Squall turned back just as Rinoa was setting up her jump. He waited as she timed it out, biting her bottom lip in concentration. He really hoped she didn't do that on the jump. If she landed wrong, she might very well bite it off.

He didn't get a chance to tell her so. She sprinted after him and leapt with a cry of effort. Squall watched her form as she flew, one foot forward through the air. It was graceful. Not like a warrior but like someone who had taken dance lessons in their life.

She didn't land perfectly either. She slipped as she hit the roof and fell at his feet. Squall didn't attempt to catch her nor haul her up again. She grunted in pain but sat up on her own.

“Alright?” he asked.

She nodded. “Everything's good! Keep going!”

Why hadn't he caught her, she wondered to herself. Surely he should have tried. Any other guy would have tried if only to get their arms around her. He didn't even flinch as she fell. But those eyes of his, those deep, quiet eyes had watched her.

Rinoa had the sneaking feeling that, despite not having moved, that he had been ready to catch her. If she had needed it. He had let her make the jump on her own but hadn't refused giving his assistance. It was an equal treatment that she hadn't expected from someone SeeD trained. Her experience with Seifer told her that he should have offered to carry her across himself.

Squall turned back when Rinoa didn't follow him.

“Problem?” he asked loudly over the wind.

“No,” she shook her head, smiling. “Come on! We have to get across the president's car!”

Zell and Selphie gave the go ahead with their guards allowing Squall and Rinoa to run across. The jump between cars was much easier, Rinoa didn't even hesitate. After all, she had just jumped between trains. What was this little gap?

***

The president's car wasn't nearly as lavishly decorated as the private SeeD compartment in their train out of Balamb. Vinzer Deling didn't know that, of course. He believed that his car with the seating for one, maybe two people, was quite luxurious. Certainly no one had skimped on the materials to create the car.

The Galbadian soldier who walked in from the second escort spotted his president exactly where he had been before. Seated, unmoving, in his spot and staring out of the window. There was a grumpy scowl on his face that, honestly, wasn't all that uncharacteristic. When he wasn't in the public eye. Deling tended not to really smile at all.

“Sir, everything is in order, sir!” The soldier reported dutifully.

Deling sighed, turning to him. “You again.”

It was said that President Deling had been handsome in his youth. No one had pictures from that time though, so if it were true it had long ago lost the battle to time. Vinzer Deling hadn't aged well. His skin was like paper, sagging from too much fine food, and wrinkled from years of stress in politics. His salt and pepper was far more salt than pepper and his hands had started developing liver spots. Despite that though, his eyes were as sharp as ever.

“That's 27 times now,” the president said, his voice dull but annoyed. “How many more times do you plan to disturb me with that meaningless report?”

“Sir, I'm sorry, sir,” the soldier said, continuing to salute him.

They stared at each other for a second.

“But is it my duty, sir!”

President Deling sighed, his head dropping. “It's hard to believe that anyone would put up with this nonsense. I guess it's none of my business. Dismissed.”

The soldier frowned but didn't voice his confusion. He was far too attached to his livelihood to want to try and question the president.

“Sir, yes, sir!”

He finished his salute. As he turned to return to his car, he was glad for his mask to hide his heartbroken expression. And just like that, there went his next paycheck. How was he supposed to propose now? He was going to have to put it off again...

***

Squall and Rinoa crouched down at the back end of the first escort. Zell and Selphie were behind them again. Selphie appeared to be having the time of her life.

“We're going to uncouple this first,” Rinoa was saying, pointing down the side of the car where the access panel would be. “There should be two guards on this car, too. Selphie, Zell, you guys keep an eye on them. Let us know early if they start making their way over.”

“Dibs on blue!”

“Dibs on-Dang it!” Selphie glared at the laughing Zell.

The two of them ran off. Due to the sensor system, Zell could – and had to – stay in exactly one spot to watch his guard. Selphie would need to keep moving.

“Squall, get the cable ready,” Rinoa ordered.

He was already moving. The circular base for the cable was usually made for construction work and it held on fast and tight when he flipped the switch on the electromagnet. Squall tested the strength of the cable by tugging on it and was satisfied. He nodded to Rinoa.

“This panel has three override codes. You have exactly five seconds to enter each code, so you can't come up while entering them. The panel should open with a touch. We have about four minutes left. Good luck, Squall!”

Squall looked over and got a nod from Zell and a thumbs up from Selphie.

Clutching the cable in one hand, Squall shimmied quickly down the side of the train.

Rinoa had to admit, at least to herself, that she hadn't actually been expecting him to do it. She knew SeeD would follow any order and that no task was too much for them. Everyone knew that. Still, it was somehow shocking to see someone her age willingly scale down the side of a moving train.

He put his feet up against the metal hull, balancing himself, but his body was still inches from the gravel ground rushing past him so fast it was a blur. He didn't even blink. He just hit the touch panel and let it slide open.

Immediately, it asked for the first system access code.

He looked up at her expectantly.

His arm, that well muscled arm, was flexed like steel against the cable he had wrapped around his wrist and bicep. He didn't appear to be straining to hold up his own weight. His eyes were still quiet and calm, even in this situation. The scar on his face seemed brighter somehow in the sunlight.

Rinoa had thought him attractive in the ballroom wearing his dress uniform and dolled up. Looking at him now, she realized that was nothing. He was breathtaking in his element. Strong and controlled, like a carefully wound spring. Seemingly innocuous until the moment all that energy released. She desperately wanted to see him release it. She bet it was devastating. In the best way...

Rinoa remembered almost too late that she was supposed to be giving him the codes she had spent the last few days memorizing. She lifted her hand and went through the first series of numbers. He stared at her, those eyes of his carefully tracking her movement.

His fingers were swift on the keys. When he finished, he didn't look up to her. He gazed moved to where Zell and Selphie were on guard duty. She gave another thumbs up. Squall frowned at her because she was remaining perfectly still. Both of them were. He had something more pressing to deal with now. Back to the panel.

Rinoa watched, pushing her hair behind her ears, as he moved deeper into the system. She forced herself to focus on the mission – not his arms – and was already repeating the next set of numbers. So when he looked up and nodded, she was ready.

She signed the next four numbers expertly. Squall had them entered easily and moved past that wall to the next stage of the decoupling. They repeated the process once more and by then Zell called out to yell that the blue was coming. Squall glared at him as he climbed deftly up the side of the train.

“Why aren't you quiet? And why aren't you moving” he demanded to know angrily of the two of them.

Selphie laughed.

Zell yelled back. “Dude, the sensors are duds!”

Squall frowned. Seriously?

“This way!” Rinoa yelled, pulling on his arm.

The two of them jumped quickly back across the cars to stand at the front of the president's car as the the override codes clicked into affect. The cars uncoupled and the president's car started lagging as its momentum drained out.

Rinoa moved up to stand in front of Squall so she could watch her plan unfold before her. Her hair was whipping back, hitting Squall along the neck and chest. He could smell her perfume even up here. She was going to be the death of him, he just knew it.

It was a thing of beauty to watch the Forest owls zooming in from the first switch point. They operated like a well oiled machine as they first backed up into the president's car. The open knuckle of his car was waiting and the system, having rebooted, locked them together immediately. The base drove forward then and locked up with the locomotive.

“Perfect!” Rinoa laughed loudly. Squall's hand at her shoulder was her only warning that she had started slipping off. He caught her before she fell confirming her earlier suspicion. He was ready to catch her if she needed it. She smiled back at him, unable to believe how well this was going.

***

The Galbadian soldier crept into the president's car again and bit his lip in nervousness. He didn't want to, the president wouldn't like it. But he had to, it was his job! He would lose just as much money from not telling him as he would for telling him. And not telling him would get him in trouble with his C.O., which would be worse for him in the long run.

“S-Sir,” he took a fortifying breath, “Everything is in order, sir!”

He winced in place, waiting for the verbal blow to fall. The demerit, the pay dock. The room remained silent and he dared open his eyes under the helmet.

President Deling wasn't angry. He didn't appear to have even moved. Oh. He was reading the Galbadian Gazette...

Where had he gotten a newspaper?

Before he could make his escape, considering himself lucky to have the chance to flee with no further problems, his C.O. came running into the room.

“What?” He asked angrily. He did everything angrily. “Is there a problem?”

President Deling chose that moment to speak up. “I'm in a bad mood right now! If there is nothing in particular, I order you to leave immediately!”

Both soldier's jumped in fear.

“S-S-Sir, aye aye. Ye'sir!” the senior officer stuttered, saluting. Immediately, he turned to begin yelling at whoever was nearest to him to make it seem like he was doing his job.

“YOU! Don't just stand there! Get back to your station!”

“S-Sir, Ye'sir!”

And poof, there went another paycheck. Two in one day. A new low.

The senior officer turned and ran towards the next car so he could yell at the inferior officer there, and stopped when he ran into an unfamiliar room. He paused, confused, then turned and ran back inside the president's car.

“W-What the heck?” he said loudly. Was this the right train? It looked different. Shabbier.

…

Eh, maybe not. He didn't care that much.

Deciding it wasn't worth it, he ran back to the second escort. The soldier under his command followed at a slower, more dejected pace.

No ring. No more candlelight dinner. At this point, he was not only never going to get married but his girl might actually leave him.

***

“Okay, Squall. One last uncoupling then we're home free,” Rinoa yelled at him, pushing her hair from her face. She was wishing now that she had followed Squall's example and left her duster back inside with his jacket. It was billowing everywhere and weighing her down.

“Zell and Selphie won't take as long on their end, “ she continued pointing up where the two of them were uncoupling the base from the first escort. “You sure you got this on your own?”

“Let's get it over with,” Squall yelled back, placing the electromagnet and turning it on.

“Since we just disabled the system, it's going to make you dance through more hoops. There's going to be a total five codes this time. We've got about three minutes left. Whenever your ready.”

Squall didn't wait for her to finish. He was already grappling down towards the panel. Rinoa watched him go with a long breath of tension.

The panel slid open easily and Squall looked up expectantly.

It was exactly the same as the first time. Only now Squall was in charge of looking over towards the guards himself. They appeared to be arguing over something. He hoped they kept at it for a while. And, knowing this military, they very well might.

Three codes in, Squall was moving quickly through the screens to the next code entry when the train began to take a turn. Squall's hand tightened on the cable as the angular momentum of the turn had his feet lifting off of the hull.

Rinoa's cry had him looking up in time to see her falling over the side. Her hands caught on the very edge of the train and Squall's eyes darted towards the guards. They were yelling at each other now, far too wrapped up in whatever they were doing to look outside. But if one of them were to just glance over and notice the flash of blue...

The train pulled out of the turn and Squall's boots slammed against the wall in time with Rinoa's body. Her feet were nearly even with his shoulders and he could see her scrambling to get a grip on the smooth metal body of the locomotive.

His hand slammed forward on accident, hitting the button to the next screen. He had five seconds.

“Rinoa, code!”

“Wha-"

“NOW!”

“Uh, 1232!” He almost didn't hear her over the train.

He entered in the codes quickly and the screen beeped, allowing him to progress further into the system. He ignored the screen and reached up.

He caught Rinoa's scrambling foot in one hand. She looked down in surprise but didn't question him as he let her use his limb as a footstool for climbing back up.

He pushed at the last second, giving her more lift to make sure she landed. She wasn't ready for it. His push and her jump lifted her just a little too high. She slammed down against the train and the thud finally caught the attention of the arguing guards.

“Squall!” she turned back quickly.

“Stay back!” Squall looked over as the guards started moving closer. The red one was running, the blue was walking, but the blue was already closer. Squall wouldn't have time to climb back. They would see his body through the windows.

He squatted down and pushed back with only his right foot. The force caused him to clear the hull of the train again. The single sided push twisted him and his cable around in an arc. He spun his body with the turn and reached out with his hand. He grabbed onto the first handhold that hit his fingers and suddenly all of his weight slammed down onto the tips of his fingers. He bit back a cry as he resisted the painful urge to let go. His body weight was too much for only the tips of his fingers against sharp metal.

Rinoa looked over from him and down at an angle through the window in the train. She could see the flash of color that was the guards' uniforms as they halted beside the door.

Her eyes darted over the side to Squall. Those arms she had been admiring a few moments ago were now straining painfully to keep him out of the way.

She looked back and prayed they'd move quicker.

It seemed like forever. They dawdled around, arguing again likely over whatever made the sound. She bit her lip and clenched her teeth and hoped they were as careless as most other G-army thugs.

An eternity later, they moved away from the window. She let out a long breath, grabbing for her racing heart as she felt wound up like a bow string.

“Squall, let go!” she yelled out.

She saw the cable swing around as he obeyed. She glanced down again to see him perched right back in place, looking up at her expectantly. He was sweating now, but his face was still calm.

Her hands shaking, Rinoa signed to him the last set of codes.

Below, Squall cursed to himself because the fingers he needed to type with were now bleeding. He curled them inwards and hit the buttons with his knuckles.

The fifth code entered, he slid the panel shut again and tried not to use his injured hand to climb back up the train. Shiva let out a cure spell to ease the pain.

He still hid his hand from Rinoa as he reached the top. She was grabbing for his other arm, trying to help him up as best as she could.

And, as a matter of fact, his arm was taught like spun steel. She might as well have been pulling against a rock wall for all the help it did him.

“Are you okay?” she asked, worried.

“Keep moving!” he ordered, pushing her forward back onto the president's car.

Rinoa shook her head and obeyed him, running across the trains. Squall joined her not even a moment later, taking a knee right behind her. Rinoa was breathing hard as the train rocked her backwards against Squall's chest when the cars disconnected.

Still, it was done. There was nothing else for her to do but watch as, like a well oiled machine, their base pulled away from the train. The switch, on a timer set up by the techies in the train, flipped it right back again.

The locomotive for the president was already slowing in anticipation of reaching Timber. The released dummy car and second escort caught up easily and the trains jostled as the knuckles hooked up. She barely got to see it though because they were speeding away on a curve away from them all.

And here she was, standing on top of President Deling's very own car!

She let out a startled laugh. Then another. “We did it...We did it, Squall!”

“Let's get inside,” he told her instead of celebrating. He pointing up to where Zell had opened the hatch on the base and was waving them towards him even as Selphie climbed down.

Rinoa moved quickly in her excitement and almost jumped down the hatch. Squall, last down, followed at a sedate pace.

“We did it!” Zone yelled as Rinoa reached him. They high fived both hands in celebration.

“I know!” she yelled back, laughing loudly. She could still feel the wind in her face, the exhilaration lighting up her blood. They had taken a huge risk and it had turned out even better than she could have asked for!

“Hey, Squall, you okay?”

Selphie's soft question had Rinoa turning to the SeeD leader as he awkwardly made his way down the ladder using only one hand. The other he was keeping elevated and away from his body so his blood ran down his arm and not onto the floor or his shirt.

“Oh, Hyne! Squall!” Rinoa raced back to him, the excitement draining quickly at seeing the large gash going in a line across the fingers he had been using to hold onto the train. “Your fingers...”

“I'm fine,” he assured her calmly. “I need my stuff.”

“I'll get it!” Selphie yelled happily, running back into the debriefing room while Zell climbed up to shut the hatch. The sudden lack of wind made the room entirely too silent.

“Squall, I saw that evade,” Zell was laughing, nudging his arm. “That was pretty sweet. And that gash! That's got to be at least – what? – six centimeters?”

“I'd say closer to eight,” Squall said calmly, trying to eye the damage under his own blood. “If you put it all together.”

“How can you be so calm about this? You're bleeding!” Rinoa gasped, trying to grab for his arm so she could see it for herself.

Squall jerked the blood stained limb from her reach easily. “You don't need to worry about me. We were successful in the mission objectives, that's all that matters.”

“What?!” Rinoa frowned at him. Surely he wasn't serious?

“Squall, got your stuff!” Selphie came running back, her arms weighed down with Squall's jacket, gunblade, and gear.

Using his clean hand, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his INVENTORY. Rinoa couldn't stop herself, she gasped upon seeing it.

“Is that what I think it is?” she whispered in awe as he touched the screen a few times.

A single push of a button later and suddenly there was a first aid kit on the floor of the train just waiting for his use.

Squall kneeled before it, setting his INVENTORY down beside him. Rinoa crouched down next to him, reaching for the item with awed hands.

“Squall, that's an INVENTORY...”

“I'm aware,” he said, opening the first aid kit. The bleeding had already stopped thanks to the cure spell, he just needed to clean it. And wrap it. He didn't want to get blood inside his gloves. Not even dried. It was so hard to get out.

“I've never seen one of these before,” Rinoa whispered, lifting the object and holding it in her hands lovingly. “It had to cost a fortune. Is this standard SeeD gear?”

“Nah, that's just Squall,” Zell said, looking at it as well. “He had to save up for years to get it, too.”

“This is amazing,” Rinoa whispered, touching it lovingly.

“And it's breakable,” Squall said pointedly, lifting it from her hands. He set it back down beside him, within easy reach. “Just let me finish cleaning up here.”

“Right,” Rinoa nodded, sitting back to watch him.

Squall's hands – well, hand – was deft and quick as he used a sterile rag and alcohol to wipe away his blood. He had the bandages wrapped equally quickly and was pulling on his glove over that. He clenched his hand into a fist then, testing it.

“Doesn't that hurt?” Rinoa asked, concerned.

“No. I've got cure spells. I'm ready to go.” Squall was already standing.

Rinoa got to her feet as well as he put his first aid kit into his inventory then that into his jacket then his jacket over his shoulders. His gunblade was already at his waist. Zell and Selphie were behind him, equally prepared.

Rinoa couldn't help it, she stared at him as Zone, still in the throes of victory, beamed.

“Finally,” he said, savoring the word. “We've waited so long for this encounter with Vinzer.”

“That was perfect, sir! Amazing, sir! You're the best, sir!” Watts told Squall eagerly. Yip, yip, went the puppy.

“Rinoa?” Zone called her name, breaking her trance.

“What? Oh, right. You were flawless, Squall. Exactly what I wanted.”

He nodded once, accepting her praise. “Now what?”

“Now, I guess...we go in,” she said, her eyes moving towards the door between the cars. It was kind of hard to think that her goal was right behind two pieces of metal. “Zone? Watts?”

“Leave the intelligence up to me, sir!” Watts was already saying, backing up into the debriefing room.

“Ow, my stomach,” Zone cried, grabbing for his gut.

Rinoa sighed, shaking her head. “Alright, you three. Tell me when you're ready to go. As soon as you are, I'll begin some serious negotiations with the president.”

Serious negotiations? Why did Squall not like the sound of that?

He didn't know why they had to be equipped. It wasn't like President Deling was a fighter. He was an old politician. He probably couldn't even get himself out of bed in the mornings without a few test rolls to get things moving.

Still, death came to the unprepared. Squall holstered his ammo as Selphie and Zell restocked their items and weapons on their persons.

After Squall denied Zell the option to use his INVENTORY, he turned to Rinoa and nodded to indicate that they were ready to continue.

Rinoa tried to school her face into a serious expression as she opened the door. She was confident! She was going to do this! It was going to be easy!

The words were running through as she stepped into the president's car. Admittedly, it was probably easier to be brave when she could feel Squall's weirdly cool presence behind her.

“President Deling!” She called out confidently as she walked around to his side, injecting as much steel into her voice as she was able. “As long as you...don't resist, you won't get hurt!”

Yeah. That sounded good.

President Deling didn't respond right away. He remained staring out the window. Then, as though he were on a delay, he turned to her. First his eyes, then slower his head. He didn't appear disturbed, annoyed, or even surprised.

He looked disinterestedly curious.

“And if I do resist?” he asked, his voice unaffected. “What would you do...? Young lady?”

Rinoa gasped and flinched back. That wasn't President Deling. He looked exactly like him, but Rinoa had seen the president up close on more than one occasion. Not only would he have recognized her, but she knew that wasn't his way of speaking.

“What's wrong?” Squall asked, looking at her rather than the president.

“Boo-hoo,” the not-President Deling said as he lifted himself from the booth. “Too bad. I'm not the president. I'm what they call...a body double.”

Rinoa fell back a couple steps even as Squall stepped forward. His hand was already pulling his blade from his sheath as he regarded the not-Deling carefully.

“Ew,” Selphie moaned unhappily. “I hate body doubles.”

Rinoa had heard of the president's body double. She didn't realize it would be so...uncanny.

“All these rumors about the many resistance groups in Timber,” the double continued, taking a couple staggered steps towards Rinoa. “You pass along a little false information, and they fall for it. How...pathetic. Seemed like there are only amateurs around here.”

Rinoa's eyes were wide, her face in shock. “Ama...teurs...?”

“Ahh...” The president made a motion like he was stretching, but he was doing it in the wrong directions. “My butt hurts from all this sitting...young...LADY...”

The growling, somehow wet, sound that came from his throat was most definitely not the president. It didn't even sound human anymore.

Rinoa was backing up quickly now. She didn't have to go far. She ran into Squall who was already grabbing her arm, pushing her behind him.

The not-Deling didn't seem to notice. Or care. He was doing odd angle stretches again as his head rotated in a way that wasn't possible on a human neck.

“Ahh...So...What did you have in stoRE for me had I resiSTED...?” His wet growling was getting worse and Rinoa was making small noises of distress as Zell lifted his arms. Selphie was pulling back, more disgusted than afraid.

“Why doN'T you teLL me...” he asked as a strange blue drool started coming from his mouth. It dribbled down his chin and his rather nice suit. “QuiTE aMUsing thouGH for beING such amAtEurs...!”

He suddenly stopped. Like a video put on pause, he froze. Bubbles came from the blue drool in his mouth as its eyes burned with anger. “HoW daRE YOU InsULt tHE presIDent!”

Not-Deling charged directly at Rinoa. Directly at Squall who was standing in front of Rinoa. He lifted the gunblade and caught the man's arm.

It didn't slice off. It didn't even bleed. Squall's gun sank into his skin like he was poking at a blob. The blue drool was right in his face now and the stench of it was like decay.

“Selphie, thunder!” Squall ordered, trying to push off the creature.

“Thunder!” she obeyed immediately, throwing out her nunchaku. The blast of lightning from her weapon slammed into the body double's corpse and it flew towards the wall. It landed at an awkward angle. But he only ever seemed to exist at an awkward angle.

It came up laughing, its expensive suit smoking. “YOu fEll FOr iT!”

“Selphie, what's a body double?” Squall asked, remembering her earlier remark about disliking them.

“It's disgusting!” she shivered. “It's an undead that can morph its flesh into other forms.”

“Undead?” Rinoa repeated, backing up quickly against the train wall. Not because she was scared, she was trying to give them room. That's what she insisted to herself anyway.

“Very well,” Squall nodded as the not-Deling laughed at him through its teeth, blowing blue bubbles of viscous mucous as it did so. “Zell, light it up.”

“Gladly!” Zell drew back his fists. They were already smoking in anticipation. “Ifrit! Fire!”

He punched forward like he might be pounding his fist into someone's face. The blast of fire left his glove and slammed into President Deling's body. The drool leaking down his designer suit caught the flame quite easily and the inferno engulfed him quickly.

Not-Deling threw back his head and laughed as a thick, foul black smoke rose from his body. The three SeeD's fell back, their faces screwing up in disgust. Rinoa nearly gagged, throwing up her hands to cover her nose and try to block the stench.

“...aMusINg...” not-Deling laughed as his skin started melting. “tHIs iS AmuSing!”

Throwing back his head, he continued laughing as the flames burned away his suit. His skin melted into a thick, blue-black puddle at his feel. Squall stepped back, using his arm to cover his nose as the repulsive odor made his eyes water.

Not-Deling was melting with the fire.

No. He was reforming. The blue ooze was smothering the flames as even the memory of Deling was shed from the monster that unfolded itself from the president's old form.

It was still dripping blue drool. But its red, gooey blood was now visible through the viscera that was dangling, globular, from its open gut. Claws tipped its legs and feet. Its left side was bloated and grotesque and in sharp relief to its right, skeleton-thin side. It looked like the skin of its neck had been melted in the fire into its chest and it wobbled even as it stood still. The stench got somehow more nauseating as the thing showed its true form.

“What the...” Zell gasped, trying to resist the urge to vomit.

“Cover your face!” Squall ordered to two of them. It looked like Selphie, who had made no attempts to do so, was starting to get dizzy to the point where she might pass out.

From inside his jacket, Squall pulled the very same blood and alcohol soaked rag he had just used to clean his hand. It was filthy, but at least the scent of his own blood and the sterilizing affects of the alcohol would block the stench of rot.

Selphie's weapon cleaning rag was ripped from her boot and tied over her face. Zell grabbed for his own shirt and ripped off a piece to cover his. It was quickly done, but effective. Which, when it came to SeeD, was the most important thing. It didn't have to be pretty, it just had to work.

Squall spared only single glance back at Rinoa. She had grabbed the long tail of her duster and was holding it up over her face. She was making sure to stand back and out of the way. So long as she remained there, Squall would only need to make sure that he didn't lead an attack from the undead not-Deling in her direction. He rather wished she would leave altogether. She would be safer if she wasn't in here watching them fight.

Undead monsters. A highly specialized class of monsters that represented the antithesis of life. They were rather rare to find, but all the more deadly because standard attacks didn't work on them. The mystery of Squall's blade merely sinking its body earlier made sudden sense.

Fire was only the second best attack he had against him. The first was far more precious.

“Shiva, give me cure on my gun,” he instructed her, as not-Deling shambled closer. “Zell, Selphie. Restorative magic and items, or fire.”

“Man,” Selphie frowned. “I hate wasting my cure spells on monsters.”

“Hehe,” Zell slammed his fists together, fire sparking away from his gauntlets. “Thank you, Ifrit.”

They also had the advantage of speed. As the undead monster shambled around them, the SeeDs were circling him to surround him on all sides.

It growled at them, specks of blue spittle flying as it did so.

Zell moved first. Two punches into the air sent twin fireballs flying. The monster's skin didn't so much melt this time as it burned and curdled. It roared and the smell of its breath penetrated even through their improvised masks.

Squall lifted his gun and let off three quick, healing shots. Against a normal opponent, such a bullet would do absolutely no damage. Against the undead, it was like a bullet that released acid into its bloodstream. It screamed in pain as Squall's magic penetrated into its unbeating veins.

“Siren, cure!” Selphie yelled, throwing the spell from her nunchaku.

She didn't aim for the body of the monster as Squall would have. The spell fell at its feet. At the noxious puddle of blue-black goo surrounding it and keeping them at bay. The cure spell purified the goo and left behind clear water in its place.

The move did no damage to the monster, but it did anger it. He roared at Selphie and started a lopsided charge towards her, its ugly blue, jagged claws reaching out for her.

Selphie's movements were fluid and quick as she ducked under its grasp. One end of her nunchaku came up and smacked it in the face. Then she turned around and a second blow landed against its back as she slipped behind him.

“Selphie, fall back!” Squall ordered.

The tiny girl jumped onto the table the not-president had been sitting it out and out of the way. Squall lifted his blade and swung it out in a wide, arc.

“Blizzard!” he roared as he did so. The blast of arctic air that was slung by his blade instantly froze the water Selphie had just purified. The monster's feet, standing in the shallow pool, froze in place as the crystals grabbed onto its skin.

Ice would do no damage to a creature like him, but it would keep it still.

“My turn, baby!” Zell jumped onto the ice and slid on his sneakers across the ice. His flaming fist slammed into the monster's forehead as he passed. The scent of burning, rotting flesh got worse as Zell threw the creature to the floor.

Squall's ice grabbed onto its back now and locked it against the carpeting. Its limbs scrambled, breaking the rather thin layer of ice. But he was still and trapped in place for just a moment.

“Cure!” Selphie threw her spell directly at it this time.

It roared in agony as the healing magic destroyed its dead flesh.

Squall ran across the ice easily, like he was made to do so. One boot planted against the misshapen, engorged right knee and he launched himself into the air.

Gravity brought him and the tip of his Revolver down directly into the monster's heart. It roared, but the blade couldn't stop an already dead heart.

Squall pulled the trigger and a blast of cool, healing energy blasted directly into its core. Black blood seeped away from a wound that began slowly falling open. Squall dropped back as the monster grabbed for its chest.

Cure spells worked slowly. It was killing him but at an agonizing pace.

“Cure!” Selphie yelled.

“Cure!” Squall shot.

“Cure!” Zell punched.

The three healing spells hit the monster at the same time. The foul air cleared as though a spring breeze had just blown through the cabin. The blue ooze from its mouth purified to water as its heart beat once, just long enough to bleed and allow the undead thing to truly die.

Its limbs flopped to the sides, its body still. The cure spells would continue to work on its corpse. It wouldn't bring him back to life, but it would rot it in reverse. The fluids in its body would turn to water and its flesh turn to soil.

The undead was the antithesis of life, and when it rotted it became the basis of life.

“Woh...” Rinoa breathed as the sudden fresh air had her lowering the tail of her duster. It smelled like a greenhouse in here now.

Squall ripped the rag from his face and took a breath of air that wasn't tainted by blood or alcohol.

“Shall we?” Selphie laughed, collapsing her nunchaku and storing them back in her boots. She was laughing and practically skipping as she returned to the Forest Owls' base. Zell was right behind her, picking at the charred flesh on his gauntlets with a frown.

Squall stepped past Rinoa who was looking up at him with wide eyes. She following him quickly out of the president's car, looking back only once before the door shut behind her.

Zone and Watts, who had heard the commotion from the other side, descended on them with a series of loud, worried questions. Squall fell back and let Rinoa step forward and explain what had happened to them. He had done his job here.

Back in the debriefing room, Zone slumped forward in dejection. Watts had left the room halfway through Rinoa's explanation. So it was just them and the SeeDs.

“Man,” he sighed. “I can't believe the president was a fake! All that work for nothing!”

“I can't believe we fell for it,” Rinoa frowned, holding her arm across her chest.

“So what do we do now?” Zone asked her, frowning.

Her brow furrowed as she thought for a moment. Her eyes lifted to Squall.

“Squall, what do you think?”

His brow raised in surprise at her seeking his opinion but he didn't hesitate to give it. “If Galbadia had a body double ready for resistance movements to act against, then it stands to reason that they expected something like this and are ready to retaliate. It won't take long for them to see the mimic you put on the dummy train. In which case, they'll be on the lookout for the president's real car.”

“So we should hide it,” Rinoa nodded, agreeing. “Zone?”

He thought for a moment. “Well, there's a train graveyard on the abandoned side of Timber where the government buildings used to be. No one ever goes there. We can stash the president's car there and hide out until Watts figures out what's going on.”

“Do it then,” Rinoa nodded to him. Zone rushed from the room to go talk to the driver of the train. She turned with a smile to the SeeDs. “Sorry about this. You guys did excellent work. I really couldn't have asked for more.”

Squall nodded, accepting her praise. “What do you want us to do now?”

“Um, nothing?” she looked confused at the question. “Relax? At least until Watts can get more intel. It shouldn't take him long, he's really good.”

“Standby,” Squall said to his team, translating the order simply.

“So, can we check things out around the train?” Selphia asked, beaming.

“Sure, of course you can,” Rinoa smiled back.

“Awesome!” Selphie ran, laughing from the room.

Zell followed more sedately. Squall didn't ask where they were going. It was none of his business what they did on what was, essentially, free time.

For a long moment, he and Rinoa stood in the debriefing room alone. She was giving him an unreadable look and he was doing his best to remain still and stoic under her gaze.

After a minute, she gave him a soft smile before walking out herself.

Squall let out a long breath and looked over to the closed window.

Standby.

...How boring.

***

The train graveyard on the far side of Timber had originally been a sort of outdoor museum for historic train cars of Timber. For that reason, the government buildings had been built nearby. After the Galbadian War, the entire area had been partially burned, totally destroyed, and gutted completely of people. The 'museum' was now where old trains went to die.

The Forest Owl base blended in well with the old cars. The president's car was buried deep in the graveyard and the SeeDs and the Owls spent some time 'aging' it with a combination of chemicals and fire so it wasn't identifiable.

Afterwards, the Forest Owl base was driven to most remote, oldest part of the graveyard, and allowed to come to rest for the night. They would keep it there so no one would find it until Watts returned with new information.

At that point, some of the Owls went home. The three tech members all did. Zone and Rinoa stayed, as did the SeeDs. Zone slept in the debriefing room. Rinoa, of course, had her carefully decorated and furnished room.

Rinoa asked where the SeeDs would be sleeping, Squall told her not to worry about it.

“How can I not?” she asked, frowning at his response.

Neither SeeD seemed to mind him speaking for them. Zell was sewing – who knew he could? – some leather and metal together in a new glove. Selphie was yawning and still looking out of the window though the scenery hadn't changed since the sun went down.

“We can sleep anywhere,” he insisted. “Furthermore, I need to discuss watch schedules with you.”

“Watch schedules?” she repeated, surprised.

He nodded once. “Yes. I'm confident the three of us can handle the watch so the rest of you can sleep. I've already assigned shifts but if you want to change them, I want to hear so.”

“Wait, wait,” Rinoa held up her hands, stopping him. “Why do we need watch schedules?”

“To keep an eye for Galbadian military.”

“And why would they come out here?”

“They're searching for a train car. The train graveyard is the first place I would look.”

“Yeah, but the G-Army is full of incompetent idiots. We both know that. They're drafted into service, none of them care about their jobs.”

“All the same. SeeDs don't take risks like that. You don't need to worry about anything. I've already got it covered. We can handle watch duty.” Squall was actually wondering why she was fighting him about this.

“But, won't you get less sleep?” she frowned.

“I normally get five hours of sleep at night. Splitting the shift between the three of us will enable me to meet that satisfactorily.”

Rinoa blinked at him, as though startled at his response. She peeked but neither Zell nor Selphie seemed the least bit affected by his decision.

“I'll take first watch,” Squall said to his team and Rinoa. “Zell, you've got second. Selphie, third.”

“What?!” Zell looked up, dismayed. “Why do I have to have middle shift?”

“Because you got dibs on the blue guard,” Squall returned calmly. Selphie laughed at Zell. “You should both get to sleep now. Zell, I'll wake you up in a few hours.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he grumbled, walking towards the tech room. Selphie was right behind him. Rinoa almost didn't believe they would be sleeping in there, but they turned into the room. Curious as to how they were sleeping, she walked up the isle and peered inside.

Tiny Selphie was curled into a ball on the thinly cushioned two person seat. Zell was in the computer chair, leaning back against the wall. Both of their eyes were already closed, their breathing evening, obeying their leader's order. It was not a room that Rinoa would have imagined being able to sleep in, but both appeared like they were not only trying, but beginning to succeed.

She stepped back and looked over to the front where she had left Squall. She saw his boots disappear through the hatch onto the top of the train before it shut behind him.

He really was about to take watch.

Rinoa couldn't help it, she followed him up the ladder. She lifted up the hatch and looked around to see him turning back, surprised to see her coming up.

“Did you need something?” he asked calmly.

Rinoa hesitated only a second before stepping out all the way. She closed the hatch gently behind her.

He had brought up his sword. He had actually come up here armed. Like he might seriously expect someone to come looking for them all the way out here. They could barely even see the lights of the actual town from the roof of the train.

Rinoa didn't answer his question immediately. She walked across the train and sat down beside him on the edge. He watched her with carefully guarded eyes. It was almost like the moment when she had asked him to dance. He was closed off inside himself.

“How's your hand?” she finally asked softly.

He seemed surprised by the change in topic. He lifted his right hand and shrugged as he looked it over with the glove still on. “It's fine.”

“Let me see.”

“No. Why?”

“I want to see,” she insisted, grabbing his wrist.

It wasn't like the dance; he didn't let her pull him along this time. He jerked his wrist away before her fingers could get a proper grip on him.

“I already cast a cure spell. It's healing just fine.”

At the mention of the cure spell, Rinoa's eyes looked up at him again. And he carefully made sure that not a single muscle on his face betrayed that punch to the gut he felt yet again at seeing the way the moon and stars lit up those eyes.

“I was really impressed,” she started softly. “The way you fought today. So quick and efficient. I can't even imagine trying to take on a monster like that by myself.”

“You have a weapon, don't you?”

“Well, yeah,” she looked at her wrist where the blaster edge waited, folded and dormant. “But I can't fight monsters with it. It's mostly just for thugs on the streets who can't take no for an answer.”

Squall's brow furrowed slightly. “Does that happen often?”

She shrugged. “I bought the weapon, didn't I?”

When she looked back, his face was impassive again. She smiled at him.

“But I'm nothing like you. It was like watching a real military captain. Even against an enemy you didn't know, you knew how to take it down. And your magic? SeeDs really are good.”

He said nothing for a moment. “Thank you.”

She laughed softly. “So, who's Shiva?”

“What?”

“Shiva. You said her name during the fight.”

“Shiva is my GF. Ifrit is Zell's. Selphie's is Siren.”

“Oh,” she drew out the sound. “I heard that SeeD knew the secrets for junctioning guardians, but I guess I never really believed it was true. They say it's dangerous.”

“I've never had a problem before.” What was she doing out here? Surely she didn't come up here just to ramble on about whatever topic. “And it's not really a secret. Anyone could do it. It's all a matter of finding or conquering a GF that doesn't mind sharing your head. It's a very personal sort of bond. Most don't like having someone sharing their thoughts. However, the power trade is worth it. I'm much stronger with Shiva than I would be without her.”

“Anyone could do it, huh?” she repeated, kicking her feet against the train. “Even...say, me?”

“Of course,” he nodded, wondering where she was going with this.

She suddenly turned and beamed at him. “Thank you!”

“For what?”

Rinoa laughed, shaking her head a bit. It was hard to explain how nice it was to hear someone say that she could learn to do something like junction a GF. Just not hearing someone tell her no flat out to a thing like this was refreshing.

“So, can you?”

“Can I what?”

“Teach me how to junction a GF,” she laughed. “I find myself curious after that battle.”

“Do you have a GF to junction?”

“Well...no.”

“Then, no,” he raised an eyebrow at her. “I can't teach you junctioning GF if you don't have one to junction. And I don't tend to keep spare GF in my...”

“What?”

He shook his head, “Nothing. I can't lend you Shiva even just to train. She's very possessive. And she says no anyway. She doesn't like new people.”

“Is she talking right now?” Rinoa asked, her eyes lighting up eagerly.

“I wouldn't describe it as talking,” Squall frowned. “It's more like a feeling.”

“So, if I could get a GF, would you teach me?”

He shrugged. “Sure.”

He saw no reason not to. Junctioning GF was hardly a secret. It was simply a skill that SeeD used while most people did not. And Rinoa was his boss. If she was telling him to teach her how to fight, he couldn't say no. It was actually a very practical sort of thing to learn. He found himself impressed that she wanted to.

“Thanks, Squall. And, I'm sorry again about your hand.”

“Don't be. I'm not. You should get to sleep.”

Rinoa gave him a small smile. “I could tell you the same thing. You know you're wasting your time up here, right?”

“Yeah. But would you be willing to bet your life on it?”

She hesitated. “Okay, you make a fair point. Good night, Squall.”

“Good night,” he replied. He heard her walking behind him and open the hatch. He heard her hesitate then and felt her eyes on his back. Somehow, it didn't bother him to feel Rinoa watching him as it did Quistis.

Then she was gone.

A few hours later, Squall came down to wake Zell up. Groggy and complaining, he took up Squall's position on the rooftop. Even then, Squall didn't go to sleep. He hesitated in the tech room before walking outside the train, opposite the side Zell could see.

He walked around one of the old train carcasses. He pulled out his inventory and pressed a few buttons on it. He pointed and clicked and, just like that, the black oil lamp that Headmaster Cid had given him was laid out on the ground.

He bent over it and stared at the pure white wick.

It wasn't a hesitation. It was simple curiosity. He was wondering if the wax would light immediately or if he needed to burn it down like an ordinary candle.

A small lighter came out of his inventory next and he lit it up. The tiny light was bright in the darkness as he held it up to the wick of the candle.

It caught immediately. The flame burned on the wax for just a moment. Then, as the wax burned away and the wick caught, the flame turned black.

With a wink of red light, Squall was gone and the only thing left was the oil lamp burning a black flame that cast shadows instead of light.

***

“Wake up, Squall. Watts is back!”

Rinoa's call had his eyes snapping open, consciousness returning to him immediately. If Rinoa saw his hand automatically reaching for his gunblade, she didn't mention it.

He pushed himself up in the computer chair as Rinoa ran from the room with Zell. Squall winced and grabbed for his ribs. He was starting to suspect that he had more than just earned a few bruises last night. He might even have cracked his ribs altogether.

Trying to take deep breaths through the pain, Squall stood and walked down towards the debriefing room where the others had gone. Shiva was already releasing more cure spells into his body – he was nearly out of them at this point. All the while, she was chastising him for being so foolhardy last night after a long day of fighting in the first place.

He was rubbing his head, cursing the weird nightmares he had endured last night. Which was common when you fell asleep without unjunctioning a GF. However, he had wanted her at hand immediately in case his aching ribs woke him up. Which they had. Twice.

Removing the pain from his face, Squall walked into the debriefing room where the others were all already waiting. Rinoa was smiling at him, oblivious to anything. However, both Zell and Selphie were used to how each of them moved at this point and noted the new stiffness. Their faces pinched in concerned, but neither of them said anything as Squall turned to Watts.

“So?” Rinoa asked, now that everyone was here.

“Info, sir! New info! It's big news!” The breathless Watts yelled happily. “I found out the real president did in fact come to Timber sir, in a convoy in secret last night. And I found out why he's here! The president's going to the old TV station. Security's super tight, sir!”

Rinoa frowned, cocking her head curiously. “The TV station? Why in Timber? They have a TV station in Galbadia. It's state of the art. They can broadcast easier from there than they could here.”

“Hey,” Selphie leaned up towards Squall, “do you think this has to do with that communication tower thing they took over?”

“What's that?” Zone asked, looking to her.

Squall had no reason not to tell them. It wasn't classified information. So he spoke calmly.

“Dollet has a communication tower from the old days that can transmit and receive radio waves through a dish. It's been abandoned since radio waves stopped traveling reliably, but the Galbadian army got it up and running a few days ago.”

“Oh!” Realization lit up Zone's face. “I get it! The only TV station in the world that can handle broadcasts over the air is this one here in Timber. It was never upgraded after the war because Galbadia took over our broadcasting systems and has refused to let us broadcast our own channels. So when everyone else switched to HD cables after waves stopped working, Timber TV didn't. It will be the only place that can transmit radio waves anymore.”

“So, what's that supposed to mean?” Rinoa asked.

“It must mean that they're planning on using radio waves to transmit something over the air. It's the only way they can do so without cable lines. I mean, they could if they had figured out a way to make radio waves work again. And why go through this trouble if they didn't?”

“I know that!” Rinoa said, stomping her foot. “What I want to know is what the president is going to broadcast! And why use radio waves?”

“They wouldn't be limited by networks like the cables would,” Zone suggested, shrugging. “Nor would the video need to be prerecorded.”

“So they could broadcast to everyone?” She guessed. “What could the president possibly want to say to the entire world?”

Selphie had an answer. That she yelled loudly and with a great deal of enthusiasm. “Everybody! Love! And! PEACE!”

“Uh...no,” Zone frowned as Zell and Rinoa shook their heads at her. “If it's important enough for the president himself to speak after 17 years of silence, it must be big.”

It's been that long?” Rinoa said in awe. “That's incredible. Hey! Wouldn't it be wonderful if the first broadcast could be the declaration of Timber's independence?!”

“Hey! Yeah!” Zone caught onto her excitement easily. “That might be possible!”

She nodded quickly. “Let's come up with a plan then!”

Squall wasn't sure what he expected. He definitely did not expect Zone and Watts to crouch down by the crate in the corner. Rinoa smiled at the three SeeDs.

“Can you guys give us a minute?”

Then she plopped right down with them. Their voices were hushed as they talked quickly. Squall, Zell, and Selphie were sharing looks over the action.

“Are they serious?” Zell whispered. “They call that a strategy meeting?”

“When can we go home, Squall?” Selphie asked, frowning. “Were we just here for this one mission?”

“Hey, yeah,” Zell frowned. “We don't even actually know how long we're stationed here.”

“I'll find out,” Squall said, looking back towards where the three Owls were talking quickly, smiling and nodding as they cracked another harebrained scheme.

If it was anything like the one that had him dangling from a moving train, he should probably be very afraid. His ribs were in no condition to handle that right now.

He walked over and, as he approached, Rinoa beamed up at him.

“Good timing! We've come up with a plan?”

Just like that? They hadn't even been talking for a full minute. What could they possibly have come up with? Even just a basic 'storm the castle' type of strategy should take more than thirty seconds to figure out.

“Before we get into that,” Squall said, kneeling and biting back a moan of pain from the way it made his ribs complain. “Can I see your contract with our garden?”

“Hm? Oh, sure.”

The contract was inside the crate/strategy meeting table. She pulled it out and passed it off to him. He was already starting to read it when he felt Zell and Selphie came look over his shoulder.

“What's it say?” Zell asked.

He moved his eyes up to them then back to the top of the paper and read off in monotone, “'Balamb Garden (hereafter referred to as Party A) acknowledges The Forest Owls (hereafter referred to as Party B) as the hiring party. SeeD (hereafter referred to as Party C) shall be dispatched upon signing of this contract. Party C shall operate under-'”

“The hell?” Zell interrupted, reeling back slightly.

“I don't get it,” Selphie agreed, making a face.

“Oh, yeah,” Rinoa laughed at their reactions, taking back the contract quickly. “That one's pretty confusing. When I told him I didn't understand, Cid gave me a different one.”

She pulled another piece of paper, shorter this time, from the crate. She passed it off to Squall with a wide smile. “Cid is such a nice man.”

“What's is say this time?” Selphie asked, leaning back over him.

Squall had to turn it around, she had given it to him backwards. Then he read off calmly.

“'To the Forest Owls; This SeeD deployment contract will last until Timber achieves independence. Please make good use of each SeeD member. I wish you the best with your objective. Please understand that this contract is an exception and no replacement of SeeD members can be made. Signed, Balamb Garden Headmaster, Cid Kramer.'”

Rinoa was watching them as Squall read. She expected them to be irritated at the 'replacement' comment, like people were tools that could be traded in if one broke.

They latched onto a completely different comment.

“Until Timber's independence?!” Zell jumped, surprised.

“That is s-o-o-o vague!” Selphie agreed, distraught.

“Hey, you're paid professionals,” Rinoa frowned at them, standing and putting her hands on her hips to glare. “No complaining!”

Squall stood as well, fighting back a flinch of pain. Yeah, his ribs were definitely broken. A cure spell would have healed even bone bruises by this point. He needed stronger healing magic unless he wanted these bones to heal the old fashioned way.

“Squall?” Selphie frowned at the way he moved. Rinoa and the other Owls might not have been able to see the stiffness, but the SeeDs could.

“It's fine,” he said, passing back the letter.

Rinoa didn't understand they were talking about something else and nodded. “Of course it is. So, onto our plan. We're going to the TV station. Zone, Watts?”

Even the SeeDs who hadn't known them as well as Rinoa did knew exactly what both men were going to do even as she was beginning to turn to ask them.

“Gathering information is my specialty, sir!”

“Ow, my stomach!”

She made a face, groaning at their actions. “Okay, then, so just the four of us?”

There she was with that 'us' thing again.

Still, it was probably better not to travel in big groups. Especially not since the Galbadian military would now be looking for big groups.

“Zell, Selphie,” Squall turned to his squad. “We'll take separate routes to the station. I'll go with Rinoa. Can the two of you make it on your own?”

“Naturally!” Zell said, pounding his chest.

“Are you going to be okay?” Selphie frowned at his chest. “Won't that wound keep you from being able to fight?”

“Wound?” Rinoa looked back at them as Zone and Watts left the room. “You mean your hand? I thought you told me it was going to be fine?”

“My hand is fine,” he assured her. “And I'm fine as well, Selphie. I have some potions with me if I need to take them.”

“Man, those are pretty much just painkillers,” Zell frowned at him. “How about this, you take Selphie and Rinoa to the station, and I'll go try to hunt down something that will actually work. Selphie can fight at your back so you don't strain yourself.”

“Yeah, yeah!” Selphie agreed.

“What are you guys talking about?” Rinoa asked, frowning between them.

Squall couldn't deny that would probably be a relief. “Alright. But switch out. Selphie, you go find something. Zell, you stay with me.”

“What? Why? You don't trust me?”

To be professional and reliable out of his sight? Not a bit.

“You're the better fighter, Zell. With this injury, I won't be able to fight at full capacity so I need someone I know can fight. Selphie is faster than you are, too. She'll be able to move quicker. And we both know how single minded she is, and how distracted you can be.”

“Man, why you gotta bring logic into it?” Zell frowned as Selphie laughed.

“Will someone tell me what you're talking about?” Rinoa asked, pushing herself into their conversation. “Squall, what wound?”

As she asked, she reached out to touch him. Her hand hit against his side. His injured side and Squall let out a hiss of air at the pain. She jerked back quickly.

“Wha-? Squall, what's that? You didn't have that last night!”

“He went into the lamp without inviting us,” Zell said, crossing his arms at him. “I had to practically drag him back inside when he came out again. He's lucky he didn't die.”

“Yeah,” Selphie agreed, frowning at their leader as well. “SeeD rule number one: Never fight alone!”

“It's already done with, and I didn't even close to die,” he told them calmly. “Stop over dramatizing. It's a couple of broken ribs at most. I've had worse.”

“Wait, lamp? Your ribs? Squall!” Rinoa shook her head, trying to understand as the train started up and began driving again. “What are you talking about?”

Squall turned back to her. He blinked at her once before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a single Odine capsule. The glowing ring told her that something was inside it. She looked up as he held it out to her. She only took it because she didn't want him lifting his arms too long and straining any broken bones.

“What is it?” She asked, frowning at the capsule. She was used to these. They were everywhere in the Galbadian army. They were what enabled them to use magic without GFs when junctioned into the proper machines.

“You said you wanted to learn,” Squall said carelessly like it didn't even matter.

“Learn? Wha-” Rinoa froze as she realized what he was talking about. “Wait a minute! Are you telling me there's a GF inside this thing?!”

“His name is Diablos,” Squall said calmly. “I conquered him last night inside the lamp he had been imprisoned within. He put up a good fight. That's all.”

Rinoa's eyes were wide and guilty as she looked between him and the capsule. “But, you said-...and I thought that-...Squall, you didn't get this just for me, did you?”

“You said you wanted to learn,” he repeated as though that were reason enough for having fractured his ribs. “So did you or not?”

She could hardly say no to him now.

Wracked with guilt, she turned the capsule in her suddenly numb fingers. “So, how do I use it?”

“Press that release switch there and let his energy fall into you. He'll do that part himself, you don't have to worry about it.”

Zell and Selphie had seen GF junctioning before. This was like the re-hash of an old primary school lesson to them and they were completely uninterested. So they walked from the room, discussing likely locations for finding high strength cure spells or items.

Rinoa licked her lips before flicking open the release on the capsule. As he promised, the energy that billowed forth and dropped down into her arm acted on its own. She didn't need to do anything. But she did let out a wordless sound of surprise at the sensation.

It felt like her limb got suddenly heavier as the energy languidly traveled up. It moved on its own, an alien mind, from her limb through her neck then up into her brain. The heaviness came with it and she suddenly felt like there was a weight pressing down just under the crown of her head.

She couldn't help it, she reached up to touch the spot making a face.

As the heaviness settled, she suddenly felt a sense of curiosity that wasn't hers. Like someone had broken into her mind, she felt suddenly and completely invaded. She actually jumped, crying out to feel whatever it was reaching through her brain like it had a right to.

“Make it stop!” she yelled, dropping the capsule and grabbing her head. “Make it hold still!”

“I can't,” Squall said, watching her calmly. “You have to. He's in your head. I know it feels strange, but don't forget that it is your head. He's only a guest so long as you let him be. You have to exercise control yourself or he'll do whatever he wants.”

What had Squall said his name was? Dio-something?

No, Diablos.

“Diablos, stop!” she ordered, shaking now. Only the knowledge that Squall was in pain from broken bones kept her from demanding he remove the thing now. There was no way she could give up just like that after he had hurt himself to obtain a GF for her.

The guilt she was feeling caught the GFs attention more than her command did. He recognized her guilt, knew where it was coming from. He found it funny.

“It is not funny!” she snapped, stomping her foot.

Did she just stomp her foot? Was she a child? Was that who Master Squall thought the great Diablos was supposed to serve? A child?

“I am not a child!” Rinoa growled dangerously. “And I swear if you call me that again, I'm putting you back in that capsule and I'm dropping it in the ocean!”

It wasn't just a threat. It was a sincere promise. He could feel the truth of it in her emotions. And instead of being threatened or upset, he was actually impressed. He hadn't expected something so devious from a girl who would stomp her foot. She had basically just threatened to throw him away in the dark, cold, crushing ocean for eternity with no way of escape. Only someone who had some darkness inside could make such a threat.

“I am not a child,” Rinoa repeated more calmly. “I am sorry for that though. I just don't think you laughing at Squall's pain is very nice.”

Meh, he asked for it. He had started the fight. He knew what was going to happen when he lit the oil lamp. Besides, he had given just as good as he got. She should be praising the warrior for his skill, not pitying the badges of honor he wore.

“Badges of honor?” She repeated incredulously. “Ugh, men.”

Diablos was laughing at her now, but he didn't question her. He also stopped reaching through her mind like he had a right to. Rinoa's eyes focused back on reality and she realized that she had just been having an argument with something no one could see or hear.

She laughed, embarrassed. “Tell me that wasn't as lame as it looked.”

“I had very nearly the same conversation with Shiva the first time,” Squall shrugged. She remembered that he would be used to people talking to their GF. It wasn't lame to him at all. “Are you feeling okay with that?”

Rinoa paused, thinking over the feeling of Diablos in her head. It was a strange weight, but it wasn't a painful one. It was like the sensation of doing anything new. It was just different. It would take experience to become accustomed to it.

“It's not bad,” she finally admitted, smiling. “And you're right. That was easy.”

“Do you have any magic stocked?”

“No, not really.”

“Then you can take some of mine.”

“What?” Rinoa blinked in surprise as he brought out his INVENTORY. “No, Squall. I can't take your spells! That's too much.”

“I don't use this magic. I just have it. It's useless to me. Ask Diablos what affinity he prefers.”

“But, Squall-” she frowned as Diablos provided an answer. “He says time and space magic, but he'll deal with status affects. Squall, I can't take your magic.”

“Shiva is picky. She won't let me have any heat based magic. So you can have my old fire spells. They're still good though. I have a couple demis that I traded for. Sleep, from the grats. Confuse, berserk, bio, silence. Hm, those were pretty hard to get. Whatever. Shiva says absolutely not.”

“Squall, that's way too much!”

“No, not really. I have too many sleeps anyway. Grats are really good for those. Besides, these are just some basic spells. Except maybe the bio, but it's another one Shiva won't use. I won't miss it.”

When he put his INVENTORY away, he had a small handful of the capsules. He held them out for her and again she took them just to avoid straining his ribs.

“Squall-”

“A GF is just decoration if you don't give it magic. That's what gives it true power.”

Rinoa made another sound of protest as she looked at the capsules. “What am I supposed to do with these?”

“You? Nothing. You can't. Give them to Diablos. He will control the magic for you. You'll need to call on him to cast spells. So, really, another very easy thing to do. Diablos can definitely handle the magic load.”

Diablos agreed regally, but Rinoa still felt hot guilt. She didn't realize that when she had made that almost offhand comment last night about learning how to junction that Squall would actually start the process needed to teach her. Who took someone that seriously?

But he had taken her that seriously. He had hurt himself in the process. She ignored Diablos telling her that he had hurt Squall, not himself.

She pressed the release button on the capsules and let the spells fall into her arm. No, Diablos reached out and captured them, pulling them in. He greedily sucked in each one until Rinoa was left with a handful of empty capsules.

Squall and nodded and took them from her to place back in his INVENTORY. He started explaining to her how each one could potentially be used to assist her in battle. Including a technique involving placing the spells on her weapon so that she would infect people with them as she hit them. Something she never would have thought of doing on her own but, apparently, SeeD did all the time.

She paid very close attention.

***

The Galbadian commander in charge of Timber frowned at the latest report to reach his ears. “A guy dressed as a cadet gathering information?”

“Yes, sir,” the cadet reported, saluting him. “He was asking about the president's stay. I found it strange that a cadet would keep asking about the president when he should have already been debriefed. He was very polite and kept addressing me as 'sir'.”

The captain next to the commander jumped. “Wait, I think I know who you're talking about! I saw him taking care of three suspicious looking characters from Balamb! Well, only one was suspicious looking. I'll go question every teenager in the area!”

“No! We can't just go up to anybody and-”

It was too late. The captain was already running off. The commander cleared his throat to continue to the cadet.

“These are citizens. We can't inflict any-”

“How dare they try to kidnap the president!” The cadet yelled, enraged. “Not only is it disrespectful to the president, but also to us Galbadian soldiers as well! I'll be sure to find 'em and throw their sad be-hinds in jail!”

He ran off as well, grabbing another cadet so they could look together.

The commander let out a long sigh. He was the only high class soldier in the entire Galbadian army that didn't dock pay as punishment. He was the commander with most loyalty in ranks. He disciplined his men properly and did his best to try to make them get along with the occupied Timber residents as well as make sure the Timber residents weren't overly encumbered by the Galbadian army.

So he was proud, in a way, that his men felt such loyalty to their president when he knew that didn't hold true across the entire army. But still...

“Please...Hear me out...to the very end...”

He sighed down at the silent train station below him.

***

Squall was finishing his lesson as the train came to a halt at one of the stations in town. So Rinoa led Squall to the exit and starred in wonder at how he didn't walk like he had broken his ribs. At least not according to her inexpert eye.

Watts was already at the door seeing Selphie and Zell out onto the platform. He was speaking as the two of them came out of the debriefing room, “The TV station is quite close if you take the local train. Oh, but the trains have stopped running, sir. So you'll have to find another way there.”

Squall stepped out of the train and turned as Rinoa stepped down as well.

Watts stepped out after them, frowning as he thought of something. “I think there's an old back entrance to the TV station behind the Timber Maniacs building. You know, the magazine? I don't know that it will help, but it's worth a try, sir.”

“WA-A-A-AT-T-TS!” Zone yelled from inside the train. “C'MON! The Galbadian soldiers just spotted us!”

“There are lots of guards patrolling the city now, sir,” Watts told them as the train started up its engine again. “Please be careful, sir. They're probably searching for us.”

“Hey, Watts,” Selphie smiled, “you know lots of stuff, right?”

“I do my best, sir,” he blushed, pleased.

“Do you know where I can find some good healing magic? I know the store has potions, but I'm looking for something with a little more...umph! You know?”

“Hm,” Watts put his hand to his chin, thinking. The train started moving behind him. Squall could see soldiers pointing and running after it. “I heard there's something called the Owl's Tear somewhere in the city and that can do wonder on injuries, sir. I don't know exactly where it is, but they say that an old man guards it. Whatever that means, sir.”

As he was talking, the train was pulling out from behind him. Watts didn't even notice until he looked over and saw it starting to turn around the bend.

“Hey! Don't leave me, sir-r-r-r!”

Then Squall watched with a raised eyebrow as he jumped onto the tracks and started sprinting after the departing train.

“I'll give him points for tenacity,” he said softly as Rinoa and Selphie laughed and Zell shook his head.

“I'm off then,” Selphie beamed before jumping off the platform and running away.

Rinoa frowned. “Why didn't she just take the stairs? They're right there.”

“You know,” Zell sighed, “if you can answer that question, you'll solve a lot of mysteries.”


	9. The TV Studio

“You know, Timber is kind of pretty,” Zell was saying as he looked around the quiet city. “I like the overall color scheme. Very calming. Very blue.”

Squall wasn't sure what that meant, but Rinoa was giggling so it must mean something.

“Shall we start at Timber Maniacs then?” Squall asked her for approval calmly.

“We have no where else to start,” she shrugged, but frowned. “Don't you want to rest awhile though?”

“No. Why would I?”

“Your ribs-”

“Are fine.”

“But-”

“If it gets too bad, I'll let you know. For now, I'm fine. I'm only walking. And I've fought with worse.”

“SeeD training must be tough,” she frowned.

He shrugged. “If it were easy, everyone would do it. Isn't that what they say? Which way to the Timber Maniacs building?”

“This way,” she pointed. The two of them stayed back though, clearly waiting for her to take charge, which she did without complaint. She was used to it from dealing with Zone and Watts.

Zell looked like a normal guy, especially when his gauntlets were in his pockets. Rinoa was a common face in the area now. Neither of them would draw even a curious glance. Squall was the one of the three that looked menacing. The gunblade at his hip only made his image more menacing. The black leather, the sharp, cutting eyes, the scar...

It was the first time Rinoa had ever walked down the streets of Timber without being mobbed by people eager to talk to her. Most especially the men. She was a little too popular, honestly. Men of all kinds, and a few women besides, had tried to preposition her in the past, even with Zone or Watts or both by her side.

With Squall standing there though, people were actively avoiding looking at her. Even if his movements were stiff with pain – which she still couldn't tell – he still stalked dangerously. Like a predator let lose from its cage, he crept forward. His eyes, calm though they were, were cold and dangerous. Even the air around him shivered. Rinoa knew now that it was because of Shiva. She didn't like the heat, Squall had explained, so she kept it cool. Still, it was rather disconcerting to feel as an ordinary person.

And, at the same time, Rinoa didn't really mind. She always seemed to feel too hot naturally. Walking beside Squall with his constantly cool air was pretty comfortable.

People crossed the street to get away from Squall though. He looked like a mercenary. If she hadn't known he was SeeD, she might suspect that he beat people up for money anyway. Without all the militaristic veneer and discipline of SeeD.

If Zell noticed, he didn't appear bothered. Squall was probably used to it. Rinoa felt strangely like she was trapped in a plastic bubble with how few people tried to speak with her now.

A downside though was that his presence made them more obvious. They were a prime target for Galbadian soldiers to come question. Twice, they had to duck into an alleyway to avoid being seen by patrolling G-Army goons. And they weren't even that far from the TM building.

“This is so exhausting,” Rinoa let out a breath as they emerged from an alley yet again.

“She's right,” Squall nodded. “It's probably better if I leave, I'm too conspicuous.”

“What?” She pulled to a stop and turned, her eyes wide.

“You do kind of stand out,” Zell agreed happily enough. “I think it's the scar. Very noticeable.”

“You have a point. I think I'll split from you two here and make my own way.”

“Okay, wait!” Rinoa grabbed their arms to keep either man from moving. “First of all: It's not the scar. Trust me. Secondly: We're not splitting up again. Squall, you're hurt! You can barely take in a deep breath, much less fight. Isn't that why you brought Zell with us? Because he's better able to protect both of us than Selphie?”

“No, I brought him because he's better able to protect you. I can only protect myself right now. He doesn't need to protect me, I'm fine.” Well, it was partially true.

“No, you're not fine. And you're not leaving, that's an order!”

“As you wish.” He nodded once and continued walking. Zell was right with him.

Wait. What?

It was that easy?

Rinoa hastened to catch up with them, looking between the two. Squall had been all for leaving just a moment ago, but she says 'order' and then – poof! – he doesn't want to anymore? She had heard, of course, that SeeD was obedient. She didn't think she realized just how much so.

Despite Squall's obviously menacing aura, they reached the TM building without issue. Even if it took twice as long because they had to keep ducking out of sight.

Timber Maniacs was the only form of media that the Galbadian government allowed Timber to keep after its take over. However, they operated under strict guidelines about what they could or could not write. It wasn't so much 'freedom of the press' as it was 'forced praise'.

Everyone knew it, too.

Despite that though, Timber Maniacs continued to run with a certain amount of Timber pride. They printed articles that were pre-approved or forced to write, but there was still a sense of independence and resistance in the magazine.

It was a thin line to walk to achieve such an affect. Squall was rather impressed. Even if the building that served as such a paper's base was cramped, cluttered, and crowded.

“Welcome to Timber Maniacs!” the bright faced clerk beamed as they walked in. “Can I help you find anything today?”

“We're just looking around,” Squall said.

Rinoa didn't think he meant to say it that way. The words weren't intended to be intimidating or slightly threatening, it just was because he was the one who said it. The clerk laughed nervously as he stepped around her booth into the building proper. She looked kind of terrified as Rinoa passed her. She was sweating, looking quickly away as though she didn't want to be a witness.

Okay, Rinoa could see Squall was a bit scary. Surely people didn't think he was that scary?

“What are we looking for?” Zell asked, perusing the stacks of magazines laying around.

“A back door. An open window. Anything that will lead to the TV station.”

“You know, I don't think I've ever actually been inside this building before,” Rinoa said, looking around in wonder. “It's just one of those things I say I'll do and then never do.”

“Well, you're doing it now,” Squall said, peering at one of the magazine stacks.

“Yeah, enjoy yourself,” Zell laughed. “Oh, sweet! Look, they have all the retro editions of Combat King! Oh, man! I used to love reading these!”

Rinoa laughed as Zell flipped open one of the old magazines and flipped through it. Squall didn't chastise him for it either. He was picking through the old stacks himself. She found herself incredibly curious about what he would consider good reading.

Peeking over his shoulder, she snickered. “The Battle Series?”

He turned to her, his eyebrow raised. “Why not? It's a very informative and interesting series.”

“Squall, it's practically an encyclopedia!” Rinoa laughed loudly. “It's nothing but weapon, armor, and monster statistics. It's the most boring combat based series ever.”

Squall shrugged. “I enjoyed it.”

She laughed, shrugging. “Somehow, I'm not surprised. Hey, I think the editor's office is this way.”

Rinoa pointed down the hall and started walking. Squall made to follow her but was stopped by Zell's hand on his shoulder. He turned to see him passing over a magazine that had been rolled into a tube with a grin on his face. He waited until Rinoa had taken a few steps away from them before whispering to him conspiratorially.

“Squall, check it out,” he was saying, looking around for watchers.

Squall let the tube unroll in his hand and found himself staring into the face of a girl that was completely naked, censored only by the title of the magazine, on her knees blowing a kiss out of the cover with a wink.

“Why did you give me this?” he asked, giving Zell a dry look.

Zell was snickering. “What? Who doesn't enjoy this? That's The Girl Next Door, man. That magazine is legend! The centerfold is supposed to be so hot you'll, pass out from blood loss.”

“Will you get serious?” Squall shook his head.

“Come on,” Zell nudged him with a winking grin. “There's a bathroom right there. You can go in and, uh, choke the chocobo, if you know what I mean.”

“Please stop.”

“Stop what?”

Both of them looked up to see Rinoa had come back when she noticed they hadn't been just a step behind her. She was trying to see the magazine in Squall's hand. He quickly closed his palm, hiding the cover from her as he put it behind his back.

“Nothing. Sorry. We're coming.”

“What's that in your hand?”

“Nothing. The editor's office is this way?”

Rinoa didn't take 'no' for an answer. Her curiosity drove her and she jumped for the magazine. Squall quickly lifted it over his head. He was taller than her. Keeping it out of her reach would have been easy to do. If he hadn't flinched from the pain of raising his arm so suddenly.

“Oh, will you quit being so macho!” Rinoa snapped, snatching the magazine from him. “Just admit you're in pain already and take it easy.”

Then her eyes fell on the magazine cover. Zell was already backing away quickly, trying to look nonchalant. Rinoa's face was completely unreadable for a second as Squall quickly schooled his features into a neutral expression. There was absolutely nothing he could say here that wouldn't sound like a lame excuse.

After a very long pause, she finally looked up, one eyebrow raised. “The Girl Next Door? Why, Squall, I had no idea that was your type.”

“You know very well that I wasn't looking at that.”

“I'm sure I know nothing at all. It was in your hands, after all. Is this one of those 'various skills' that a SeeD needs?”

He realized by the twinkle in her eyes as she waved the magazine that she was teasing him. That didn't make it any easier an embarrassment to bear.

“Tell me, because I'm curious,” she grinned, walking around him, “is it the perceived obedience of the more demure girl, or the feeling that she's so sweet and innocent you're walking on untrodden ground, that makes the girl-next-door type so alluring?”

“Neither of which quality is a good one for a life partner,” Squall returned, putting his hand to his hip as he watcher her come around him. “It's the sense that she's someone you can depend on and settle down with. Which is secondary to the fact that I wasn't even looking at the thing.”

“Oh, yes, men are staring at this because they're getting off on the thought of settling down with a wife and kids.” She actually opened it and peeked inside. The interior was not nearly so censored as the cover and he made sure to look away. “I'm guessing it's more of a combo of the two. An untouched, demure sort of female. What man wouldn't like that?”

“Clearly not one that wants an interesting life.”

She looked up, her eyes carefully guarded. “A wise statement, if ever there was one.”

“Wise? Not so. I simply don't know what kind of woman that is because I've never met one.”

“Never?”

“No. All the women I know are either SeeDs or SeeD candidates. I might label some of them as quiet or withdrawn, but never demure. All of which is stemming from a conversation that is completely baseless, because I wasn't looking at it. I just happened to be holding it.”

Rinoa laughed at him. “Relax. I saw Zell hand it to you.”

He frowned, irritated. “Then why not give him the third degree?”

“Because it's more fun doing it to you,” she laughed, holding out the magazine. “Want this for your INVENTORY?”

Growling, Squall grabbed it from her and deliberately set it down on the nearest pile of magazines. She was laughing at him as she turned back towards the editor's office.

At the last second, she turned again to face him.

Her back arched, pushing her hips out as she squished her breasts between her arms so they protruded forward. One hand rested against her thigh, the other pressed against her lips. In that pose, erotically reminiscent of the cover of the magazine, she blew him a kiss and gave him a wink. Then, laughing, she stood straight and turned on her heel. Hips sashaying temptingly, deliberately, she walked into the office.

And Squall was left grateful that she hadn't decided to mimic the centerfold's pose instead. He felt like he was suffering from severe blood loss from that move alone.

Squall was nothing if not commander of his own emotions. By the time he had caught up with her and Zell in the editor's office, he was back in control. If his head was suffering from blood loss, no other part of his body gave any indication of it.

And Shiva was wisely, kindly keeping any comments to herself.

The editor's office was even more cluttered and busy than the front of the TM building. There were four writing stations, two of which had people on them. The editor was standing at the window, talking to seemingly no one, as he gestured wildly.

Squall ignored him and moved closer to the window. It looked out into the back alley behind the TM building. With any luck, he would be able to see something from there.

Rinoa and Zell stayed beside him as he parted the blinds with his fingers and looked out.

“That's the TV station there,” Rinoa pointed to a large building off in the distance. “See that walkway right there, coming over the housing district? That's the old back entrance. It's a straight shot from the alley below us to the TV station if we take that path.”

“Great. So how do we get down there?” Zell frowned. “I haven't seen a backdoor in here.”

“I guess there isn't one,” Rinoa looked around again as though hoping she would spot one behind a stack of old magazines.

“What's that building there?” Squall asked, pointing. There was a man sitting out behind a place, a door next to him and a drink in his hand.

“I think...that's the pub,” Rinoa said, cocking her head.

“Alright, then that's our next destination,” Squall nodded.

Rinoa grinned. “First a naughty magazine, and now booze? Squall, you degenerate.”

He deliberately ignored her as he turned to walk from the office. He thought that the editor was trying to talk to him now, but he was ignoring him. He didn't feel like listening to someone ramble on pointlessly at the moment.

No sooner than they hit the street that they caught sight of a group of G-Army thugs cornering a local teenager that looked on the verge of crying.

“Bullies,” Rinoa frowned at them.

“Ignore them, we can't do anything.” Squall took her arm and led her away so as to keep her from the temptation of putting her nose in his business. The Galbadian soldiers wouldn't kill the kid, they would just give him a tough time.

Rinoa was inclined to agree and kept pace with him without complaint. Though she seemed irritated by Galbadian soldiers in general.

“Undisciplined thugs, all of them,” she was mumbling. “It's an organization rotten to the core, right up to their head general.”

“No argument here,” Zell nodded. “Though I don't think I have the right to complain. I mean, technically, I'm a hired thug myself. I just happen to work for a different organization.”

“It's not even close to the same thing,” Rinoa grumbled.

“Oh, yeah? How?” Squall asked, his eyebrow going up curiously.

Stumped, Rinoa could provide him with no answer. At least the army was an army. They were fighting for people and country. SeeD's did not. They were hired guns. Really, by any conventional wisdom, they should be worse than a polished, dedicated army.

If the G-Army could be called either of those things.

“It just isn't!” She finally snapped. “Come on, the pub is down these steps.”

Fuming, Rinoa didn't notice the two G-Army thugs standing at the base of the stairs until she was already halfway down and it was to late to turn and run away.

“That was too easy, man,” one of them was laughing as he held something in his hand up to the light to get a better look at it. “You know, for a country bumpkin, he sure had some good stuff.”

The second soldier shifted his weight uncomfortably.” Yo, better ease off a little. These Timber hicks hate us enough as it is.”

“Hicks?!” Rinoa yelled, angry. “You take that back!”

Both soldiers turned at the same time and Squall resisted the urge to face palm. Nope, his type was definitely not the sweet, demure kind. He probably had a problem.

“Let's get 'em!” the soldier who had been bragging before said, charging.

Zell, ready for just this moment, jumped up onto the stair rail. He slid down like he was grinding on a T-board and jumped at the last second. His fist landed against the louder bully's shoulder and he brought him down with him.

“Okay, Rinoa, we'll take that second one,” Squall said, pointing to the other guy.

“Wait, what? Me?!” she looked surprised at him calling on her.

“By the authority of the Galbadian government, I order you to stand down!” He yelled, reaching the base of the steps and looking up at them.

“One step at a time,” Squall said calmly. “Pull out your weapon first.”

Behind her, he unsheathed his Revolver and lifted it with some difficulty due to pain. Hearing him let out a soft hiss of air prompted Rinoa once again. He was hurt because of her. She had to step up or risk him getting hurt further.

Trying to control her shaking hands, she reached up and pressed the release on her gauntlet. The Blaster Edge was a streamlined, aerial weapon. It unfolded from it's thin compartment against her arm and formed into a circular blade that was controlled by a combination of magnetism and a boomerang like quality.

It was an easy weapon to use because it required little training. It was slightly difficult to master though. Which Rinoa had not yet done. She had picked it because of it's ease of operation and lack of necessity for upper arm strength from her.

“Put down your weapons and surrender and I promise no harm will come to you!” the soldier down below said, his voice firm. Squall almost believed he was telling the truth.

“G-Army standard issue armor protects the important joints and most vital organs,” Squall was telling her in her ear. “You want to aim for the vulnerable areas. The neck seems obvious because it appears unguarded, but they wear a metal collar under the cloth so don't bother.”

“Where then?” she asked, shaking. She couldn't do this. Why was he making her do this?

“All the armor is focused on the upper body. Try to hit for the knees or ankles. That will take him down without killing him though. You'll need to deliver the finishing blow from up close.”

“Finishing blow?!”

“Put down your weapons! Now!”

“Can you aim with that thing, or not?”

“O-Of course I can,” she mumbled, raising it up. She didn't have any confidence though as she took aim at the soldier.

He saw her moving and started coming up the stairs.

Rinoa cried out. Her eyes shut and she hit the release on her weapon. The blaster edge took off sloppily from her arm. She didn't even aim. But the soldier was so close that it was a moot point. The edge hit him in the head and knocked him sideways into the rail.

Rinoa reached up and caught her blade on the return. A flash of silver out of the corner of her eye had her turning as Squall lifted his gun and took aim. He let off a quick shot that was strangely cold as it rushed from the barrel. The soldier was close enough now that it actually did some damage. To both men. Squall grunted in pain from the recoil.

The soldier fell backwards, down the stairs and landed in a heap, unmoving. Zell had already finished his opponent and had been standing back, watching Squall's impromptu lesson without comment. He came forward now to pull the G-Soldier's body out of the way.

Rinoa let out a long breath as she quickly stowed her weapon away again. Squall was stepping back from her, sheathing his gunblade with a flinch.

“Not bad,” Squall praised. She couldn't tell if that flat voice was serious or sarcastic. “Next time, try keeping your eyes open.”

“How could you do that to me?!” She demanded, turning. She was freaking out. “I can't do something like that! I was panicking so bad I thought I might pass out!”

“What are you talking about? You did it, didn't you?”

Rinoa opened her mouth to tell him that she did not, but she stopped. While Squall had delivered the finishing blow, she was the one who took the soldier down. She did do it, even if it was messy and unprofessional.

Messy, but effective. And SeeDs appreciated function far more than form.

“Look what I found,” Zell said, holding up something he had picked up from the downed guard.

“What is it?” Squall reached out and took hold of it.

“It's a triad card!” Rinoa beamed. “Kind of weak though.”

Squall shrugged and slipped it into his pocket. “I have plenty, but you never know when you're going to lose a hand.”

“You play, Squall?” Rinoa smiled.

“No way, seriously?” Zell laughed. “I thought you didn't know how to have fun.”

“Triple Triad is a strategy game that's easily portable and quickly rebuilt in case you find your stuff destroyed. Most SeeDs play and I enjoy it myself.”

“Okay,” Rinoa held up her hands, stopping him. “I believe you. We should play sometime. I'm not that good, but it could be fun.”

Squall nodded once, figuring it couldn't hurt.

“Shall we go then?” Zell asked, pointing over his shoulder to the waiting pub. She looked back and finally realized that he had been hanging back, watching over her. She was surrounded by two SeeDs, what did she have to fear from a single soldier?

Strange how that wasn't on her mind at the moment of the fight. She sighed and continued down towards the closed doors of the pub.

The Timber pub was a place that was going for upscale, retro hip. The owner had traveled here from Balamb to build his business and so wasn't as entrenched in the old styles of Timber. The circular bar was made of glass and metal, there was a woman transitioning between a panther and back on a screen against the wall, and the establishment smelled of exotic flowers.

And alcohol.

As soon as they stepped in, they were being treated to the continued tirade of a drunk man leaning against the far wall. No, leaning against the back exit. Seated before it with a drink in his hand, his face strangely wet looking, and his eyelids being held open at different spots on his eyes.

“I've had enough of this city!” He was saying loudly. Slurring loudly. “I come from Dollet to have me a good time, and now, *hic* trains ain't running no more. Can't even stay in the hotel because of some stupid official! Harassed by Galbadian soldiers. Had my precious card stolen...”

He hiccuped again as his head dropped down to his chest in lamentation. “This just hasn't been my day. Those jerks. They think they can use brute force to get anything they want. Hell, this town's a good example!”

“It's sad when men get old,” Rinoa made a face.

“Please don't put me in the same category as him,” Squall returned calmly.

“It's sad when certain men get old.”

“Better.”

She grinned at him as the drunk continued grumbled too loudly as they started across the pub.

“Yeah...Everything's jacked up because the resistance tried to kidnap the president. It's thanks to them, the trains have stopped. There's Galbadian jerks all over the place. All because of them! Don't they understand I'm the one suffering from their reckless actions?!”

Rinoa stiffened at Squall's side at the drunk's selfish comment.

“Stupid, boneheaded, good-for-nothing, resistance! They can all just kiss my-”

“Hey!” Rinoa stepped forward angrily at the same time that one of the bar patrons jumped to his feet with just as much anger.

It was him that continued. “You don't understand anything! The resistance is fighting for Timber's future! They're all doing the best they can. It's the Galbadian soldiers and their leader who's at fault!”

“Pssh!” the drunk slapped his hand down as though to push the comment away.

Squall ignored the man and walked over to the bar owner who was eyeing the drunk like he dearly wished to throw him out.

“Hey,” Squall greeted shortly.

He knew that the owner hadn't noticed him before because he jumped slightly. Then to a greater degree when he saw Squall. “Uh, yes?”

“Can we use your backdoor?” Squall was being polite. Why was he staring like that?

“Oh, well, I wouldn't mind letting you, but...” He trailed off, gesturing to the drunk. “He's refusing to move and throws a fit if anyone touches him.”

“Can't you call law enforcement?”

The owner laughed. “You're not from around here, huh? Galbadia is the law enforcement around here. And I doubt highly that they would make this situation any better.”

“Fine, I'll deal with it myself.”

The bar owner frowned at him now. “Uh, hey, the inspection people get mad when there's blood spilled in the bar. And it looks really bad when people are killed in it, too.”

“I'm not going to kill him.” Though it was tempting.

Squall stepped over to the drunk and stopped before him. The drunk had a hard time focusing his eyes on Squall's boots. His gaze moved up slowly, taking him in with a flinch.

“Damn, you ugly. What's that on your face?”

“We need to get through.” Squall's voice was firm and uncaring.

The man threw out his hands, dropping his bottle in the process. “Geez, and now I'm getting dissed by some punk? This day just keeps getting better and better. Yo, owner! Gimme another drink!”

The owner made no move to do so and Squall didn't blame him. The man was already severely over served. He didn't need more alcohol.

He observed him for a long second. Then, without looking away, he reached into his pocket.

“Hey. Is this your card?”

“Huh?” The drunk looked up again and had some trouble focusing now on the card. “Wha-Hey! Yeah, it is! Why do you have it?”

“...Found it outside.”

Rinoa snickered into her hand just behind him but the drunk didn't appear to notice.

“You serious?” The drunk started laughing, his face getting red. “Okay then. Thanks. Know what? I'm feelin' pretty generous now. So you can keep that card. And also...this one!”

From inside his pocket, he pulled/threw another card. It slipped through his drunk fingers and slid to a halt at Squall's feet. Zell reached down to retrieve it as the drunk continued laughing.

“That turned around quickly,” Rinoa laughed. “Can I have that card?”

“Take them both,” Squall said carelessly, passing it to her without looking.

“Oh, hey yeah, let me move for you, too.” The drunk attempted to stand. Slipped and fell right on his face. He started laughing again. “Hey, owner! I can't stand up. Can ya help me?”

The owner, probably more than used to his share of sweaty, nasty drunks, rolled up his sleeves and stepped forward. Working together – the drunk probably hindering more than helping – they managed to slide him out of the way of the door.

Squall was already leaving the pub as the drunk continued laughing maniacally.

“That went well,” Rinoa said, stepping out after him.

“Yeah, my experience with drunks isn't usually that good,” Zell laughed. “I'm just glad we didn't have to fight him. That would have been awkward.”

Squall looked up at a window that opened as he passed under it. A pair of kids were leaning out, loudly declaring their guilt in attacking the president. He wondered if they were repeating something their parents had said or thought that it was funny.

The back alleys of Timber were completely clear of Galbadian soldiers. There was no one to stop them or even see them as they passed through. Which Squall saw as a serious breech in security. This pathway was just begging to be used for illegal activity if no one watched it.

“I think it should be...this way,” Rinoa said, pointing at a black gate that was hanging halfway off of its hinges. She opened it and let the boys through.

“Whoa, look at that! An outdoor TV. And it's huge!” Zell said, pointing up at a catwalk above a long stairway.

“That's the way to the TV station,” Rinoa said, grabbing the bottom rail. “Let's go.”

“Do you think you can tell us the plan now?” Squall asked, one step behind her.

“Oh, sure. So, this leads us right to the back. We're going to use that and sneak inside before the president and his security gets there. Then we hide out until they do. We'll have the element of surprise to launch an all out attack against the president's guards! Then we'll have the president in hand, the cameras rolling, and Timber's independence on the waves.”

Wait. That was it?

Squall and Zell shared a look as they continued climbing. Neither said anything though.

As they reached the catwalk, Rinoa frowned at the large TV. There was some strange static coming through on the screen. It was hissing, rolling along almost hypnotically. Big words rolling through red static repeating the same thing over and over again.

IWILLNEVERLETYOUFORGETABOUTME

IAMALIVEHEREBRINGMEBACKTHERE

IWILLNEVERLETYOUFORGETABOUTME

IAMALIVEHEREBRINGMEBACKTHERE

IWILLNEVERLETYOUFORGETABOUTME

IAMALIVEHEREBRINGMEBACKTHERE

“This is creepy,” she frowned, rubbing her arms. “What is it?”

“This is the noise that's being broadcast over the frequencies,” Squall explained. “It appeared suddenly one day and is the reason radio waves don't work any longer. Something has to be done about it before they can broadcast anything over the air.”

“Oh, really?” Zell frowned. “I always wondered why the waves stopped working.”

“Sir!”

The three of them turned back to see Watts running at them, stopping halfway up the stairs. “The president's entered the studio! There's too many guards now, so we won't be able to storm the place, sir!”

“Seriously?” Rinoa sighed, blowing a strand of hair from her face. “Alright, fine. Watts, go find out more.”

He nodded and ran off as Rinoa crossed her arms thoughtfully.

“So we can't rush in, I guess. We've gotta come up with a new plan now. Oh, hey. If the president leaves, maybe the guards will be gone too? That's when we do our broadcast! It might not be as influential, but it's better than nothing. We don't stand a chance taking them head on, right?”

Squall shrugged carelessly, still looking up at the screen, trying to read the static. “Don't worry about us. We'll fight your enemies based on your decision. That's our duty.”

Rinoa frowned at him and looked to Zell. He didn't appear bothered by Squall's statement. He was grinning happily.

“You tell us to go, we go,” he said, moving his hands in demonstration. Then he shrugged, laughing slightly. “Even if it is a losing battle.”

Rinoa's face fell as she looked at the two of them. Squall's hand, his ribs. Zell didn't appear to care, Squall barely looked like he was paying attention. She had heard, of course, that SeeDs were obedient and would do whatever was ordered. She didn't think she realized until this very second just how deep that obedience ran.

They didn't even appear as real people to her in that moment. Not even robots. They were puppets on strings that were passed from garden to client. They didn't get to dance on their own. They didn't even get to fight a decision that could end their own lives. And neither of them even appeared even slightly bothered by that fact.

“How sad...” she whispered, catching their attention. “Act on my decision? That's your duty? Oh, what an easy life it must be, just to follow orders...”

Squall shrugged, completely unaffected by her tone or gaze. “Call it what you want. All we desire is for you to achieve your goal using our help.” He scoffed slightly. “I find it hard to believe that you can do it, though.”

Rinoa's face burned red as her temper flared. That condescending look. Oh how she hated more than anything that condescending look.

“W-What did you say?! If you have something you want to get off your chest, then say it!”

He rather wished he hadn't spoken. He was pretty sure he would lose points for that comment if this were an exam. “Nevermind.”

“No, you started it!” She stomped her foot again, her hair seeming to flare with her anger. “The least you can do is finish it. Come on, what's on your mind?”

“...Just forget it.” Cool and collected. She was beginning to seriously despise that expression.

“Tell me,” she said, her voice low and dangerous. “This is an order. An order from your client.”

Like it was a magic spell, an obvious order made him move. He turned to her and his cool eyes were suddenly no longer as pretty as they had been only a few minutes ago. It was an entirely different thing to feel the cold of their gaze on her instead of seeing it placed on another.

“How serious are you? Really?” He asked like she had been cracking jokes all day. In his mind, she practically was. “The three of you plop down on the floor to discuss strategy and come up with 'just run in'? On top of that, you can't make a decision without our input, can you? How do you think we feel, working for such an organization? We're the top tier, highest trained warriors in the world and we've been given to a resistance that thinks 'storm the place' is a viable strategy for three people against a platoon of soldiers. Even with the element of surprise.”

“Hey,” Zell's hand was suddenly at his shoulder. “You're being too hard, man.”

Damn. Rinoa's eyes were swimming and he couldn't tell if it was anger or sadness. Either way, he was pretty sure he had just put his foot in it. He wasn't wrong, but he probably could have been more diplomatic in telling her. It was things like this that kept him from leadership programs. He just didn't know how to not use his overly sharp tongue.

“...Sorry,” he said, his distant voice making it sound insincere. “Guess I got a little carried away.”

Rinoa was shaking her head. She reached up and angrily wiped the tears from her face. “You know, maybe this was all a big mistake. I thought everything would work out fine once SeeD came to help us. But I guess it's not that easy.”

It rarely was.

“You were all hired. It's not like you're one of us.”

Did she just realize that?

“Um,” she shook her head. “We'll cancel the plan, and we'll disperse for now. We don't stand a chance if we take 'em head on. So...”

She paused and her eyes glared up at him. “You guys probably think this is all a game to us. Well, it's not! We're serious! So serious...it hurts.”

Just like that, she turned on her heel and sprinted down the stairs and away. Squall watched her go with calm eyes. It was better this way, he told himself. Better that he push her away before he really got attached. It would make it that much harder when she left.

As she was going down, she passed Selphie who was carrying a small vial of gently glowing water. She turned and watched her run before taking the stairs up two at a time.

“What happened?” She asked, looking back to where Rinoa was running down the alley. She moved pretty fast, Squall noted.

“Just a reality check,” he replied calmly, unsure of who he was referring to. “What's that?”

“Huh? Oh, this? It's called the Owl's Tear. It was at some old guys house. I got this and a couple hundred gil that I found stashed away. That's another story though. The old man said I had to bring this to you quickly because it doesn't last longer than an hour once it's been bottled away from its source spring. Here.”

Squall reached out and took the smile vial curiously. Shrugging, he pulled out the stopper and downed the entire thing in a single gulp. It tasted cool and refreshing.

He lowered it as he waited patiently. He could feel it falling down into his stomach. Then he could feel the magic in the substance start reaching out. Shiva grabbed onto it, guiding it through his body to the most grievously injured parts of him.

Squall flinched once at it hit him. Then he straightened and rotated his chest as suddenly breathing wasn't painful anymore.

“Wow,” he said, looking at the vial. “That's impressive.”

“I know, right?” Selphie laughed. “I think the water must be originating in the same place as a cura well of magic, maybe even curaga. They must be fusing together as they make their way to the surface. It's pretty cool. Too bad it doesn't last. Someone could get rich bottling it.”

Squall nodded as he felt even the memory of pain from his broken ribs fade. As he was stretching his sore] muscles, the fuzz on the giant TV monitor began increasing.

“Huh? They starting?” Zell asked as the standard frequency started shifting.

Squall and Selphie looked up as the screen winked a few times. Then the fuzz was gone and, for the first time in almost twenty years, there was a broadcast over the air.

A couple of technicians were the first thing on screen. Squall could barely hear them saying something about checks, tests, and quality. As they realized the video feed was streaming they quickly ducked and ran out of sight revealing a podium and the Galbadian national emblem.

A blonde man walked onto the screen. His blue pinstripe suit didn't work well with his rather rotund figure. Then again, neither did his bright blonde hair and boyish blue eyes. He looked like he had a baby head strapped onto a man's body.

“T-Testing 1...2...Testing...Testing,” he said, tapping his fingers against the microphones. His voice was initially as fuzzy as the original screen, but it cleared up. He looked surprised suddenly. “Oh! P-People of the world! Can you see me? Can you hear me?! Oh, this is incredible! Ladies and gentlemen, this is not a recording! This is an actual broadcast over the air! Yes, it's been 17 years since a live broadcast has been possible.”

Someone clearly said something to him from off screen because he jumped and looked to the side. He then cleared his throat and got himself back under control.

“Please, excuse me. I seem to have lost my composure.”

Then the music kicked in. Squall's eyebrow raised at the pomp of it all.

“We would like to present to you today a message from the lifelong President of Galbadia, Vinzer Deling. Ladies and Gentlemen, President Deling.”

“Who's this guy supposed to be?” Zell frowned, leaning back against the rails.

They watched as the aid walked off of the podium and President Deling walked on. It was kind of odd seeing him now on a screen after having watched his face melt just yesterday into a monster that slobbered blue mucous.

“Greetings,” he said calmly, regally into the camera. “I am Vinzer Deling, lifelong president of Galbadia. Today, I stand before you to make the following proposition. We the people of the world have the power to end all wars.”

“See, see!” Selphie pointed eagerly at the screen. “It's a peace proposal to the world. I knew it!”

Squall made a noncommittal sound in the back of his throat. Though it was a completely neutral sound, it was filled with doubt.

“Unfortunately, there are some trifling problems standing between Galbadia and the other nations, and they must be resolved. I plan to convene with the other nations' leaders immediately to resolve these problems. At this time, allow me introduce the ambassador who will be my representative for this conference.”

Zell let out a long sigh, his head falling back. “Man! All this just to introduce an ambassador?”

“This ambassador is the sorceress-”

“Sorceress?” Squall repeated, his eyes narrowing in surprise as the two with him suddenly looked quite seriously towards the screen.

A sorceress? A real sorceress? Had he actually found one?

They didn't get to find out.

President Deling's eyes suddenly looked over past the camera. A strange look appeared on his face a moment before a body fell in front of the scren. The camera was quickly toppled over onto its side as cries of fear and pain echoed out through the microphones.

The flashy silver trench coat with the large, pointed cross on the back identified Seifer even though he didn't face the camera directly.

“Hey!” Selphie pointed.

“Seifer!?” Zell looked gobsmacked.

“What's he doin'?!” Selphie asked Squall like he could possibly know.

At that moment, a pair of brown boots stepped into the shot. They slowly revealed the salmon colored skirt and top then golden hair of Quistis as she carefully stepped in closer towards Seifer. She was saying something to try to calm Seifer, but they couldn't hear her.

Nor, apparently, could Seifer. He was already grabbing for the middle aged president. A president that could not fight on his own. He was captured easily and Seifer had his Hyperion at his neck.

“Instructor Trepe?” Zell said, his mouth falling open.

The boots of Galbadian soldiers came forward and Quistis turned quickly. “Stay back!”

“Squall, what are we going to do?” Zell asked him, looking between his leader and the screen.

“For the last time, stay back!” Quistis continued to yell. “You're only going to provoke him.”

“Nothing,” Squall said calmly. “Our job is to assist the Owls. It's none of our business.”

As though she had just noticed it was there, Quistis caught sight of the toppled camera and her eyes widened. She stepped towards it quickly.

“Timber team, are you watching? Get over here right now! You have permission! I need your help!”

“Squall?!” Zell looked to him.

“Captain!” Selphie jumped to attention.

Permission was all he needed. Squall turned and led his team up to the path towards the back entrance of the TV studio.

***

Quistis was trying to keep herself calm as she watched Seifer hold his blade to President Deling's exposed neck. She was not inexperienced with death. Yet, somehow, this seemed wrong. There was no order here. No contract. This wasn't a job. It was plain murder.

Though she hadn't wanted to do it, Quistis had no choice but to chase him all the way out here. She needed to get him under control. With Seifer, it was like trying to calm a typhoon made of fire. She could sooner control a rampaging chocobo.

Hurried footsteps told her that – finally! – Squall and the others had arrived. She had been scarred for a moment that they wouldn't have seen the broadcast. She was only managing to keep the G-soldiers out of here because she insisted their presence would only make things worse and end up with the president dead and a war on their hands.

“We need to restrain him!” She said as she heard Squall's boots slow to a walk. She didn't look away from Seifer, as though scared he might act if she did.

Selphie and Zell hung back slightly, but Squall came forward confidently. Somehow, it was surreal to see his long time training partner holding a world leader hostage.

“What do you think you're doing?” He asked incredulously, shaking his head at him.

“It's obvious, ain't it?!” Seifer grinned at him, his eyes wild. That hungry look Squall hadn't wanted to see during the battle at Dollet was back again. He couldn't ignore it this time.

Seifer gestured with his head towards the surprisingly calm Deling.

“What are you planning to do with this guy?” He demanded to know.

“Planning to do?” Squall frowned. For a moment, he didn't understand. The only reason Squall wanted President Deling at all was because Rinoa-  
Oh, that's right. Seifer knew Rinoa. Was that why he was here?

“Oh, I get it!” Zell said, realization coming over his face. “You're Rinoa's-”

“Shut your damn mouth, chicken-wuss!” Seifer snapped cutting him off. Selphie nudged Zell, telling him without words to hold his peace.

Quistis turned to Squall, her face drawn with fatigue from chasing Seifer across the ocean. “He broke out of the disciplinary room yesterday, injuring many in the process. Not to mention the structural damage.”

“You...” Zell growled at him, his fists shaking. “Stupid idiot!”

Zell, please, for once in your life...

“Be quiet,” Squall ordered him gently but firmly.

Zell wasn't hearing it. He was grinning at Quistis already. “Instructor, I know! You're going to take this stupid idiot back to garden, right?!”

“Shut up! NO!” Squall roared, trying to cut him off.

It was too late. The damage was done.

The formerly impassive Deling suddenly grinned. “Ah, I see. You're all from garden. Balamb garden, I'd be willing to wager.”

All four SeeDs and Seifer froze in place.

Deling tilted his head as though amused. “Should anything happen to me, the entire Galbadian military will undoubtedly crush Balamb garden.” He laughed slightly. “You can let go of me now.”

Seifer was snarling, glaring at Zell with glowing hatred. “Nice going, chicken-wuss. You and your stupid big mouth!”

A look of horror came over Zell's face as he realized what he had done. Too late now to take the words back. Too late to reverse what was done.

Seifer, however, didn't appear the least concerned for his garden. He started stepping back, his Hyperion forcing Deling to step with him.

“I'll leave you to take care of this mess. Instructor and Mr. Leader!”

They waited until he had stepped from the room before giving chase. They couldn't very well let him kill the president. They were mercenaries, yes, and killing was part of the job. However, this was not a job. This was a crime, pure and simple. Balamb would offer no protection to Seifer if he did something to the president now.

The backstage room held little more than a curtain and an old sound stage for a show that had ages been off the air. Equipment was now strewn around. The dust covering everything had been hastily removed in preparation for the president's arrival, yet everything seemed to retain that untouched, undisturbed quality.

The strange mist coating the room as Seifer backed into it was the only new thing.

He turned his head around quickly.

What was he even doing here? How was this a good idea? How had he had any other choice? They had given this assignment to Squall of all people! How could he have stood idly by while Squall came here and proved himself better than Seifer. It was just not allowed.

Seifer was better than Squall! He was more experienced! He was the better fighter. The scar on Squall's face was testament to that!

What was he doing here?

The mist wrapped around him. A sweet, familiar perfume tinted the air tickling the very edges of his memory as fear started to rise up in him.

The gentle click of heels on wood had him turning so quickly he almost accidentally slit President Deling's neck.

The woman that stepped around from behind the curtain shouldn't have been there. She regarded him with calm, distant eyes as she moved through the fog. He could barely see her face, but his nerves were suddenly humming with recognition of her power.

“Poor, poor boy,” she said. Her voice was low, slow, hypnotic. The long black gown she wore trailed on the ground as she came in closer. A slight tinkling came from the ornamentation on her head. Her eyes seemed to glow bright gold.

“Stay away from me!” Seifer yelled at her, taking a step back. He had the president between them like a human shield. She paid him no mind.

“Such a confused little boy.” She sounded so distant, like she was reading from a page. “Are you going to step forward? Retreat? You have to to decide.”

“Stay back!”

The woman didn't listen, she kept coming in closer.

Quick footsteps from the hall signaled that another was coming. For a brief moment, Seifer felt a flash of relief that he wouldn't be alone.

The woman didn't appear the least effected. She raised her arm and a burst of magic behind Seifer stopped the steps dead. He looked back quickly to see that Instructor Trepe had reached them first. She was staring down at the floor with dead eyes, dropped onto her knee.

“The boy in you is telling you to come.”

His eyes flashed back to the woman. She was no closer to him, but she was clearer. Was the fog lifting or was that just her?

“The adult in you is telling you to back off.” Her hand moved up over her face, touching herself gently as she regarded him with emotionless eyes. “You can't make up your mind. You don't know the right answer. You want help, don't you? You want to be saved from this predicament.”

“Shut up!” His voice broke. It was like she was seeing into his mind. It only made it worse.

“Don't be ashamed to ask for help. After all, you're only a little boy.”

“I'm not! Stop calling me a boy!” Seifer yelled, shaking his head.

She looked curious. “You don't want to be a boy anymore?”

“I am not a BOY!”

She smiled at him gently. A smile that didn't reach her eyes. And he could suddenly feel her right there in his mind. In his heart. In his very soul. Reaching out to him. Offering him the reality of every dream he had ever desired.

His hands numb, Seifer released Deling without even looking. The president took that moment and sprinted away, throwing the woman a look as he did so.

“Come with me,” she said, beckoning Seifer forward. “Come with me to a place of no return. Bid farewell to your childhood.”

She pointed to the door where Squall, Zell, and Selphie were running at him.

Seifer grinned at Squall and lifted his Hyperion to wave him goodbye. The woman, the sorceress, lifted her hand again at Squall and released another spell.

The three SeeDs dropped down beside Quistis, their eyes losing focus.

Seifer turned from them without looking back. The sorceress stepped aside and pointed to where he needed to walk. To fulfill his dreams. She would give him dreams. The sweetest dreams. She would give him everything he could ever want.

“And in return,” she whispered to him as they crossed through portal in space together.

“You shall be my slave.”

***

To Squall and the others, it was like no more than single blink had passed. Seifer was there, then suddenly he wasn't anymore. Quistis looked around, running forward but he was gone. The president was gone. The building felt empty around them again.

“What was that?” Zell asked, looking around.

Quistis looked back to the three of them as another pair of footsteps echoed from the side hall. They turned to see Rinoa running in from offstage.

“Hey, guys,” she waved absentmindedly. She was already looking around. “Where's Seifer?”

She had come all the way out here to see him, Squall thought. He looked to Quistis but she shrugged at the question. She didn't remember anything that happened either.

Squall turned back to Rinoa and said calmly, “We don't know.”

Rinoa's eyes downcast as she lost herself to her thoughts. “He'll...be okay. Right?”

Squall didn't say anything but she wasn't looking for an answer. She turned on her heel and stared walking from the studio. Because he was still technically in her employ, Squall followed after her. And because she had nothing else to do, Quistis followed after him.

Rinoa left the TV station through the back entrance. She moved quickly across the city catwalk down towards the back alley. She remained lost in her own thoughts. It wasn't until she was going back down the stairs that she finally turned to look up at Squall.

“They found our base,” she said, her eyes sad. “It's completely destroyed.”

Selphie gasped, leaning over the rail to look down at her. “Is everyone alright?”

The sadness lifted slightly as Rinoa giggled. “They're fine. They're good at escaping.”

Her eyes moved over to Squall and the mirth and sadness both lifted as a veil came over her eyes. The look lasted only a second, but it spoke volumes about how she still remembered too vividly his earlier words said in anger.

Squall returned the look with one of his own. Distant. Withdrawn. Unaffected. A look perfected after many years. Because he didn't care if she drew back now. In fact, he preferred that she leave on his terms.

Rinoa turned and continued down the stairs. Quistis was just a step behind her. As they came into the alleyway, Angelo was laying near the rusted black gate. He lifted his head as Rinoa approached. With the train destroyed, he had to follow her around again.

As Squall and the others came down the stairs, Rinoa sat against a crate. She smiled at Quistis.

“I'm sorry, I didn't introduce myself,” she said, realizing her laps in manners. “My name is Rinoa. I'm with the Forest Owls. I'm Squall's...employer.”

Quistis nodded to her once, smiling gently. “I'm Quistis. I'm Squall's comrade and former instructor.”

“Former instructor? Really? Then, could you tell me something? Is he always so...short? I mean, is he really that mean, or is it me?”

“Oh, no,” Quistis laughed, shaking her hand at her. “It's not you. Squall is just...an unfriendly, introverted sort of guy. He treats everyone that way. I wouldn't be offended by it if I were you.”

“Really? Even if he said some...rather mean stuff?”

“He snapped at you?”

For a second, Rinoa wondered if she had just gotten him in trouble. But then Quistis laughed.

“My. He must really like you.”

“Huh?”

“Squall is very formal and polite with people he doesn't like. If he's snapping and being extra mean, then that must mean he likes you enough to feel comfortable being angry with you. That's a very rare honor.”

Quistis continued laughing as Rinoa blinked at her. She turned her head as Squall reached the bottom of the stairs and started walking towards them. His face was impassive – again. He wasn't looking at her, but when she moved to stand, his eyes snapped to her. Like he was aware of what she was doing. Like he was watching her without staring.

He liked her, so he was mean to her? That didn't seem at all right. If he liked her, he should be wanting to get closer, not pushing her away.

“I don't think we should leave this alley just yet,” she said. “The town is swarming with Galbadian soldiers. It's like someone kicked a wasp hive. The Owls are all getting out until things calm down.”

Squall nodded. That made sense. “You're going to be in even more danger now.”

“Huh? Why me?”

“Because Zell said your name on air.”

The blonde in question flinched and looked down. Hot guilt was so thick in his belly it was making him sick. Squall's tone wasn't at all forgiving either.

Squall continued without looking back at him. “They're going to connect your name with Seifer's and begin hunting for you. You need to get out of Timber more than anyone.”

Rinoa hadn't considered that and she frowned at the implications of it. She really liked Timber. She had made this place her home. She didn't want to leave.

But he wasn't wrong. No doubt the entire Galbadian army had seen that broadcast from the lowest petty soldier to the general himself. She wouldn't be safe here, probably for a long time. She looked up again to see Squall watching her with quiet eyes.

“Is there a safe place you can take me?” She asked. Then, for insurance, she added, “This is an order. An order from your client. Okay?”

He stared at her for a long moment and she felt very much like a specimen in a lab. She thought he might protest. That she might have overstepped her bounds as his employer.

But he just nodded. “Alright. We'll start heading out of Timber first. The longer we remain here, the less likely we'll be able to escape unscathed.”

“Where are we going?”

“We'll figure that out when we're not so exposed and vulnerable. Come on, let's get back to the pub.”

Quistis was smiling with pride as Squall led them naturally. The mantel of leadership, small as it was in this moment, looked good on him. And he wore it well.

There was someone already waiting for them in the pub. A slightly older woman with a stained apron and long, braided hair. She was standing in the entrance, like she was blocking it with her girth. Her eyes sharpened on Rinoa as she came into the bar.

“Rinoa!” she yelled, calling her forward. “I heard your base is in serious trouble. Come over to my place until things settle down.”

“I appreciate it. Thank you,” Rinoa beamed at her.

Squall looked like he might protest as the woman left. He didn't want cover. He wanted to get out of Timber as quickly as possible.

“Squall?” Quistis turned to him. “What are you waiting for? Come on. We don't even know where we're going yet. We can use the reprieve.”

He nodded once, though he wished it weren't true. He following her to the entrance. Rinoa was already running up the stairs, chasing after the woman. She wanted to get off of the streets and away from the Galbadian's as quickly as she could.

The SeeDs kept pace with her easily. Their eyes all scanned for soldiers as they made their way to a house that was set rather close to the pub. Zell was last inside and he shut the door quickly, throwing the lock as they all caught their breaths.

The woman nodded to them. “I'll go keep watch outside and let you know if anything changes. 'Til then, make yourself at home. There's food on the stove and the bathroom is over there.”

“Thanks, chief,” Rinoa waved at her.

“Chief?” Squall repeated once the door had closed behind her.

“Oh, she's the leader of the Forest Fox,” Rinoa laughed. “Almost everyone's a resistance member in this town. But right now, we're the only ones that are really active. Well, we were...”

“Don't worry about it, Rinoa,” Selphie smiled at her, putting her arm over her shoulder. Selphie was so tiny that it was like she was trying to hug a tall tree. “There's setbacks in every war.”

“Been in many, have you?”

“Only the one. But woo-boy, the setbacks.” Rinoa frowned, because she sounded serious.

“I hope that woman doesn't mind if I eat,” Quistis said, making her way to the stove. “I haven't had a chance to since yesterday morning.”

The large pot of stew simmering looked like it was meant to feed far more than one person. The all helped themselves and the hot food felt good after so long of nonstop moving.

All except Zell, that is. He remained standing in the corner, refusing to look or speak to anyone. There was no way he could possibly eat. Not with the guilt eating him alive.

Squall left him alone as everyone else cleaned up and he went around closing the drapes on all the windows. The likelihood of Galbadian soldiers peeking inside instead of just busting down the door was rather low, but he would rather not risk it.

“Ah, that was good,” Rinoa said, leaning back and patting her stomach. “It's been a while since I had a home cooked meal like that.”

“I can't remember ever having a home cooked meal,” Selphie laughed. “But if that's what it's like, then I'm all down to have many more!”

Squall didn't understand the fuss. Food was food. What did it matter how it tasted?

“Squall?” Rinoa looked over to him as he walked across the kitchen. “How are your ribs?”

“Fine,” he said without looking up.

“What happened to Squall's ribs?” Quistis asked Selphie.

Rinoa stood up, frowning at him. “You keep saying that. I don't think you know what 'fine' means. You should really sit down and rest.”

“He broke them,” Selphie giggled.

“Rinoa, I'm fine,” Squall insisted as he turned to face her near the living room sofa. “Stop worrying.”

“He didn't!” Quistis's eyes went wide as Selphie nodded excitedly. “How did he do that?”

“Yeah, yeah. You're a SeeD and you'll happily kill yourself for the cause,” she rolled her eyes. “Well, I'm not. I'm a normal person and us normal people become concerned when other people break bones. Now either sit and rest your broken ribs or I'll command you to rest them.”

“There's nothing to rest.”

Rinoa reached out to smack her hands against Squall's broken ribs. She would let him hiss in pain to prove her point then force him to sit for a while.

Her small hand smacked against a wall of solid muscle under a white cotton shirt. He didn't hiss in pain, he wasn't even jostled by her strike. For a moment, she thought he was holding it in, so she pressed harder against his chest, moving her hand across the afflicted area.

He continued to stare at her as the kitchen fell suddenly silent. Rinoa kept her eyes on his face as she felt around for fractures that she had chanced upon just this morning. When he continued to be completely unaffected, she frowned.

She didn't really think as she grabbed for the hem of his shirt. She just wanted to crack that SeeD-y exterior and see him admit he needed rest. When one broke bones, they rested them.

However, when she jerked his shirt up, her first thought wasn't for his broken ribs.

Oh, Hyne...

Squall was sculpted like a Centran god. His body, so deceptively lean with is clothes on, was just like his arms. Pure muscle tone and tanned skin. There were a few scars peppered against his battle hardened flesh, but it didn't detract at all from the fine lines of his chest.

And, where his ribs were cracked, there wasn't even a hint of bruising.

When Rinoa reached up for the area, she told herself it was just to check for broken ribs. She nearly shivered at the feeling of his rock hard body.

“Satisfied?” Squall asked and Rinoa jumped.

For just a split second, she took that the way wrong way. Because no, not even slightly yet.

Then reality came back to her and she realized he was waiting for her to check his wounds so that she would stop pestering him about them. And also she had just stripped him in the middle of someone else's living room with an audience of three.

Her hands jerked back like his body was a live wire. Boy was it!

Squall settled his shirt back in place, looking at her with calm eyes.

“I've already taken care of it,” he was telling her. “I told you, you don't need to worry about me.”

She sighed. “Kind of hard not to when you go breaking ribs.”

The house continued to be silent for a long moment as Squall and Rinoa stared at each other. And Quistis stared between them, her mouth open slightly.

“Hey, you know what I don't get?” Selphie said suddenly into the tense silence. “What did Seifer even come here for?”

Rinoa started guilty as she turned. She bit her lip as she realized what she was doing. And after Seifer had come all the way out here.

“I think...he came to help us. The Forest Owls, I mean. I talked about it a lot with him. So, please, don't think too badly of him.”

The three of them – except Zell who was too focused on his corner – all gave her hooded looks. And she realized that these three knew Seifer a lot better than she did. Just by virtue of knowing him longer, they knew him better. And that look wasn't encouraging.

“Look, Seifer isn't all bad,” she said. “I know he's got a bit of an attitude, but-”

“A bit?” Selphie snickered.

Rinoa didn't get to follow up on that comment. A sudden, rushed pounding at the door grabbed all of their attention at the same moment.

“Anybody in here?!” an official, angry voice yelled.

“Galbadian,” Squall whispered, grabbing Rinoa's arm and walking her slowly back into the kitchen.

Then, like an angry mother hen, they heard the chief of the Forest Fox.

“What is this?! I have two small children in there! Don't you dare do anything to frighten them!”

A young woman ran down the stairs and gestured for them to come closer. From her face, she appeared to be related to the chief of the Forest Fox.

“Upstairs,” she whispered. “Hurry!”

They followed her order without hesitation, but Rinoa stopped on the stairs forcing Selphie, who was behind her to stop as well. She looked to the door, her face drawn in worry.

“Will she be okay?”

The young woman laughed. “She'll be fine. The legend goes, that my mother took down many soldiers during the war with her strength, cooking, and beauty.”

“That beauty part sure makes it sound like a legend,” Selphie said earning a look before following Rinoa the rest of the way up the stairs.

They took refuge in a small room that had a window looking out into the alley below that they had crossed to get here. There was a cat on the bed. Zell stood by the oven, staring down into the cold coals with an unreadable expression on his face.

The others just left him alone as they spread out. Squall stood closest to the stairs so he could hear what was going on downstairs. If they were about to be rushed by Galbadian soldiers, he would rather know beforehand.

“How did Seifer even get here?” Rinoa asked, looking at Quistis.

She shook her head, frowning. “He was so angry when he found out it was only the three of you dispatched to Timber. 'What?! They might end up fightin' the whole Galbadian army! And all they dispatch are three rookie Seed members?! Dammit! I'm going to Timber!'”

Squall had a brief moment of amusement that her Seifer impression was as bad as her Squall impression. She was shaking her head again.

“I never would have guessed he was serious about it...”

He was always serious. She should know that by now. And the disciplinary room? They put his cult on guard duty for him? That was bound to work out well. Squall was surprised it took him so long to break out in the first place.

Quistis looked over to him. “What do you think is going to happen to him?

Squall shrugged. “He may already be dead."

Rinoa gasped. She stepped forward, her face angry at him again. Slightly hurt. He watched her coming with a raised eyebrow. Why was she trying to fight with him again?  
“How can you be so casual?” She asked, shaking her head. “I feel...sorry for him.”

Squall couldn't help it, he started laughing. She felt sorry for him? Wow, would Seifer hate to hear something like that. It was, Rinoa realized, the first time she had ever seen him actually breaking that calm facade, and to laugh to less. It wasn't a good experience.

“What's so funny?” She demanded to know, stomping her foot. “You're terrible!”

Squall controlled his laughing back into his usual expression. He didn't seem bothered by her accusation.

“Why do you think he may already be dead?” She had to know, she couldn't resist.

It wasn't obvious?

“The president of Galbadia joined forces with a sorceress. Do you know anyone else that can spirit someone away from a room guarded on all sides besides a sorceress? It's not a surprise that Seifer may have been killed for attacking the president. The sorceress would see to it.”

“Even so!” Rinoa shook her head. She didn't want to hear cold logic. She looked at him, an almost hopeful expression on her face. “I still hope he's alive.”

She could think what she wanted, but reality wasn't so kind. Everything doesn't work out the way people hope it will. That's why...

“As long as you don't get your hopes up, you can take anything. You feel less pain,” he instructed her calmly like he had when he had taught her how to junction Diablos.

Rinoa blinked at him in surprise. That was...such a bleak outlook on life. Surely he couldn't really believe something like that?

“Anyway,” he shrugged, “whatever you wish to have is none of my business.”

“...You're mean,” she breathed as though surprised. No matter what Quistis had told her earlier, there was no denying that was what he was. “Meany!”

She turned and ran away to stand as far from him as she could in the little room. Squall watched her go with a strange look on his face.

Meany? He didn't think he had been called a meany since...ever. What was with her? What could she possibly expect from him?

“Sorry,” he said at last, more because he was supposed to than because he was sorry.

He was sorry though that she had lost someone close to her. That was a very difficult sort of pain to bear. He could empathize with that, if nothing else.

***

They stayed the night in the Fox chief's house. It wasn't really a comfortable night. Zell was even more withdrawn than Squall. Quistis was exhausted. Rinoa was angry and sad. Squall was himself. That left only Selphie to be happy and she looked so out of place that she couldn't even try.

The next morning, as the young woman passed out breakfast upstairs, the Fox chief came up and looked around at the group of them.

“The bulk of the Galbadian forces are withdrawing with the president,” she said. “Only the soldiers normally stationed here will stick around and they're going to be so busy seeing the president off for the next few hours that the security will be lax. If you're gonna leave town, now's your best chance.”

“Thank you,” Squall said, nodding to her.

She nodded back to him and returned downstairs.

They all finished their food quickly before starting down after her. No point in delaying.

“Squall,” Quistis stopped him as he moved towards the door. “Any thoughts on where to go?”

They still needed to get out of town...

“Getting out of here is only the first step,” she said as though she could read his mind.

Squall turned to her. She was in instructor mode. She was trying to walk him to a conclusion that she already knew. He rather wished she would just tell him.

“What do you mean?”

“Garden Code, Article 8, Line 7,” she said calmly. Like she expected to him to have memorized the code.

Which he had.

8:7. In the even that returning to the assigned garden is not possible-

“Report to the nearest garden,” he said as though reading it from the article itself.

“Very good,” Quistis nodded, pleased with him. “From here, that would be Galbadia Garden.”

“Is that safe?” Rinoa frowned. “Aren't they, you know, Galbadian?”

“Balamb Garden has contracts with both other gardens,” Quistis assured her. “Both Galbadia and Trabia Garden can act as a sort of safe haven for SeeDs in the field if they need it. We'll be able to work out a method to get back to Balamb from there.”

“Well, in that case, we can take a train from here and get off on East Academy station,” Rinoa said. “It's the closest station to Galbadia garden without first going through Deling City.”

Quists nodded, agreeing with her. “From there, we would have to go through the forest west of the station to get to the garden. I've been through several times. There's a few tough monsters, but nothing we shouldn't be able to handle.”

“Okay then, we'll escape and head to Galbadia Garden,” Squall nodded. “Let's go.”

“You be careful, now,” the Fox chief told them, digging in her pantry. “Here, take some of this stuff with you.”

She gave them food and some medical supplies that Squall stored in his INVENTORY before she would let them leave the house.

“Which way to the train station?” Squall asked Rinoa as he looked around.

“That way,” she pointed.

They started walking. They didn't get more than a few steps before a Galbadian soldier suddenly stepped out from a small space between buildings right in their path. Rinoa took a nervous step back as the SeeDs grabbed for their weapons.

“Bad timing,” Squall said, glaring at him dangerously. He wanted dearly to kill something right now and work off this stress.

“No, wait! It's me, sir! It's me!” The 'soldier' flinched back from Squall's expression.

“Watts?” Rinoa frowned, trying to see his face under his helmet.

“I'm happy to see you're okay, sir,” Watts saluted her. He really made a good G-army soldier. If he wasn't so thin and happy.

“What are you doing?” Rinoa asked, looking him over.

“Getting out of here, sir. Me and Zone are most wanted in Timber right now, along with you. So we're getting out. I've disguised myself to sneak through. It's the only way since the Galbadian army surrounded the city, sir.”

“Mega bummer,” Selphie frowned.

“Not to worry, sir! The trains started running again this morning, sir. Temporarily, at least. If you can make it there, you can make it out.”

“Thanks, Watts,” Rinoa smiled at him. “You be careful, okay.”

He saluted her. “Of course, sir. I'll lead the Galbadians away from your direction. You just escape.”

“See you, Watts,” Rinoa smiled. She refused to believe this was the last time she was going to speak to him, no matter how final this moment felt.

Squall pushed on her shoulder and led her around Watts and away. He wanted to get to the train station as fast as possible and not risk another run in with any more Galbadians.

Watts made a fairly decent Galbadian soldier. He must have stolen the uniform from a legitimate source and he even had the mannerisms down. Squall was honestly impressed. If he weren't so weak and cowardly, he would probably have fit into the spy program at Balamb.

Zone was not nearly the master of disguise that Watts was. His fake mustache was rather obvious even despite the fact that he had put on a gray wig. He hunched over like an old man, but his skin was still clearly young and supple.

“Rinoa, Squall!” He waved at them as they approached the tunnel that would lead down to the second train station. Timber had more than one. Squall really didn't understand their thing with trains.

“Zone!” Rinoa beamed at him.

“You're trying to get out of here by train, right?” He asked, pointing behind him. “There's only one more train leaving today, and there's no more tickets left.”

“Super-duper-mega-bummer!” Selphie cried.

“We'll do whatever it takes to get on that train,” Squall assured him. He had already spent a great deal of time dangling off the side of one. Breaking in would be no problem.

“You won't have to do anything too crazy,” Zone laughed, pulling his hand from his pocket. “Looky here! I already got everyone's ticket earlier. That's three for you SeeD people. Here you go, Squall. One for Rinoa. And the last one is for me...”

He trailed off as he noticed Quistis looking at him with a sweet smile. Not like she was expecting his ticket, more like she was just happy he had given anyone tickets at all.

And damn was she a babe! Tall, leggy, and blonde was just his type. And was that a whip? She looked like all of Zone's fantasies come to life in one woman.

And he was about to make her break into a train. That was no way to earn a lady's affection. Especially not the kind that bore whips and wanted to punish naughty boys-

“Go on, take it,” he said, holding it out to her.

Quistis's eyes got wide in surprise. “I can't take that! It's yours!”

“Oh, ouch!” Zone grabbed for his gut.

Quistis frowned as he pressed it into her hand then ran, clutching his stomach in mock pain.

“Ow, ouch! My stomach hurts. Ouch! Just get going! The train's leaving soon.” He crouched down low in a tiny corner.

Rinoa was smiling at him and Squall was looking at him with a single raised brow. Quistis smiled though as she clutched his ticket – her ticket now – in her hand.

“Thank you.”

“Zone,” Rinoa leaned over him with a smile. “We're gonna see each other again, okay? No matter what, you have to survive. We have to liberate Timber together, remember?”

He looked over his shoulder and smiled at her gently. “I know. I know. I'll go hide in a bathroom or something. Now get going.”

Rinoa touched his shoulder gently as the five of them ran past. He smiled at her back. “Hey, Squall!”

The leader stopped and turned back to him. Rinoa stopped just a few steps after him. The two of them looked back at Zone. And he felt strangely like he was seeing his little sister running off with a guy into the night.

“You better take care of her,” he yelled up to him. “If anything happens to her, I'm kicking your ass. And you can consider that an order and a threat.”

Rinoa was smiling, her face a little red. Squall nodded at him once before turning back to continue running. He took Zone's princess's arm and pulled her along.

Zone sighed, standing up straight. He always had a feeling that Timber just wasn't a place for a girl like Rinoa. However, in the last year, he had really come to care for her. In a way that he didn't care for any other girl. Platonically, and with genuine affection.

Seeing her go really kind of hurt.

“Hey, you!”

Zone jumped and turned to see a group of Galbadian soldiers running at him.

***

“This last train is bound for Dollet, stopping at East Academy Station. This is the last train for today. Now boarding.”

“Let's go, hurry on,” Squall said, pushing his team forward. Zell and Selphie ran in first. Quistis stopped by the train entrance as Rinoa jumped aboard.

“You still remember how to get there?” Quistis asked.

“I remember. Get on the train.”

Squall stepped in ahead of her, not waiting for her to follow.

“This train, bound for Dollet, stopping at East Academy Station, will depart shortly. Please make sure all your luggage is stowed properly.”

The door shut behind Quistis as they stepped into the common area.

“We'll-”

“Open. Open! OPEN!” Selphie yelled at the door like it might listen to her.

“-just wait out here to-”

“Open up!” Selphie shouted again, hitting her fists against the window.

Squall resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Why bother fighting her?

He walked over to the access panel and used her ticket to buy her entrance. Selphie laughed in delight as the door slid open.

“Thanks,” she grinned at him before running through.

“What were you saying Squall?” Rinoa asked as the door shut behind her.

Squall turned back and shrugged. “It was nothing important.”

“Tell me anyway,” she smiled, grabbing her arm. “I want to know.”

Was that an order? It didn't sound like one. Whatever. If she was that curious...

“I was just going to say that we should wait out here. There's no point going inside. It won't take that long to reach East Academy Station. Are you alright with this plan?”

“Escaping to Galbadia Garden? Yeah, why wouldn't I be?”

Squall shook his head. “This is still your mission. I'm still under your command. If you don't want to go to Galbadia Garden, I won't fight you.”

Rinoa smiled. “You want to go to Galbadia Garden. Then onto Balamb Garden, right?”

“You said take you to somewhere safe. There's nowhere safer than Balamb Garden.”

“Then let's follow your plan. Besides, Quistis isn't one of my SeeDs and she needs to get back to Balamb, right? No point in splitting up.”

Quistis smiled at her gratefully as Squall nodded, accepting her answer.

A long sigh followed by a hollow thud had them looking over to see that Zell had dropped his head against the metal body of the train window.

Rinoa stepped up close to Squall, frowning at him. “Is he okay?” she whispered.

“He feels bad for what he said in front of the camera. As he should. He should have known better than to be giving out sensitive information like names on air. Even Seifer knew better than that.”

“Shouldn't you...comfort him or something though?”

“Leave him alone. He'll talk to us when he's done beating himself up. He needs to learn from this lesson, Rinoa. Let him do so. Don't tell him it's okay, because it's not.”

“SeeD is...kind of harsh,” Rinoa frowned.

“It's not an easy life we choose to lead. But that's the point. We chose this. No one is forced into SeeD. Zell decided on this path, he has to learn the rules to walk it.”

“But-”

“Leave it alone, Rinoa. This is SeeD business.”

She recoiled like he had struck her. She took a few steps from him, turning away. Squall watched her go and wished she would stop forgiving him for things he did to push her away. It was making it harder and harder to keep pushing.


	10. The Forest

Rinoa heard that East Academy Station had originally been built as a stop point for a supply train between Dollet and Timber during the Timber War. Back then, it used to have a tent city that was full of Timber Army fighters and rebels.

Nowadays, it was just a solitary train station seemingly in the middle of nowhere. It was obvious the train only stopped at it out of habit. It pulled away so quickly that they almost didn't have time to disembark.

“So where's the forest?” Selphie asked, shielding her eyes from the sun as she looked west. She couldn't see a forest from here. She saw flat, dry grasslands, and long stretches of dry dirt with a background of cliffs quite a distance from the station.

Besides the old wood and metal platform, there was nothing else. Not even a path at the end of the stairs for them to walk on.

“It's a bit of a hike away,” Quistis said earning a groan of unhappiness. “The flatlands are popular for reptilian monsters so we'll need to be careful.”

“Reptiles are weaker against ice,” Squall said as an aside to Rinoa as he loaded his gunblade. “It's the cold blood. But they're also fast and tough.”

“I knew that,” Rinoa smiled.

“You remember how to put blizzard on your weapon?”

“Diablos? Will you put blizzard on my weapon please?” Rinoa asked her new head companion. He was already laughing at her. She frowned. “What?”

“You don't have ice magic. That was a trick question,” Squall said and Rinoa made a face. “You always have to remember what you have and don't have. It can be the difference between life and death.”

She sighed and nodded. “Diablos, can you put bio on my weapon?”

He complied with that happily enough and Squall nodded.

“That's fine for now. So long as we're not fighting anything venomous or poisonous. Then that will actually be more helpful to the monster. You have to also know all the personal monster affinities and weaknesses.”

“How can any one person be expected to know all that?” She asked, throwing up her hands.

“You study, or you die,” he said mercilessly. “Shall we go?”

Rinoa sighed again and nodded.

“Squall, see that break in the cliffs there?” Quistis asked as she stepped down from the platform, pointing off into the distance. “That's where the forest is, in that small canyon. We pass through that on the way to the garden.”

“Alright. Selphie, I want you to take point.”

“Aye, aye, captain!” She saluted him eagerly, jumping off of the platform instead of taking the steps.

“Stop calling me that. Zell...” Squall hesitated in looking at him. Instead, he turned. “Instructor, I want you to take rear guard.”

“Roger,” she nodded once.

“Rinoa, you're with me. Zell...Are you good to fight?”

“Of course I'm good to fight!” Zell snapped. “It's the only thing I'm good for...”

Squall nodded, accepting that without comment for now. “Then let's move out.”

Selphie ran off ahead of them as they all stepped down off of the platform and began the long walk towards the cliffs. It was a good position for her considering her boundless energy and desire not to take the well trodden path. Quistis hung back, almost walking backwards completely as she kept her eye out for anything coming up behind them. Zell walked forward. Squall and Rinoa were just behind him, looking off to the sides.

“Did you used to do this a lot back at Balamb Garden?” She asked, smiling at him.

“Fight monsters? All the time. It's the best way to train for combat.”

“No, I mean lead squads. You were a leader back in Balamb, weren't you?”

He looked surprised by the conclusion. “No, I wasn't. This is the first time I've ever lead anything. I was usually considered too much of a troublemaker to be a leader.”

“A troublemaker?” Rinoa repeated laughing. “You? Now that I can't believe.”

“Believe what you want.”

“Come on. Tell me. How did a by-the-books, stodgy guy like you end up a troublemaker?”

“Stodgy?” He repeated, somehow annoyed by adjective. “I got in trouble for fighting.”

She opened her mouth then hesitated. “You know, that I could believe. Though I can't see you picking fights at random. Not your style. Did you stand up to bullies a lot?”

What was she trying to do here? What was the point of this conversation?

“No. I only ever fought with one person.”

“Who?”

He hesitated just a moment before telling her. “Seifer. I would fight with Seifer.”

“Oh...” she pulled back slightly. “You two didn't get along?”

“I wouldn't say that.”

“So it was playful fighting?”

“I wouldn't say that either.”

She made a face. “Then what?”

Squall shrugged. “Seifer was constantly starting stuff. I didn't let him walk all over me. Our personalities just clashed. I couldn't ignore him.”

“No. I don't imagine that you could,” she smiled.

And what was that supposed to mean?

“Squall! Flock of thrusties coming up on your seven!” Quistis called out.

He stopped walking and turned, his eyes scanning the sky.

“Thrusties?” Rinoa repeated.

“Thrustaevis. Flying monsters. See them there? They must have spotted us from the sky.”

“Yay! We get thrustie for dinner!” Selphie yelled, jumping up and down.

“Ew,” Rinoa said as Quistis made a face. “Selphie, thrustie meat is disgusting.”

“Nu-uh. It's a delicacy in Trabia.”

Rinoa mock gagged as Selphie giggled. Squall ignored them and touched Rinoa's shoulder. He pointed off in the distance to the coming black lines flapping their way closer.

“How many do you see?”

“Um...” Rinoa squinted. “Uh...four?”

“Five. See that one second from the left, flying the lowest? There's one just behind him. You can see the difference when they flap their wings.”

“How can you tell? They all have four wings!”

“You practice. Everyone, spread out. Don't let them congregate. Selphie, please stop climbing the rocks. They'll all attack you at the same time.”

Selphie pouted as she got down off of her newly acquired perch.

Rinoa shook her head as she stepped away from Squall. Not to spread out as ordered, but to get out of the way. She wanted to make sure that Squall had enough room to fight. She wasn't a good fighter, she certainly wasn't SeeD good, she didn't want to slow him down by standing too close. A lesson she had learned the hard way from Seifer.

Squall paused as he was drawing his weapon. “Rinoa, what are you doing? You stay with me.”

“Why? Won't I get in the way?”

“No. Now come here. Let me teach you how to kill these things.”

Rinoa frowned as she hesitated. Squall just continued looking at her. His eyes were unreadable as always and she found herself so confused. Why was he trying to do this? Why obtain her a GF? Why teach her how to fight at all? She wasn't cut out for this.

He wouldn't let her back away. So she returned to his side.

“Quickly, before they get here, what's a flying monster's weakest point?”

“Um...” she cast her mind around quickly. “Its...wings?”

“Very good,” he nodded. “And ordinarily, you would be correct. Thrusties are different. Their skin is like a rock. It's why they have four wings, to compensate for the lift power they lose in weight. For a weapon like mine, where I can put my own strength in the blow, it's not too much of a bother. Your weapon, though, doesn't use physical strength.”

“So I can't fight them?”

“Of course you can. You just have to use its weaknesses. There's a patch of very thin skin at the juncture between the two wings. If you can hit that spot, your blade can cut right through and into its heart.”

“Are you crazy?! I can't hit a target like that!”

“Why not?”

Rinoa stuttered. It seemed so obvious that she couldn't find the exact reason. “Well, it's just...Their wings beat so fast...And that space is tiny!”

“That's a terrible excuse. Now get your blaster ready. Thrusties move quick and they land hard blows. We've spread out, so they will too.”

What was wrong with him? Why wouldn't he believe her when she said she couldn't do it? It was unfair of him to hold her to his own standard!

Despite that though, Rinoa hit the button to unfold her weapon. She was shaking as she kept looking over to him. His calm face and unaffected scowl were hardly reassuring. It almost felt like he was waiting to feed her to the thrusties.

Five thrusties. Enough for them each to have one. The beasts beat their way across the air towards them anticipating a feast. As Squall said, they spread out as they came in on approach so they could all take a meal. Squall and Rinoa had to deal with two.

“Squall, I can't do this...” Rinoa said frantically.

“Not with that attitude, you can't.”

“No, seriously! I can barely aim this thing!”

“Watch me. I'll show you where to hit.”

The big, blue bird came rocketing out of the sky. The spikes on its head were short, but they could gouge out large chucks of flesh. Squall didn't even blink.

He brought up his Revolver and the beast crashed against it. Squall's foot kicked back, then he used it to power himself and knock the thrustie down to the side. It started to roll, already twisting its body to get up and back into the air.

Squall moved so quickly it took Rinoa's breath away. One boot slammed down against the tip of one wing pinning it in place. The other pressed down on its neck to prevent it from squirming. His blade shined in the light of the sun as he lifted it up.

Rinoa flinched as he drove it deep into the crease between the thing's wings. It let out strange cry as Squall pierced its heart. Then its entire body went limp. Squall jumped down off of it and nodded, satisfied. He turned back to Rinoa and he wasn't even out of breath.

“Did you see where I hit it?”

“Uh, maybe...” Rinoa was still panicking though.

Her eyes looked around and she saw that the others were already quickly dispatching their thrustie. It wasn't even a challenge to these people.

Quitis's whip wrapped around hers' neck allowing her to slam it to the ground. She released the whip then brought it up and down again, the metal blade at the end sliced through the monster's neck, spraying blood quickly from its jugular.

Selphie was laughing as she blunted hers' attacks with her wildly swinging nunchaku. Each hit she pushed back only made the monster angrier. Until it reared up for a big headbutt. Selphie jumped up onto the rock she had just abandoned and came down on top of it. Her weapon broke through its skull, she and it fell to the ground.

Zell wasn't in any mood to play. He deflected an incoming blow. Then he reached out and grabbed the thing by the neck. He tackled it to the ground. His hands grabbed onto its face. A loud crack echoed over the flat landscape as he snapped its neck and broke its jaw in one jerking move.

That left only Rinoa's thrustie. And it was hiss/roaring at her in anger. Almost like it was blaming her for its fallen comrades.

“Squall, please, I can't...”

“Calm down. You're not getting anywhere panicking.” Squall's voice remained calm as he re-sheathed his gunblade. She only freaked out more when the shine of metal disappeared. “You have to kill it, Rinoa. I'm not going to do it for you.”

What?! He was going to let the thing eat her?! How heartless could he get?!

Trembling, she lifted her blaster and shot the edge quickly. It flew wide and came back having missed completely. The thrustie hissed strangely. It almost felt like the monster started laughing at her.

It dived bombed and Rinoa screamed as she dropped to her belly. A rock cut into her side as the thrustie soared over her head and up again.

She rolled quickly and scrambled to her feet. It was already turning to make a return trip. Squall, true to his word, was staying out of it. He was watching her with shielded eyes, his arms crossed. Not even the others were coming to rescue her.

In fact, they were all giving her a wide berth. They didn't want to invite the thrustie to attack one of them instead. Rinoa felt like she was being left in a kill box.

She was on the verge of tears when she shot her blaster again. This time, the blade skidded against the beast's wings. Squall, once again, was right. The Pinwheel didn't even scratch the surface.

Rinoa summoned the edge back again. Her heart was racing so fast she could feel her own blood rushing in her ears. She was so scared now that she was completely thoughtless. She was just a second from running and hiding behind Squall to force him to kill it.

As soon as she had that thought, she felt a rush of calming energy from Diablos.

She wasn't alone, he promised her soothingly. He was the great Diablos and she had him on her side, how could she possibly lose? She had to kill the thing or get eaten by it. So she needed to calm down and aim properly.

He would help her.

Rinoa was taking steps backwards as the thrustie climbed to do another dive bomb. Her arm came up and her weapon suddenly felt lighter. Like Diablos had taken all of it'mass for himself. She could aim her own arm easily.

The thrustie reached the top of its arc and started coming down, spinning as it did so. She couldn't hit it now, the wings were closed.

Don't panic though. It has to open them again. Dodge it. Dodge it now!

Rinoa's jump to the side was sloppy, she skidded painfully against the ground, and she felt her skin stinging when she came up. But the thrustie had dived past her. It was turning. Its wings were opening.

Rinoa lifted her arm and pointed it at the bird.  
No way. She couldn't do this...

Don't worry. He would help her. She just needed to aim it properly.

She lifted her arm just a bit more so she was aiming to the side and above. Her eyes watched the beast as its wings beat the air.

Beat. Beat. Beat. Open. Open. Open.

FIRE!

The blaster edge burst from her arm. It zoomed around in a wide arc. Rinoa watched it go as she felt a sudden sense of weightlessness. Diablos was reaching out, taking her weapon. He didn't aim it, he couldn't do that.

But as it came down. He increased the gravity on it. He made it fly faster. Hit harder. The thrustie's wings flapped with a snap and the space between them opened for just a second.

Her Pinwheel was a flash of silver as it sliced through. The thrustie reared up before falling to the ground, limp and unmoving. The edge, buried in its side, winked in the sunlight as she felt approval and pride coming from Diablos.

She...

She did it.

She took it down!

Squall was suddenly there at her side, giving her a very small smile.

And now that it was dead, now that she could think properly again, she realized how stupid she was for thinking that Squall wouldn't have helped her. He wouldn't have watched her die. And all she had to do was order him to kill it and he would have.

He had created an artificial feeling of needing to kill the monster to make her think she had to or die. It was a lie, but she had believed it in her panicking mind.

And that had given her the motivation she needed.

She laughed once, grinning back at him.

“I...I did it.”

“Congratulations,” he said, his voice calm and distant. And yet, she kind of believed he meant it.

“Yay! Rinoa!” A weight slammed into her side as Selphie was grabbing onto her.

Her own silliness hit her harder. Because of course none of them would have watched her die. She had let her fear cloud her judgment so badly. It was almost funny now.

“Good work,” Quistis told her, stepping in close. “A bit sloppy, but effective nonetheless. When you're rolling away, try to control your fall more with your own body. It will prevent unnecessary wounds like those.”

It wasn't until Quistis pointed it out that Rinoa remembered her own pain. Her arms were burning from the abrasions she had received skidding against the ground.

“Have Diablos use a cure spell,” Squall said.

“They're barely scratches.”

“But they're still open wounds. Scratches don't worry me. Infections do. Use a cure spell.”

She nodded and asked Diablos mentally to do so. He obeyed, still praising her skill. A rush of cool energy filled her as the pain lifted away. Her arms were still scratched, but they were healing. And any infection was being burned away in the magic.

“So, can we eat them?” Selphie asked, pointing at the one Rinoa downed.

Rinoa didn't like thrustie meat. It was slimy and tasted like rotting wood. But, just in that moment, she felt like it would be the greatest of victory feasts.

Squall remained, as he always was, the voice of reason.

“Selphie, you may strip them for parts, but we are not eating thrustie meat. The food at garden is better than that stuff. There will be plenty of hunting between here and there and I'm sure we'll find something better. If not, I have plenty of rations that don't taste like sour cardboard.”

“You guys just don't know how to prepare it right.”

“Do you?”

“...Theoretically?”

“Parts only, Selphie.”

After they had gotten as much usable pieces from the thrustie bodies as possible, they began walking again. There was plenty of ground to cover. They all fell back into formation naturally. Even Zell who still looked like he was rather out of it, did his part.

Squall took the time to tell her about learning to summon Diablos's power. Each GF could use her as a channel to summon their own brands of attack without using up spells. It was just a matter of her being able to connect with him.

Rinoa told him that she didn't really understand. So when they came upon another enemy – a short, stocky grendel – Squall demonstrated with his own GF.

Rinoa got to watch as his eyes flashed icy blue before he summoned a long tunnel of impossibly freezing ice. She got to feel Shiva wrap her up in her own protective cocoon before doing so. She didn't get to see Shiva herself, but she bore witness to her power.

And it was incredible.

The ice shattered and the grendel was shredded by the shards.

“How will I know how do to that?” Rinoa breathed in awe.

“Diablos will show you. If you can connect closely enough with him.”

What he didn't tell her was that it would take her a great deal longer with the only slightly familiar Diablos than it did him and Shiva. He also neglected to mention that the next time they came upon a grendel that she was going to be fighting it herself.

At that point, Rinoa was forced to go through the most honest, terrifying trust exercise of her life. The easiest way to connect to her GF was to close her eyes. Close her eyes! In front of a dragon type monster with a metallic tail blade. She had to trust that the SeeDs around her were going to keep the monster away from her.

Which, in theory, was easy enough. The reality of having a growling, crackling dragon monster that had an electrically charged breath that could knock down a grown man made it almost impossible to perform that simple act.

Beyond that, she had to actually focus – ha! – on trying to contact Diablos in her own head. Though they were connected so close he didn't even have a physical body, it was still like trying to pick up wet soap with hands coated in slime.

About a minute into it, she was focusing so hard that the battle around her was fading. She had absolutely no experience with summoning GFs. It was taking her that much longer to figure out how to bring out his power.

Diablos was trying to help. She could feel him reaching out for her. They were trying to touch each other through a barrier of plastic that would bend and warp as they pressed against it, but they couldn't breach it.

Until finally...

...they did.

Rinoa's eyes snapped open as an unfamiliar, heady power rushed through her body. Her eyes were glowing bright red for just a moment as a sudden weightlessness overtook her. It was followed immediately by a plummeting in her stomach like she had lost count of steps on the stairs and her foot was falling through open air.

But it wasn't a scary feeling. It made her feel alive. It made her hair stand up on end in the best way. It was an intoxicating feeling she couldn't get enough of.

She could feel the power building up in her palm, begging for release. She remembered seeing how Squall had directed his palm. She attempted to copy the same movement. She threw her arm out like she was tossing the magic.

The power of planets. Forces that existed without physical forms. The driver of the solar system and what affected all things. The power of darkness and gravity from the being between worlds.

“Dark Messenger,” Rinoa whispered the unknown words with great familiarity.

The world turned dark around her. Only her. No one could see Diablos as he descended from a sphere of darkness. No one could see his sphere of darkness. But Rinoa could feel it.

The weight of it. The warping of space around it. She lifted her arm with Diablos and they grabbed the black sphere of density together.

They pulled back, dragging space. She could see the grendel before her, sniffing at the air as it felt rather than saw the changing of gravity around it.

Like they were throwing a ball, Rinoa/Diablos reared back and, dragging against the cosmic forces, they threw the super dense ball of gravity and darkness.

No one could see it. But they could all see the grendel as it buckled to the ground. Its heavily scaled body increased the power gravity held over it. It was crushed into the ground. Bones broke. Organs flattened. Its own body weight destroyed it.

And the tenderized meat from the dragon was the best meal she'd ever had.

Distances were deceiving crossing the wide, grassy plains. Though it didn't look like the cliffs were that far away, it also seemed like they never got any closer.

At one point, they hit a river and had to backtrack downstream until they could cross an old bridge across it to keep going. That set them back a while.

Darkness fell while they were walking and forced them to make camp. Which, in turn, forced Rinoa to learn how to make a campfire. Cook food over a campfire. And how to sleep by a campfire. Which, as it turned out, was a completely different thing than sleeping indoors on a bed. There were rules that just didn't exist while on a bed.

Shoes had to be placed upside down. She had to be certain distance from the fire. One person had to be on lookout all night for nocturnal monsters. Consequently, she had to make sure that her weapon was always in reach. Squall didn't even remove his from his waist.

It was also that night that Rinoa realized that she had never truly 'roughed it' before. She thought it had been a downgrade to sleep on a rundown train with a resistance faction. She had even prided herself on how well she had adjusted.

She realized now how funny that was. The rundown train where her friends had gone out of the way to bring in a comfortable bed and provide a lovely room was hardly 'roughing it'. Out here, she was sleeping on the hard ground using her own arm as a pillow. There was no blanket so she just got cold exposed to the wind.

The SeeDs had no pity for her. They were sleeping the same way. Now she was no longer wondering how they could sleep in that tiny tech compartment in the Owl's base. Now she was wondering how she was ever going to be able to sleep at all.

When morning came again, she was shivering and sore from hiking and sleeping on the hard, unfamiliar ground. Diablos released a cure spell into her body without her permission but she was grateful for it.

Because SeeD was not a forgiving organization. They were already moving by the time that Rinoa managed to pull her boots back on. They took little pity on her. No one offered to carry her stuff or carry her. They expected her to carry her own weight.

Which she struggled to do, but refused to complain about. She was going to succeed in this. She was going to overcome this weakness.

She didn't realize that she was starting to hold herself to the SeeD standard. Or that it was completely unreasonable to expect her own body to do so. She was surrounded by SeeDs, she had to be able to keep up with them.

Halfway through the day, they took a break to eat and rest. Rinoa nearly collapsed down onto the ground. Her muscles were twitching and tired. She wasn't breathing hard, but she felt like she had been beaten with bags of rocks.

“You doing alright?” Squall asked, sitting next to her, holding out some rations.

She was too tired to grab for it. “I don't think I've ever walked this much in my life.”

“You're doing fine.” Squall broke off a piece and held it over her mouth so all she had to do was let it fall in. Which she did. But she never knew chewing took so much effort...

“You don't know what 'fine' means,” Rinoa grumbled after she had swallowed.

“After about two weeks, you'll be more acclimated to this kind of activity. It won't seem so hard then.”

“In two weeks, I'm going to be tanning on a beach in Balamb wearing a skimpy bikini. I'm not going to be hiking across the landscape.”

Really? Now that was a thought worth fantasizing over. And was burned into his brain. How was Squall supposed to think while imagining a nude Rinoa on a beach?

Groaning with effort, Rinoa sat up and sighed. “How do you do this kind of stuff?”

“Practice. Here, eat.”

She took another bite of the rations because it was there. She wasn't really hungry and it took so much energy just to chew that it almost wasn't worth it. However, Squall kept giving her bites and refusing to move until she ate.

“We should be there soon, Squall,” Selphie yelled down at them from her vantage point on a hill they had stopped in the shade of. “I can finally see trees!”

“I can't,” Rinoa was shaking her head at the next bite of food Squall offered. “I'm so tired...”

“You're not going to be any less tired by not eating. You need to keep your strength up. The only way to do that is with food. You haven't had enough yet. Eat.”

Nearly crying, Rinoa kept eating because he insisted. It wasn't really an enjoyable experience, but the travel rations were more for sustenance than taste.

Then Squall had them walking again. Rinoa was so exhausted. She was just grateful that only a couple more thrusties attacked. Squall still demanded she take down at least one, but it wasn't so hard the second time. It was even easier the third.

When she caught sight of the forest, she almost cried in relief. That meant that Galbadia Garden was just on the other side. They were so close now. To real furniture. Real food. Real showers. The modern comforts she didn't realize were so miraculous until this moment.

“Squall!” Selphie called his name, pointing. “We've got movement in the grass over there. Think it's another grendel?”

“See the shine from it's tail?”

“Um...no, but the grass is kind of high.”

“Alright, Rinoa-”

“Squall, please,” she begged, panting slightly. “I don't think I can do it again. Have pity. I'm only human.”

He gave her a small, half grin. “Very well. You can stay back and let us deal with it.”

Rinoa nearly almost collapsed in relief. Selphie was laughing at her good naturedly. Doing so, she was turned away from the monster moving in the grass. She didn't see it lift its large, boulder shaped head. Or the one behind it. Or the one beside that one.

Three identical, rumbling roars like rocks bashing together. It wasn't the crackling roar of the grendel or the hiss of the thrusties. All four SeeDs froze as they looked over.

Three wendigos, big and strong and blind, raced out of the grass. They ran on their knuckles. The ground dented beneath the power of their strides. They had no eyes, but their hearing was so attuned they could hear a butterfly's wing from ten yards away.

“DINGOS!” Selphie screamed as she dove out of the way.

Zell and Quistis sprinted away. Squall grabbed Rinoa's arm and ran with her.

“Wendigos?” Rinoa repeated, her eyes going wide. She had heard about them, of course, but she had never had the misfortune of crossing one's path.

“Don't stop moving!” Squall ordered before releasing her to let her move on her own. “Do not let one get a hold of you! If it gets you in its hands, you'll be dead before you can scream!”  
With that sort of warning, Rinoa found she had much more energy than she thought. She still stayed close to Squall though. She couldn't bring herself to separate from him.

“How do we fight it?” Rinoa asked, breathing hard as the three wendigos charged.

One of them chased after Quistis. Two charged after her and Squall. Rinoa let out a cry of dismay because they were a lot faster than she was pretty sure she was.

“Zell!” Squall half ordered half yelled.

The fighter was already hot on the tail of one of the wendigos chasing after them. With a cry of effort, he jumped and landed on the thing's back. He grabbed hold of its neck with his arms and its torso with his legs. The wendigo let out a roar of indignation as it thrashed.

But that still left one chasing after Squall and Rinoa.

Squall brought up his hand and threw a blizzard spell over his shoulder.

A spire of ice pierced the ground right in front of the wendigo. It didn't stop in time and barreled directly into it. The ice shattered from its heavy body. It was thrown down and struggled for a second to find its way to its large feet.

Squall stopped then and turned to let off two quick shots from his gun. The bullets almost seemed to bounce off of its overly large head.

He cursed as he and Rinoa turned to keep running away.

A cry of pain from Zell alerted them that something had happened to him. His body flew across the open field and slammed into the ground with a loud grunt of pain. Zell almost didn't get up in time to get away as the wendigo plowed into the ground where he had been standing.

Running in nearly the opposite direction, Quistis's long legs were keeping her just ahead of the wendigo attacking her. Directly behind the monster, struggling to keep up with her longer limbed instructor, Selphie was panting as she tried to catch up.

They were huge. And their skin was like rocks. And they were strong. Too strong. And that strength translated into speed that they almost couldn't escape.

“Squall? Plan?” Rinoa turned to him, her eyes wide.

Squall cursed again as he looked over his shoulder. “Alright. Rinoa, slow it down!”

“But, how?!” Her weapon wouldn't be able to scratch that thing!

“Use your magic!”

He couldn't honestly expect her to-

She had been fighting for all of one day, for Hyne's sake!

Calm down, Diablos whispered in her ear gently. He was the master of time and space. If she wanted things to slow down...

Squall wouldn't give her a task she wasn't capable of accomplishing. She already had the means to do it. He had been the one to give them to her.

Rinoa turned, throwing out her hands. “Diablos, slow!”

She was scared, so her eyes closed. She knew she wasn't supposed to but she couldn't help it. She just didn't want to see the monster that close to her face.

Squall's footsteps halted behind her. “Perfect.”

Only then did she feel safe opening them again. The wendigo was still charging, but he looked like he was a video set on slow motion. Its large feet were pounding into the ground, still digging out divots of dirt as it did so. It still had the same amount of power, it was just going slower.

“Blizzard!” Squall threw his own magic.

A spire erupted up from beneath the beast sending it flying into the air. It was moving slowly, but gravity around it was not. It plummeted to the earth and crashed down with a loud crunch of breaking rock.

Squall was on top of it an in instant. Its hands, moving slowly, were already grabbing for him. Squall was like lightning in comparison to it. He slammed the point of his Revolver down through the beast's heart. It required so much strength that Squall had to throw his entire body into it.

Rinoa was breathing hard as she looked away from him to where Zell looked like he was breaking his knuckles going hand to hand with the one that had thrown him. He wasn't trying to hurt it. He was just trying to prevent its ham fists from getting a hold of him.

“Slow!” Rinoa commanded, pointing to him.

The effect was instant. The wendigo suddenly slowed in the middle of throwing a punch towards Zell's face. Zell didn't question or hesitate.

He ducked under the wendigo's slow motion swing. He grabbed it by the middle and lifted up. The wendigo barely started to struggle when Zell's back fell back and he drove the monster's head into the ground.

Zell released him, turned, and delivered a bone breaking punch to its back.

Squall returned to Rinoa's side and nodded to her, satisfied.

She smiled back, then frowned. “I can't hit the last one. Quistis led it too far away.”

“Selphie!” Squall yelled at her over the distance growing between them. “Bring it back!”

Selphie didn't show any indication that she had heard him. Until her nunchaku spun out and smacked against the wendigo's leg catching it's attention.

It roared, turning and chasing after Selphie now. She was already running, aiming back towards Squall and the others.

Selphie was fast and she had a great deal of stamina. But the wendigo could take longer strides. It was already closing in on her.

Quistis, who had turned with them, whipped out her weapon, wrapping it around its leg. It pulled harder than she could, bringing her down. Quistis was dragged for only a couple of feet before she released the handle of her whip.

Selphie dropped her nunchaku, trying to lighten her load to run faster.

“Selphie!” Rinoa and the others were already sprinting towards her.

Just a little further. They were almost in range of her magic.

“Guys!” Selphie screamed.

The wendigo roared as its hand wrapped around Selphie's tiny torso.

“No!” Squall fired two shots from his gun that bounced off of its head.

“SLOW!” Rinoa screamed desperately.

Selphie's eyes widened on the wendigo as it slowed down. She had time to scream now as it very slowly started trying to crush her.

“Get her out of its hands!” Squall ordered as they all closed in on the beast.

Zell arrived first. He grabbed the thumb and forefinger of the beast and started trying to pry its hand open again. Selphie was kicking and struggling against it, already having a hard time drawing in a breath against its tight grip.

Quistis arrived next and lent her strength to his. Together, it seemed like their pulling was preventing its grasp from tightening further. Selphie was still having trouble breathing though because they couldn't ease it up any.

Then Squall was there, pulling at its thumb. He was scared to try to use his blade for fear of hurting one of the others because it took so much force to penetrate wendigo skin.

His strength added to their though was enough to begin prying apart the vise like grip. Selphie cried out in more pain as they very slowly eased the pressure off of her chest and abdomen.

Rinoa skidded to a halt in front of them. She looked between them and the monster before closing her eyes and reaching deep inside.

Selphie cried again as she finally could wiggle her way to freedom. She dropped down to the ground, wincing and struggling to move. Squall leaned down and gathered her into his arms. He pulled back, hauling her with him as the four SeeDs ran backwards to give the wendigo a wide berth.

“Squall, slow is wearing off!” Quistis warned as they stopped and turned. “Rinoa!”

Squall set Selphie down gently. Despite that, she still winced. He was looking over to where Rinoa was standing dangerously close to the slowly speeding up wendigo.

“Rinoa! Do it now!” He ordered.

Her bright red eyes snapped open at his command. She lifted up her hand and brought down the power of gravity against the wendigo.

“Dark messenger!” She screamed as it was flattened into the ground.

Silence stretched out, long and tense as the Diablos's magic faded. Rinoa's legs gave out from under her and she collapsed down, breathing hard.

It was Selphie's groan of pain that had that broke the spell over them. Quistis and Squall both kneeled down next to her, frowning at the way she was trying to curl in around herself while simultaneously not move a single, aching muscle.

“Selphie, what hurts?” Quistis asked, her hands hesitating over her body.

“I'm out of cure spells,” Selphie said, grimacing.

“I got you,” Zell moved in closer, leaning down. “Ifrit, cure.”

The blue green magic sank into Selphie body and almost immediately she had an easier time pulling in a breath. Her eyes opened, but they were still pained.

“Anything broken?” Squall asked shortly.

“I can't tell...”

“Alright. Zell, you carry her and stay with Rinoa. I'll take point.”

Being careful with her tiny, suddenly fragile appearing body, Zell lifted Selphie onto his back and they began moving again. Selphie's eyes closed like she might be falling asleep. Rinoa kept her eye on her as they walked, worried.

Rinoa, only having had them a short time, still had plenty of cure spells. She offered to split them, but Selphie said it wasn't necessary. So Rinoa also kept her plied with potions to keep any recurring pain at bay.

In taking care of the injured girl, Rinoa sort of just forgot how tired she herself was. It didn't seem all that important anymore.

There was only a single thrustie attack afterwards. Which Squall dealt with expeditiously. They still couldn't reach the canyon by nightfall. Though they were so close it was almost torture. Rinoa could smell the trees on the air, could see them so close and tempting.

But it was dark and they were all tired. Selphie needed to rest and let the cure spells Rinoa had given her do their work.

Rinoa helped set up camp. Squall provided food. Quistis looked after Selphie. Zell was still being silent and distant. No one wanted to bother him.

By the time Rinoa was laying down her head to sleep, she was no longer wondering how it was that SeeDs could seem to sleep anywhere. She was so tired the hard ground was a feather bed. She was asleep before anyone else and almost grateful for her own exhaustion.

***

“I think it was just bone bruises,” Selphie said, stretching carefully. “I feel pretty okay...Yeah.”

“Good,” Squall nodded. “Are you okay to walk?”

“Uh-huh! Can I take point again?”

“I'd rather you hang back. I'll take point. Zell, you've got rear. Instructor, look after Selphie and Rinoa.”

The team didn't question his orders and Squall tried not to think of how easily they were coming to him now. He just wanted to hurry up and get home already.

The small forest was so close now. They were in the shadows of the cliffs. It wasn't even midday by the time that they made it to the treeline. He could hear Rinoa behind him letting out a sigh of relief. He resisted the urge to tell her that reaching the forest wasn't the point. They still had to walk to Galbadia Garden from the end of the forest.

Halfway through, they stopped to drink at a small stream that nourished the trees. There was a well worn path here telling Squall that people still traveled this road frequently. He imagined that Galbadia Garden students must train here sometimes.

“How much further?” Rinoa asked, trying to peer through the trees.

“We're not too far from Galbadia Garden now,” Quistis said, smiling. “It's a lot further from here to the platform than here to the garden.”

“Hey, I was just thinking,” Selphie spoke up, looking between them. “What if we get there and the Galbadian government is already there? What if we get caught and then broadcast to the whole world?! AH!”

“Whatever happens, happens!” Zell snapped at her. He actually snapped. “Now, come on! Let's just keep going!”

They all looked at him as he seemed to deflate. He looked off to the side. “I...I'm worried about Balamb Garden. If anything happens to garden, it's all my fault. I'm the one who said we were all from garden...”

He suddenly looked up, pinning his pained gaze on Squall. “You think the president will retaliate on garden?”

Honestly, he wouldn't be surprised.

“Maybe.”

“Figures...” Zell seemed to deflate again. Then he was up, grabbing at Squall's shoulders, shaking him just a little desperately. “B-B-But, we have a whole bunch of SeeDs at Balamb Garden! They wouldn't lose to the Galbadian army, would they?!”

Squall didn't appeared bothered by Zell's manhandling. “Depends on how strong the army is.”

“I know...but...” Zell released him once more, his shoulders slumping.

“Oh, you're just a great leader, aren't you?” Rinoa asked venomously, glaring at him. “Do you actually have fun acting so callous towards your comrades?”

Not this again. Why was she harping on this?

Rinoa was stomping towards him, her face narrowed in anger. “Zell wants your support! He doesn't need you to cut him down further!”

Yeah, he knew it was going to be that. He hated getting lectured.

“Rinoa, it's fine-” Zell tried to say, but she cut him off.

“Any kind of encouragement! I'm not saying you have to hug the pain away, but at least not stabbing him in the gut would be nice!”

What would be the point in lying to him? The president very well might attack garden, Squall didn't know for sure. And the SeeD army was strong, but they weren't invincible. These were just facts. Why try to ease your mind when you couldn't know anything either way? Surely he wasn't the only one who thought that way?

No. Seifer would think the same. He was sure.

That wasn't exactly a pleasant thought...

“Don't you ever worry about or even think about the well-being of your comrades?!” She stomped her foot again. She did that when she was angry. Even though Squall found it cute, he didn't really care for being lectured.

He also didn't believe in relying on others. Which was exactly what that 'peace of mind' she was lecturing him about was. Relying on the lies of others. How apropos...

“Don't you understand!?” Rinoa shook her head at his blank face.

Whatever...

“Are you even listening, Squall?!”

Why did everyone ask him that?

“UGH!” Squall suddenly grabbed for his head.

That sound. That high pitched, whining sound that split his brain in two. It was back. It was not any easier the second time.

Rinoa gasped and took a few quick steps back as Squall hit his knees. She tried to catch him before he fell into the dirt but she was too slow. She ended up crouched in front of a now unconscious Squall, her eyes wide in terror.

“Uhh...” Quistis made a similar motion towards her head.

“M-me...too...” Selphie groaned, swaying in the non-existent wind.

Quistis dropped back first. Then Selphie curled up into a tiny ball in a soft patch of grass. Rinoa looked between them all, one hand reaching out for the unmoving Squall as her heart raced in fear.

“What's going on?!” She asked, looking back at Zell.

“I think...” Zell frowned, leaning over Selphie. “I think they went back to that dream world...”

“Dream world?” Rinoa repeated.


	11. Laguna Part 2

The rushing of water out of the broken dam in the distance was sort of hypnotic. Very pretty. This place was so far away from anything though that so few people would ever see it. Laguna smiled as he stepped in closer, getting a good look. Smiling he lifted the map to get a better sense of where he even was in relation to that dam.

“Kiros,” Ward spoke up from the back of their three man pack. “You sure this is the place?”

“Positive,” Kiros said quietly but confidently.

“I don't wanna be patrolling the wrong place, like last time.” Ward crossed his arms.

Laguna folded up his map and turned to them. He laughed sheepishly, wanting to get out of here. “Ah, sorry. This ain't the place.”

Kiros rolled his eyes at him. “This is it. Let's go, commander.

Laguna shook his head, tapping at his armor. “I brought the wrong map. This isn't it.”

Ward face palmed as Kiros shook his head.

“I'm the one who navigated,” Kiros told Laguna calmly. “We're in the right spot. I haven't even looked at your map. Don't worry about it.”

“And why are you only just now realizing we're in the wrong spot?” Ward asked, raising an eyebrow at him with a grin. “Do you know how far we are from Galbadia?”

Laguna let out a long breath. He had really hoped that would work. “Somehow, I have a bad feeling about this...”

“Really?” Kiros asked curiously.

“Yeah, a _bad_ feeling...” Laguna shivered. “Seriously, I have a _ba-a-ad_ feeling!”

“So you've mentioned.”

“There's somethin' fishy goin' on here! You know what the old folks say, the unfamiliar always happens...”

“You mean...'unexpected', don't you?” Kiros asked, one eyebrow raised.

“You only got the 'un' part right,” Ward snickered.

“Ah, shut up! Enough with your clamorin' and make sure all your gear's equipped. Now let's move out!...” He paused, blinking. Then, crying out, he grabbed for his skull. “ARGH! My head's buzzing again!”

“Yours, too?” Kiros frowned.

Ward looked between them. “Okay, once is a coincidence. But twice?”

“I'm not thinking about it!” Laguna shook his head, as though trying to dislodge the buzzing.

“Laguna, don't you think we should try to-”

“Not thinking about it!” Laguna repeated cutting Kiros off, running forward.

“Yeah, that'll solve the problem,” Ward said, cocking his eyebrow.

They didn't hesitate to tun after him. Even though, as he was running, Laguna was doing this weird crouch thing that made him run slower and more awkwardly.

Kiros and Ward exchanged a look as the three of them took the dirt path down to the metal catwalk that led into the dam itself.

It was there that Laguna stopped running. He paused in order to look at a conveyor belt that was shoveling what looked like tons of dirt up and out of the way. He tried to lean over the rail to see what they were digging from but the bottom was too far to see.

“Seriously, this place sure is strange,” he frowned. “What the heck are these rocks for? You think these are natural rocks used for carving tombstones?”

“Who know?” Kiros crossed his arms. “Or cares?”

“Hey, speaking of strange,” Ward looked at him, one eyebrow raising, “Why have you been...running around so strange?”

“Strange?” What do you mean strange?” Laguna looked suddenly guilty and uncomfortable. “Just bein' cautious. That's the basic rule of sp-Huh? Hey!”

Laguna tilted his head to see a man in a vibrantly pale purple suit running towards them. The circular blade on his gun gleamed in the half light as he jogged.

“Looks like we've got company,” Laguna grinned, lifting his machine gun. “Esthar soldiers. Still wearin' those flashy, ugly uniforms. Seriously, why do they wear those? You know, if I were in charge, that would be the first thing to go.”

Kiros, ignoring him, turned and jumped. Ward followed his gaze.

“Uh, Laguna?” He started wearily.

“Don't be such a weenie,” Laguna laughed, turning. “It's just one-oh.”

The three Esthar soldiers that came up behind them were already cocking their guns. There were grins on their faces.

“Wasn't our mission just to patrol?” Kiros asked, frowning.

“Why does it have to turn out like this?” Ward sighed.

“Seriously!” Laguna shook his head in disbelief. “I wasn't expecting something like this at all!”

Kiros sighed. Then struck so quickly the soldier who's chest he hit didn't see him coming.

The scratch did nothing. It slid off of his enhanced suit like oil over water. Kiros's eyes widened as the soldier struck back with his blade. Kiros looked surprised at his own speed as he jumped back and out of the way.

Ward pulled his harpoon from his back and slammed it down onto the catwalk. The strength of it dented the metal of the walkway and shook it, throwing the other soldiers off balance.

As they started in on those two, Laguna lifted his gun and let off a volley of shots. His eyes went wide as the bullets just bounced off of those flashy uniforms.

Okay, so maybe they were better for something than just being ugly.

Laguna flinched as the buzzing in his brain got somehow more intense. Then suddenly thoughts that didn't quite feel like his own were in his head.

Circular blade mounted shotgun – one of the earliest iterations of the gunblade. It operated more like a boomerang than a true gunblade. Its weakness was that it could easily be knocked off track. If he could hit it with the butt of his gun, he could attack more directly.

Laguna barely had a moment to decipher his own thoughts before the soldier was aiming and firing. He ducked down to the ground then charged.

The shotgun was single blast and he heard the shot spread behind him, clinking against the metal catwalk where he had been standing. The world blurred around him as he moved so fast he lost track of his own limbs. His finger twitched as he resisted the urge to shoot.

There was no point. They bounced off. He just saw that. He needed to find a weak spot.

The soldier fired again and Laguna dodged it easily. He was closer now. The Estherian soldier swung at him with his blade instead. Laguna lifted his gun and caught it against the metal body. The two of them grappled as he tried to get free and Laguna kept them locked together.

At the other end of the walkway, Ward was trying to pierce through the strange armor of the Esthar soldier directly in front of him. The tip of his harpoon just kept slipping off, like the uniform was completely impenetrable.

“URGH!” He growled loudly in frustration. He swung his harpoon wide and slammed it against the soldier's side.

The soldier flew sideways into the rail from the hit. But it didn't seem to do more than that. He wasn't winded or flinching. Their suits were absorbing the energy from the blows.

“Come on, seriously?” Ward shook his head in disbelief.

Kiros, just a few steps away, was alternating between the two he had been unlucky enough to be left with. His katar were shining brightly as he danced between the soldiers. He was moving so fast he was surprised his own brain was keeping up with his movements.

Blunt force was absorbed. Penetration didn't work. How did they defeat these soldiers?

Let's try magic.

The thought was so insane that Kiros actually wondered how it came from him. He had no ability to cast magic. Only Esthar soldiers could use magic. That was what made them a superpower. Where had the thought even come from?

Even as he was having those doubts, Kiros was moving out of the way. Giving himself room.

He couldn't even figure out what for until he was already lifting his shimmering blades. He felt a strange energy in his palms. One he didn't recognize yet still somehow knew how to use.

“Thunder!”

The bolt of lightning that burst forth from his body took his own breath away. It crashed from him and hit the unsuspecting soldiers square in the chests. They were the only ones capable of using magic. It didn't even occur to the suit maker to build in magic defenses.

The lightning coursed through their bodies, making them twitch and spasm uncontrollably. Right to the edge. Right over and gone without a whisper.

“Water!”

Kiros looked up and over to see a blast of water hit Ward's opponent. It splashed against him. It soaked into his uniform. It caught inside of his helmet, drowning the man.

He looked just past Ward to where Laguna was being thrown away from the soldier he was grappling against. He came up, growling.

“Blizzard!” he roared, firing off his gun.

Bullets bounced off. But spears of ice where the bullets struck erupted into the soldier's body. He cried out in momentary pain before he collapsed.

The three Galbadian soldiers stood there, breathing hard and staring as the heat of battle started to fade away. As the buzzing in their heads softened once more.

“Wha...” Ward looked at his own hands. “What was that?!”

“Um, I'm not crazy, right?” Laguna looked over to them then back to the gleaming ice crystals he had just _shot out of his gun!_ “Did that just happen?”

The three of them shared a long glance. Then, just to test, Ward threw out his hand again.

“Water!”

Nothing.

“Huh?” he looked back at his palms. “That just happened, didn't it? We just cast magic. Didn't we?”

“Oh! I got it!” Laguna beamed. “What if we're all secretly sorceresses!”

Ward's face fell into his hands as Kiros shook his head, rolling his eyes to the ceiling.

“What?”

“Laguna,” Kiros looked at him. “Think about what you just said. First of all, men can't be sorceresses. That's just not possible. Secondly, how could all three of us be able to use magic without knowing it? That's statistically improbable to the point of being virtually impossible.”

“It was just a theory, jeez,” Laguna frowned as Ward looked up and past Kiros.

“There's more coming...”

Kiros turned as well and sighed. “There's no end to this!”

“Let's just make a run for it! Think about this later!” Laguna pointed over his shoulder.

Because the alternative was fighting more Esthar soldiers – and why rely on a magic that they didn't even understand? – they ran further down the catwalk and into the dam.

“Huh?” Laguna smiled at the end of the catwalk. Not because it ended, but because it continued further down. “A ladder. Guys, it's a ladder. Looks like it leads down. Let's go.”

There was really no other place to go. They went down the ladder. The metal walkway far down below led down towards a cave. There was still no where else to go. Laguna started forward.

“What's with all this digging equipment?” Ward asked, looking around everything.

“We shouldn't be in here in the first place,” Kiros sighed. “We were only meant to patrol.”

“Ooou...ch!” Laguna ended his cry of pain with a hiss as he doubled over.

“What's wrong?” Ward frowned.

“My...leg...cramped up!” Laguna whimpered, trying to stroke down the pain.

Kiros stared at him for a few seconds until Laguna let out a long breath and put his foot back down.

“Phew. It's fine now.” He turned to see his friends staring at him. He laughed awkwardly. “I'm so out of shape. I really gotta stretch before I exercise.”

“That last battle we had doesn't really count as exercise,” Ward frowned. It had really been over before it had gotten started. For reasons they didn't have time to decipher.

“What?” Laguna looked distracted. “D'ya say something?”

“You know, Laguna,” Kiros frowned at him, “you've been acting oddly since we got here.”

“What? I have not!” Laguna protested just a bit too loudly.

Ward and Kiros both gave him long looks.

“What?” He shrugged, still trying for innocent.

“Keeping secrets, Laguna?” Wards asked, cocking an eyebrow. “Not cool.”

“It's not me!”

“So you _are_ keeping secrets?” Kiros asked.

Laguna flinched. “No, wait. That's not what I...”

Ward crossed his arms and Kiros stared at him. They may have only been bonded because of the military they were forced into, but they were bound closer than brothers. And it was Laguna himself that had come up with the unwritten 'no secrets' rule between them.

Which he knew very well. He sagged a bit, guilty.

“Okay. It was the general. He ordered me not to tell even you guys.”

“And you listened?” Kiros raised an eyebrow.

“They must have gone down here!”

The three men looked up, frowning at the sound of Esthar soldiers.

“Talk later. Run now!” Ward yelled.

They all sprinted forward without hesitation. Up and around the bend-

-and into a strange crystalline cavern.

“Woh...” Laguna breathed as he slowed down, looking around.

Yellow to green to light blue to darker blue. Yet dazzling. All so dazzling. Every sound echoed with a strange tinkling. It was hard to tell where the light was coming from. It seemed to be diffracting through the crystal. Or rather, coming from the crystal _itself_...

“What are they doing down here?” Kiros breathed as they continued forward.

“The general thinks they're looking for something,” Laguna said, whispering in the ambiance. “He wanted me to find out what it was.”

“Oh, so now you want to tell us?” Ward frowned.

“Did you plan on breaking in here the entire time and not telling us?” Kiros frowned at him.

“I didn't realize there would be Esthar soldiers!”

“Esthar is the biggest superpower in the world and they're digging up something all the way out here in the middle of nowhere Centra, and you _didn't_ think it would be guarded?”

“I know! But I told you now, didn't I? Isn't that what they say? Better late than ever?”

“Never!” Kiros snapped while Ward shook his head.

“Ah...” Laguna grabbed for his leg. “Ow...It always hurts the most right before it stops.”

Kiros frowned at the entrance to the caves. “Come on, let's get moving.”

“Right! But...uh, which way?” Laguna frowned, looking between two paths.

“Just pick one,” Ward shrugged, leaning against a pile of metal.

Laguna's eyes moved down and pointed. “Hey, look. A key!”

Ward followed his gaze and frowned at the old key. “Yeah, so?”

“So, what if it unlocks something?” Laguna laughed, bending down to pick it up. “Yeah, I'm such a genius. We'll take it with us.”

“If it unlocked something important, why would they leave it in the scrap pile?” Kiros asked.

He didn't receive an answer. Laguna was already laughing, running off down a random fork of the cavern system. Ward and Kiros followed after him dutifully.

It didn't take long until Laguna stopped. “Wait...I feel...A breeze on my butt.”

“Thank you for that update,” Ward said dully.

“No, seriously!” Laguna patted quickly at his pockets then let out a cry of despair. “Ah! There's a hole in my pocket. And that key fell out!”

“How did you not notice that sooner?” Kiros asked, crossing his arms.

Laguna shrugged. “Whatever. How important could a key be if it was in a scrap heap anyway?”

Kiros opened his mouth to say something, then changed his mind. It just wasn't worth it. He couldn't help but smile though, as he ran after Laguna. He didn't know what it was, couldn't imagine, but there was just something about Laguna that was so easy to like.

The Esthar soldiers were very unhappy that there was a trio of Galbadian 'spies' in their dig sight. They were chasing them quite determinedly. Laguna was lost, he had no idea where to go. He kept saying his sense of direction would lead them true, but they just seemed to keep moving through a series of crystal tunnels that led no where.

Kiros could say that, at least, they weren't doubling back or moving in circles. The tunnels they passed were all different and new.

At one point, Laguna ran over a series of hatches that squeaked under his boot.

“Hey, I bet we can loosen these!” Laguna said, grinning brightly. “And when those soldiers come after us, they'll fall right through!”

Kiros shook his head. “That will never work.”

“Ah, you have no faith.”

“Question,” Ward raised an eyebrow. “How are we supposed to get back if this is a dead end?”

“Oh, it'll be fine.” Laguna was already laughing and leaning down to tamper with the lever holding the door up. Creating a trap that might not work and simultaneously blocking their return.

They never got to see if it worked.

Halfway down another tunnel, Laguna found some explosives set to remove some boulders that were clogging up the caverns. Kiros and Ward both advised against it, he didn't listen and set both of them off.

Kiros didn't know how good of spies they were, but they could certainly mess things up.

All the while, Laguna kept determinedly moving forward. He seemed confident that he was just one more corner away from an exit from this place.

Sunlight finally beckoned them forward. Real, honest to goodness sunlight. The three of them ran towards it like dying men after water.

It was sunlight. It was the outside.

It was the small edge of a very tall, rocky cliff overlooking what was likely equally rocky water. The only exit to this place being the single staircase they took up here.

A staircase that they found blocked by an Esthar soldier when they turned back around. He was glaring at them, his weapon leveled at their heads.

“Don't tell me...” Laguna sighed, wishing he had somewhere to back up to.

“Of all the worst possible...” Kiros shook his head.

“...predicaments?” Ward finished, grinning at him sardonically.

Two more Esthar soldiers came running up the staircase. Laguna could hear more down below. He lifted his machine gun, trying to figure out what to do.

And that buzzing in his head got louder again. He groaned as it messed with his ability to think. Beside him, Kiros and Ward made similar expressions of discomfort.

“What the hell is this?” Ward asked, trying to shake the sensation away.

Laguna looked up to the skies. “Maybe it's a gift from the faeries.”

“Faeries control the weather, not your head,” Kiros sighed. “But, I suppose it's a nice thought. Not a bad one to have before you die.”

Laguna lifted his gun up and let out a volley of shots. The soldier on the left fell with ice spears penetrating his body. The middle and left guards dodged.

“Well, good to know that still works,” Ward grinned. “Water!”

Unlike last time, the magic answered his call immediately. One of the Esthar soldiers slipped and skidded against the water right over the cliff side. The large splash he made against the rocky water below was ignored as Kiros ran forward.

His katar sparked as he got into a melee fight with the third guard. His blades couldn't cut through the uniform, but his magic penetrated easily.

“That faerie gift idea is sound more likely by the second,” Ward grinned. “Let's hope that the faeries continue smiling on us for a long while.”

Two more Esthar soldiers ran up the stairs now to replace their fallen comrades.

“Argh!” Laguna groaned, grabbing his stomach. “I'm gettin' hungry!”

Ward laughed as he rushed into the melee himself. His harpoon was dripping now. When he lifted it and thrust it against his next opponent, the water drilled forward like a laser.

The magic made everything so much easier. But the Estharians were catching on that these Galbadian soldiers weren't like normal. However they had done it, faeries or luck or hidden skill, it didn't matter at this moment.

The next soldier to charge towards Laguna made sure he kept out of the path of his ice bullets. He threw his boomerang shotgun. Laguna cried out as his machine gun was knocked out of his hands. The strap kept it dangling from his chest, but he didn't have time now to fumble for it.

He ducked back out of the way as the soldier ran into him. Both of their guns knocked out of the way, they had to resort to trading physical blows. Which Laguna was bad at. He didn't even like fighting! He used a gun because there was minimal amount of combat tactics needed for it, especially in comparison to blades.

He was fairly certain he was going to lose this fight. All he needed though was just a second to get his gun in his hands. If he could just do that-

The first blow he blocked easily. The second he dodged. The third he side stepped. Then he threw his own and his fist moved so fast that he didn't even register it as his until his knuckles were suddenly sore from striking someone for the first time.

The Esthar soldier's uniform absorbed the force of the impact and prevented injury. However, the man still fell backwards.

Laguna struck again. And again.

His own eyes widened in surprise as he dropped low and kicked out his leg taking the soldier out right at the knees. If he didn't know better, he would think that he had fight training of some kind beyond the standard recruit boot camp.

He didn't even need his gun. He held out his bare palm.

“Blizzard!”

A large spire of ice pierced the earth, slicing through the Esthar soldier. Laguna backed up, grabbing for his gun again as the spire shattered and the Estharian fell down, dead.

Another immediately took his place.

“What?!” Laguna cried out in despair.

“Laguna, there's too many!” Ward looked up from his most recent victory.

“Ugh!” Laguna backed up, deflecting blows from the circular blade on the next soldier. “The tip o'my nose itche-e-e-s!” His face contorted weirdly as he tried to relieve the sensation without actually lifting his hand to his face.

It was such a useless, random thing to say. It wasn't that Laguna was unaware of the severity of their current situation. He was just a simple kind of guy. If they had to fight their way through this, then fight they would. Too late to do anything else.

“Fire!” Kiros yelled, throwing a blaze towards the next soldier up the stairs. It stopped him before he got up. It did not stop the one behind him.

“Ah!” Ward looked dismayed. “You have more than one spell?!”

“I suppose...I do,” Kiros grinned, wiggling his katar at him.

“Thunder!” Laguna threw out his hand. A blast of lightning sent his current enemy over the edge of the cliff twitching and helpless. “Hey! I do, too!”

“Aw, that's just not right!” Ward complained, spinning his harpoon to slam it into the face of his next upcoming opponent. “Come on, don't I have anything besides- WATER!”

The fallen soldier started drowning within his suit. He was replaced immediately.

“Are we fighting the entire Estharian army?” Kiros asked, winded as he tried fighting the next man without using magic. It didn't work out well. He didn't last long before he was left with no choice but to hit him with a lethal dose of lightning.

“Darn it!” Laguna cried out in dismay as he pointed his gun at the entrance of the stairs. “I wanna scratch the bottom of my fe-e-e-et!”

His finger held down the trigger and the ice crystals that were his bullets started bursting through anyone who came up the stairs. The bottleneck they made was the only advantage they had. And as Ward took down his soldier, this was the closet thing they had to a reprieve.

“Laguna, how much ammo do you have?” Kiros asked, worried.

“Honestly, I have no idea. I can't imagine too much more...” Laguna was breathing hard as he gunned down anyone who poked their heads over the edge of the stairs.

He got through two more soldiers before he heard the empty clicking from the barrel. He made a face as, though they had been waiting for it, more Esthar soldiers charged up.

One of them had a darker uniform than the others. Less flashy. He was pointing to the others. He was the leader in this situation. No one followed him up the stairs.

Finally, an end in sight, Laguna let out a breath of hair as he raised his bare hands. He really hoped he was able to pull off another adrenaline miracle.

Use the gun.

He kicked up the butt reacting without thinking, using the metal to take the hit from the bladed shotgun. It was out of ammo, he realized in that same foreign part of his mind, but that didn't mean it wasn't useful. Now it was a handy metal, blunt instrument. And while clubs were the least elegant of weapons possible, it was still a few steps above his bare hands.

This man was stronger than the standard soldier. While Kiros and Ward were using their newly acquired magic to fight, Laguna found himself in the unfortunate position of fighting armor that was, unfortunately, magic resistant.

The thunder spell he sent to the man was only partially absorbed into his body. He twitched, but he didn't lose total control of himself. Laguna cried out in dismay as he came back at him.

This soldier – captain? – was stronger, better than his subordinates.

And Laguna was beginning to second guess that voice in his head that knew what to do. And because he was, he was starting to make mistakes. His own thoughts were getting in the way of the powerful buzzing and he was losing his edge over.

Trying not to think, of course, only made everything worse.

“Fall back, Laguna!” Kiros yelled.

He obeyed without thinking and dropped back as Kiros took his place. One of his katar was spitting lightning, the other shooting fire. He was alternating between the two magics with each hit. He was also significantly faster than Laguna. He didn't try to think around his instincts. He let his training and the buzzing control his body beyond rational thought.

Ward dropped the last Esthar soldier. Which left them only with the captain who's armor was shielded against physical and magical attacks. The three of them were tired. Laguna was out of ammo. They didn't know how long this magic was going to last.

“Taking over, Kiros!” Ward yelled.

Kiros fell back immediately and Ward took his place. His method of attack was so polar opposite of Kiros's that it took the captain by surprise for a moment.

Kiros was speed. Ward was all brawn. His large harpoon bashed against the Esthar captain's body forcing him to take steps back. Back towards the stairs.

Force was easy for the soldier to absorb though. And Ward's water spells weren't able to penetrate his armor to do any damage.

“Switch!” Laguna jumped forward.

The butt of his gun swung forward, slamming against the side of his head. A burst of ice struck at him, doing minimal damage. But still damage.

Come on! There had to be a weakness here! There was no such thing as perfect armor. There was a weakness here somewhere! He just had to find it!

Laguna, in his determination, finally stopped thinking. And that buzzing could better control his arms as he knocked the shotgun from the man's hands. He started hitting towards his joints, his neck, the soft parts of his belly. Looking for somewhere – anywhere – that would transmit the force.

His leg kicked out and slammed into the man's side. He knocked him away.

Kiros attacked. Magic flashing from his weapons. Slicing against him, sparking and burning through him. The man started crying out in pain.

His cries only encouraged Kiros. His doubled his attack speed. He moved so fast that Laguna lost track of his limbs. The smell of burning fabric scented the air. The lightning was breaking through spots worn through the armor as the amount of magic thrown at him finally started overloading the suit's absorbance capacity.

Until Kiros slammed his sparking katar forward and it finally burst through the armor. The captain made a wet, choking sound as Kiros's blade sliced through his heart.

Breathing hard, Kiros jerked back his hand. The battle over, the buzzing faded as the captain fell to his knees. And as the buzzing faded, he realized suddenly that he was exhausted. He had never pushed his body that hard before. His muscles were burning with fatigue, his lungs crying out desperately for more air, and his heart was beating against his chest so hard it hurt.

His hands, totally numb, lost control of his katar. He and his weapons his the ground at the same time and he barely avoided hitting his head against the rock below him.

“Kiros!” Laguna leaned down, reaching for his friend gently. “You alright?”

“That was...surprising.”

“That was awesome!” Laguna laughed, throwing out his hands. “I didn't know you could do that!”

“I...can't,” Kiros panted, sweating profusely now. His muscles were shaking, about to give out on him, and he wondered if you could die from overexertion. “Maybe faerie help...isn't a...good thing...after all.”

“Hey, we lived, right?” Laguna touched his shoulder gently. He was feeling pretty tired himself as the buzzing drew back into his head. That buzzing saved their lives, but he was starting to agree with Kiros. They couldn't be all good if they didn't respect their human limitations.

Ward stepped closer, smiling at his friends as he gently set his harpoon down. He imagined he was going to have to carry Kiros out of here. But that was fine. So long as they were both alive...

Behind them, his blood bubbling up from the hole in his chest, the Esthar captain reached out with weak hands towards his gun.

Ward turned to check the stairs for more enemies as the captain drew back his arm.

The blade was aimed at the defenseless Kiros.

“NO!” Ward jumped. His cry alerted Laguna and Kiros.

The circular blade sliced through the air.

“WARD!” Laguna leapt to his feet as blood splattered against the ground.

The buzzing was back in full force. It had Laguna moving before he even realized what he was looking at. He jumped clear over Ward as his friend fell to the rocky ground.

Laguna scooped up Ward's harpoon and lifted it over his head. Crying out in dismay, he brought it down with a roar of anger. The harpoon speared through the hole already in the uniform, through the rock below him, and pinned the captain in place like a bug.

Laguna dropped down and looked to his friends. Kiros was reaching out with shaking hands to Ward who was grabbing for his own throat. He was bleeding...

“Ward...” Laguna moved over to him, towards the edge of the cliff where he had fallen. Kiros, the last burst of excitement draining on him, collapsed down.

Laguna fell to his knees between his two friends. He looked with wide, panicked eyes at the amount of blood Ward was losing. Without even thinking about it, he grabbed onto the wound and started pressing down as the buzzing got louder for a moment.

“Cure...CURE!”

The green energy sank in slowly. The blood began clotting, the wound shutting. It wasn't healed, but it wasn't bleeding anymore. Laguna sat back, his hands covered in his friend's blood.

But...

Ward was breathing. Kiros was too tired to move. They were both alive. All of them were alive.

The sunlight glinted off of the water below and Laguna's eyes went wide.

“Look, over there! Boats! We're saved! Lady luck is on our side! We can steal one and escape back to Galbadia!”

“One would say...we've been run out...” Kiros panted. “That's what...they'd normally say...”

“Who got run out? We won, didn't we?”

“You call this winning?” Kiros tried to laugh, it just came out as breathy pants. “I don't think...we're going to...be able to live...to get back...to Galbadia.”

“Don't say that,” Laguna snapped, frowning at him. “It might come true. Didn't you grandmother ever tell you that?”

“If you say something bad...it will come true...” he grinned wryly. “Yeah, I think she did...”

“Ggghh...rhhh...” A strange, bubbling, gurgling sound came from Ward and Laguna looked over to him, frowning to see that he was looking at them rather strangely.

“What'd you say?” Laguna asked, not sure he wanted to hear.

“His throat...was injured...” Kiros looked over to him sadly. “I think...he lost...his voice...”

“It...wa...fun...you...”

Laguna frowned, leaning lower as a dreadful feeling settled in his gun. “Say again?”

Ward's face screwed up in concentration and, as he spoke, his voice started getting threadier and less substantial. It was alarming to hear, coming from such a big man with normally such a deep voice.

“It...was...fun...you...guys...La...guna...Ki...ros...It...was...fun...”

“Ward, that's way uncool,” Laguna said, breathing fast as he watched his friend's mouth close. “It's not cool to say things like that! Just for that, you're gettin' the cuchi-cuchi treatment!”

Wanting desperately to hear his friend laugh, to prove to him that his voice was fine, Laguna reached out and tried tickling him. Ward was usually so ticklish right there on his sides. And as Laguna touched him, he breathed out like he might be laughing.

But he made no sound...

“How's that, huh?!” Laguna asked, rearing back as sadness filled his voice. “Want more?! Well?!”

Ward let out a long breath, and his mouth moved like he might be speaking.

Only silence.

Laguna dropped down onto his knees before him, breathing hard as he realized he might very well have just heard the last words his friend would ever speak. He had brought them to this place. He had lied about their mission here. Hot guilt filled his body as he realized that this was his fault. He had done this to his own friends.

He shook his head quickly to banish those dark thoughts. Self pity and hatred were not going to get them out of here! They were still deep in Esthar territory. There could be more soldiers coming in and they were in no position to continue fighting.

“Come on! We're getting on that boat!”

Kiros looked over and grinned at the size of the 'boat' in question.

“A...ship...they'd...normally...call...it...”

“Boat, ship, _vessel_ , whatever! We're going back to Galbadia!”

Reaching down, Laguna pulled up the exhausted Kiros. Before he could make a sound, Laguna walk him back then ran him forward, throwing him off the ledge. Kiros heard the buzzing in his head just as his tired body turned in the air so he hit feet first. Probably saving his life. Then he just let himself relax and float. He was too tired to try to swim.

Up on the cliff, Laguna had a little more difficulty lifting Ward's bulk. Still holding onto his neck to stop any further bleeding, Laguna threw him over as well.

He looked over the edge as Ward made an enormous splash. It rocked Kiros wading in the water but didn't send him under. After a second, Ward floated up as well. He looked around at the rocks at the base of the cliff then back up at Laguna.

“You guys...sure have guts,” Laguna frowned, his stomach dropping looking down. “You know how high this cliff is?”

No way he was jumping off that. He was going to climb down. Nice and slow. Then he could gather his friends, commandeer that boat/ship/vessel, and be on their way.

He made it about two steps down. His foot hit a tiny ledge that was just not strong enough to bear the weight of a grown man.

It shattered and Laguna slipped.

“Oh, shi-” He cried out wordlessly as he fell. He turned forward as the buzzing in his brain suddenly surged. He had to aim! He couldn't hit those rocks!

Rocks that were coming right towards him-

***

Squall jerked awake quickly, his heart beating fast like he really was about to land face first against the rocky base of a cliff. He had to remind himself firmly that it was just a dream as he pushed himself up to his feet.

He saw Selphie sitting up, stretching, as Quistis pushed herself back up. The wide eyed look of confusion must have been very similar to their first time.

Zell, who had been pacing, stepped forward. Rinoa, standing just off of the path, remained quiet as she looked at Squall with eyes nearly as wide as Quistis's.

“Was it Laguna again?” Zell asked immediately.

Squall nodded. Quistis looked between the two of them as she got her emotions under control. They didn't seem all that surprised. And they said Laguna. Like the Laguna in her dream. She thought it was a dream. It had been so _vivid_...

“Doesn't seem like the first time for you all,” she started, looking between them. “What was that?”

Selphie was all too happy to explain. Zell had already talked Rinoa through it. Squall was patting at his clothes, trying to get the dirt from the path from the leather. Rinoa remained off to the side, still just watching silently.

“I see...” Quistis murmured when Selphie finished. “That's very odd...What do you think it is?”

“We'll just be wasting our time trying to figure it out,” Squall cut off any speculation before it could get started. He really rather wished he could honestly say it was just a dream. Since he couldn't, he would rather not discuss it in a forest where monsters could get at them. “Let's just keep going.”

“Yeah, let's go!” Zell nodded. “We've got more important things to worry about right now.”

Zell very nearly ran down the path towards Galbadia garden. Selphie and Quistis followed more slowly, both of them still tired. Squall didn't get a chance to take a step because Rinoa had finally moved. She had stepped towards him, her eyes wide and unreadable.

“Um, Squall?” she started, hesitating guiltily. She didn't know how to describe how jarring it was to see him just pass out like that. The same Squall who had clung to a moving train, fought through broken ribs, and could freeze a heart with a look. To watch as his his eyes rolled back, he cried out in pain, then just dropped had been terrifying for her.

For just a second, too long of a second, she thought she had just watched him die. For an insane second after that, she thought that her yelling had given him an aneurysm and a stroke. And she had thought how horrible it would be if her last words to him had been said in anger.

“I think I may have said too much,” she whispered, looking down. “I'm sorry.”

Squall tossed back his hand. For a moment, she thought he had thrown her apology away. He was giving her that same look that he had when she had been yelling at him. Closed off, distant. It was easier to read now though.

_Forget it_ , he said without a word. He wasn't throwing her apology away. He was throwing away her need to be sorry. He held no grudge towards her.

It was like water off of a chocobo's back. It just all rolled over him. Her lectures, and her guilt. He needed nor kept either one.

She couldn't help herself, she smiled gently. It was so...him.


	12. Galbadia Garden

The three gardens in the world were all military style institutions. Greater than normal schools and academies, they specialized in weapons, combat, and strategy training. Balamb Garden was, far and above, the best of the three in all subjects. Though it was from the smallest, most peaceful country, it was held to a different standard. It was willing to push itself and its students further.

Galbadia Garden was the middle child of the three gardens. Balamb was the first and the standard for what a garden should be. Trabia was the youngest, but the harsh environment it called home bred powerful fighters. Galbadia Garden was trying its hardest to mimic Balamb in their operation with one major difference. They had no SeeD program, but instead fed directly into the Galbadian military. With such a fate over their heads, the best fighters at Galbadia Garden would often transfer to Balamb and the SeeD program.

Since they were much more of a true military academy, Galbadia Garden had a completely different sort of feeling. Students were required to wear their uniforms, unlike Balamb where it was only a suggestion. They were discouraged from speaking in common areas and every minute of their lives was carefully controlled and regimented.

As Squall and the others started walking down the long entrance path towards the garden, Zell and Selphie were pointing up to where they were training with flying machines. One manned, twin engine jet packs the size of a small car. Squall had to admit they would be useful during an attack. However, he would not want to be one of those training on it.

No one seemed to care about their approach. Not even the flier that landed on the long path, his check engine alarm blaring. The SeeDs were unimportant and Galbadian Garden students weren't encouraged to be curious or questioning. That made for bad subordinates in the military. However, that attitude made for bad superior officers instead. Which was probably a reason that the Galbadian army was so ineffective.

Galbadia's colors were red and gold as opposed to Balamb's blue and silver. The large spinning disk over their heads had a different design, but it was very similar. Squall was given to understand that the halo was common among all three gardens. Though, for the life of him, he could not even imagine what it was, much less what it was for.

“Wow,” Selphie breathed as they crept in closer. “Completely different...” As the only one among them who had been to all three gardens, she could be considered an expert on the matter. Neither of the other two gardens were quite like this.

“Sure is quiet,” Zell said uncomfortably as they reached the front gates.

Squall looked around and grinned wryly. “I like it.”

Beside him, Rinoa started laughing, surprising him.

“I said something funny?” Why were people always laughing when he wasn't joking?

Rinoa shook her head and refused to tell him what had amused her. He frowned but didn't get a chance to press further as Quistis stepped up to the gates.

“Could you leave this one up to me?” She asked, deferring to him. “I've been here several times, and I know the headmaster pretty well. I'll go and explain our situation to him.”

Squall nodded and she moved ahead into the garden. Zell ran after her, laughing at the thought of seeing this new garden.

“Don't get into trouble!” Squall ordered him as Selphie made to follow.

Rinoa, however, remained with him as they walked forward into the garden. He looked over to her but she gave no indication that she wanted to leave him behind.

They worked their way into the building, into the quiet, echoing common room. Squall frowned, unsure of where he was supposed to go. Rinoa took over.

“Can we find some place to sit down?” She asked, pointing to some benches off to the side.

He nodded and led her forward as though he might have been here before. They benches in the center of the garden were all circling around a small ray sunlight let into the common area by a skylight overhead. There were students moving around, but no one really sitting and relaxing. It was a very rigid sort of place.

Which made it hard for Rinoa to sit and relax. Squall had no problems, leaning back back into the bench with a military straight spine, as she perched beside him with her hands in her lap trying not to let her similarly straight spine bother her.

Did he have to be so stiff? Was this comfortable for him?

He didn't say anything, and the quiet of the common room had her mouth shut as well. She rather didn't like this garden. She really hoped Balamb would be as different as Selphie insinuated.

She let out a breath and tried to observe Squall out of the corner of her eye. It was the first time she had gotten to see him relax. She rather wondered how he looked doing so.

He looked exactly as tense and aware as he had keeping watch around their campfire. One arm was back along the bench, the other was holding onto the hilt of his gunblade. Like he might expect someone to come towards them, guns blazing, at any second.

“Can I see your gunblade?” Rinoa asked suddenly.

His eyes moved towards her then back towards the common area. “Why?”

“I want to see. Please?”

She gave him a sweet, wide eyed look that had his gut clenching. The way her hands were resting on her lap was pushing up her breasts and the way her back was set pressed them forward. Her eyes were wide, her pink lips were slightly open.

He was weak and too easily manipulated.

Squall set his sheath across his lap with the hilt facing her. Rinoa's eyes widened in delight. Her tiny, soft hand reached out and took hold of his hilt. Biting her lip, she slid it slowly out of its sheath and almost into her own lap.

“Oh, wow,” she laughed gently. “It's heavier than it looks. And so big.”

“It's just above the standard size of any saber,” Squall corrected her.

“Well, maybe, but Seifer's was so much thinner.”

“He let you see Hyperion?”

“Well, no not like this. He showed it off, but he didn't want me to touch it. Said it was sacred ground. I kind of thought it was funny,” she chuckled.

Her slender fingers reached out and gently stroked the ridges on the long blade that were carved into the same lion shape as his necklace and matching ring.

“Yours is so much bigger than his. Especially up close,” she whispered, continuing to caress the blade somehow sensually.

He reached out and caught her arm just before she could touch the edge. “It's sharp. Be careful.”

She smiled and nodded. She drew back gently and reached up to instead to run her fingers on the barrel of the revolver half of the blade.

Satisfied, Squall leaned back again and continued explaining his weapon. “Seifer chose to lighten his burden so he could shoot easier. I chose to keep the strength with the trade off of the weight. I prefer the power though.”

“Yeah, me too.” Rinoa reached up and touched the base gently. The chain at the end jingled and caught her attention. She picked up the lion pendant and smiled as she caressed the face of it. “It's not like you really sacrificed anything. You just had to get stronger.” The result of which was that his arms were like steel. She approved wholeheartedly.

Initially grunting at the weight, Rinoa lifted it up so she could more easily see the design. Squall watched her handle his weapon with shielded eyes. She looked a lot better with the metal in her hands than he would have believed possible. She was being careful and gentle. Almost lovingly caressing the body of his blade.

“It's thick, too,” she murmured, looking over to him. Her eyes were sparkling.

“Helps keep balance on the gun,” he returned calmly. What was she doing?

“Does it take long to reload?”

“Only if you're inexperienced. I've got the turn around down to only a few seconds.”

“Woo, so fast.” Rinoa laughed as she set it back down. She didn't stop touching it though. Her hand stroked up and down, enjoying the smoothness of the hard metal. “You know, seeing how well you worked this thing, I still can't believe how heavy it is.”

“It's all a matter of practice. You'll get as good with your own weapon soon enough.”

Rinoa started giggling and Squall frowned at her. He really didn't understand what he could have possibly been funny this time.

“What?”

“Oh, nothing.” She slid the gunblade back into its sheath. “Squall, answer me a question.”

“What is it?”

“You've fought a lot of different kinds of monsters, right? And studied even more, huh?”

“I wouldn't call myself an expert, but I'm fairly proficient.”

“So, have you ever fought the beast with two backs?” She grinned at him sweetly.

“Beast with two backs?” Squall frowned. “I haven't even heard of it. What region is it from?”

Rinoa was laughing again and Squall frowned at her once more. He just stared, feeling like he was missing part of a joke.

“ _Will the SeeD party from Balamb Garden please report to the second floor waiting room_ ,” a voice over the loudspeaker said softly. In the quiet, it was easily heard.

“That's us,” Squall said, getting to his feet. “You can tell me more about the beast with two backs later.”

“Oh, absolutely,” Rinoa was laughing as she stood to follow him. What was she giggling about? What was he missing here?

The second floor waiting room was used for official visitors for the headmaster or other such personnel, usually professionally related.

Zell was already there when Squall and Rinoa walked inside. It didn't take long for Selphie to skip inside. She immediately went for the wide window along the wall so she could look out. Squall didn't understand why she was so fascinated with things outside of windows.

Quistis joined them in her own time. She walked inside, her expression quite calm.

“How'd it go?” Squall asked.

“They understood our situation,” she nodded. Her eyes moved over to Zell who had taken a seat. His eyes boring holes into the ground, his fists clenched tight in nervousness. She moved over to him and smiled, lowering her eyes to his level. “And Balamb Garden is safe.”

Zell let out a long sigh as his body sighed in relief. It looked like a large weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Rinoa smiled as Squall nodded. He kept his relief internal, but he couldn't deny that he was happy that there was no bad news.

Quistis stood up and spoke to them all again. “The attack on the president in Timber was classified as an independent action. There was an official notice from the Galbadian government saying that Balamb Garden is not being held responsible.”

Zell nodded, happy that his enormous mess up hadn't resulted in the ultimate price. Then he frowned as he realized what that meant. “So...Seifer's taking all the blame?”

Quistis nodded as her face went impassive. Not quite sad, not quite unaffected. A carefully neutral expression that betrayed nothing.

“The trial is over, and the sentence has been carried out...”

A tense silence fell over the room as everyone let the implications of that statement sink in. He had attacked the president, had threatened his life. There was really only one sort of sentence that could be laid over such a person. Rinoa knew that better than anyone.

Her heart stilled as she realized that Seifer had been killed.

“He was...executed?” She breathed. For a moment, she couldn't believe it. Then, she did and her body slumped. “Of course he was. He attacked the president. He sacrificed himself for the Forest Owls...”

She moved over towards the couch. She didn't really trust her own legs to be able to hold herself up for much longer. The sadness and guilt was weighing her down now.

“It was your group that got Seifer involved in all this,” Quistis crossed her arms. It wasn't a question. It wasn't said in anger. It was a simple statement of facts. “You're a resistance faction, right? You must have been prepared for the worst. I'm sure Seifer was prepared, too. So don't think of it as Seifer sacrificing himself for you.”

Quistis flinched as she realized how cold her own words sounded. She needed to stop emulating Squall in situations like these. “I'm sorry. I guess that wasn't much consolation.”

Rinoa took a seat, her eyes downcast.

Seifer was trying to be a SeeD. So of course he must have been prepared for the fact that he might one day lose his life on a mission. Knowing him, he probably would have preferred such a glorious death to one where he wasted away of old age or disease.

That did little to alleviate her own sadness at knowing he was gone.

She heard footsteps approaching and her eyes focused on a pair of black leather boots. She looked up to see Squall looking down at her, his expression closed off. It must have been, she decided, his way of being comforting and there for her.

“I...really liked him,” she said to him, her voice heavy. “He was always full of confidence, smart...Just by talking to him, I felt like I could take on the world.”

She realized now that she would never get to feel that way again. Seifer was gone, and that was a rather large loss. There was no one quite so big as Seifer. He dreamed big, he talked big, he acted big. And somehow everything seemed so much smaller knowing he was gone.

“Your boyfriend?” Selphie asked, looking at her from over the back of the sofa.

“I don't really know,” Rinoa frowned. She didn't know how to define what she had with Seifer. He had certainly never called her his girlfriend. Yet, she had always felt so close to him. “I...I think I was in love. I don't know how he felt...”

“Do you still love him?” Selphie tilted her head.

“If I did, I wouldn't be able to talk about it like this.” That was an easier question to answer. “But I still considered him a friend. It was last summer...I was only 16. We met on vacation from our schools. He's the entire reason I found my way to Timber. I don't think I could have made it there without him. We had lots of fun. Lots of fond memories...”

She blinked and looked up as Squall moved away from her, around the couch. She realized how that must have sounded t him, but she didn't want to take it back. She wouldn't erase her young, teenage, summer love. She would mourn Seifer, and treasure her memories of Seifer. Of the brash young man that had given her courage.

“You really hated Seifer, didn't you Zell?” Selphie asked, looking at the strange expression on his face.

“Yeah, but...” he trailed off, his face narrowing further. Like he wasn't sure what to feel. “He was from garden. He was one of us. I guess...I mean, if I can...I wanna get revenge.”

Squall frowned as he looked between the three of them. What was this...?

“I don't have any good memories of him,” Quistis admitted, sitting next to Rinoa. She looked rather guilty as she crossed her arms over her stomach. “I've seen some troubled children, but he was beyond troubled.”

Rinoa made a face and Quistis realized how that sounded and felt guilty. She was almost at bad at comforting as Squall was.

“Well, he wasn't really _that bad_ of a guy.”

Squall shook his head just slightly. No...This was...

Zell shifted uncomfortably. “I didn't like the guy, but _executed_...”

No. No, this was so wrong.

I liked him. He wasn't a bad guy. One of us. Seifer. He had become just a memory. Someone to talk about. To remember. Essentially, he was nothing.

A horrible, cold feeling settled in Squall's stomach as he had a horrible thought.

Would they...Would they talk about him this way when he died, too?

Squall was this and that. Using past tense. Saying whatever they wanted. Was this what death was all about? Was this what it meant to pass on?

…

No.

Not for him.

He wasn't going to have it!

Quistis looked up as she realized that Squall hadn't said a word. His head was lowered, his bangs having fallen over his eyes so she couldn't see his expression. Seifer had been his training partner and, despite everything, they were closer to each other than almost anyone.

Was he upset? She should say something...

“What's wrong, Squall?” she asked gently.

Squall exploded.

“I won't have it!”

He threw out his arm, his teeth bared. More expression on his face than any of them could ever remember him showing. After so long of calm distance, it was disturbing to see it. Everyone jumped, Zell literally to his feet, when he did so.

“W-What?” he asked, startled.

“Are you _mad_?” Selphie asked, surprised.

“I won't have anyone talk about me in the past tense!” He snapped.

“Squall!” Rinoa called out after him, but it was too late, he was running out. When she made it to the door and looked out for him, he was already gone.

***

“ _Will the SeeD party from Balamb Garden please report to the front gates_.”

The call over the loudspeakers lifted Squall's head from where he had been looking over the rails of the second story down to the first floor central room below. He had been staring deep into the rays of light coming down from the ceiling, trying to calm his own disturbed heart.

Squall knew very well that he could die on assignment. He had been close many times in all his years of training. Intellectually, he always knew he could die. Emotionally, he had never really cared. What did it really matter anyway?

Yet seeing the aftermath of death...Seeing how others reacted...That had affected him.

It made him really think.

When he died, what would happen? His name would be inscribed on the wall on the first floor that held the name of all the SeeDs that died in action. It wasn't a long list now, but it would only grow. His things would be appropriated by the garden. He would be a memory...

He would be absolutely nothing...

That was a harder to realization to deal with than simple death.

But the call over the intercom meant that it was time to move. They wouldn't be calling the SeeD party down unless there was a need to speak to them. Which probably meant that he was about to receive another assignment. And his first one wasn't even over yet.

Figuring he wasn't going to accomplish anything standing here, he began making his way down towards the first floor. As he was walking around the wide circle, he saw Selphie running across the common area towards the entrance.

He descended the stairs to the first floor. As he was coming out, he saw a group of students being drilled by an instructor who was yelling at them for running in the halls. They all wore the same maroon running suit.

Except for Zell, who was at the end for some reason.

“Now get down and give me fifty push ups!” The instructor snapped, irritated.

As a unit, the group – including Zell – lowered themselves and obeyed the command.

“What are you doing?” Squall asked him.

“Got caught running,” Zell said, controlling his breathing through the workout. “Hey, you wanna bet I can out work these wimps?”

“No.” Squall raised an eyebrow at him.

As they spoke, a girl started walking by. She seemed completely oblivious to the boys. They were not oblivious to her. Nor was Zell.

Squall frowned as he stopped and craned his neck to look up her skirt as she passed.

“What is wrong with you?” Squall asked, glaring slightly.

“Uh-oh!” Zell looked over and saw the others already ahead of him. “Urk it!”

Squall rolled his eyes as Zell threw himself into the exercise metaphorical guns blazing.

“When you're done with those fifty, give me two hundred,” Squall told him, turning away. “As punishment for sexually harassing that girl.”

“Worth it!” Zell called out, laughing.

“If the Galbadian students finish before you, give me a hundred more.”

“What?!” There was no way he could finish 250 before they finished only fifty!

Satisfied with the punishment, Squall continued forward towards the front gate. He couldn't imagine Zell would take long, even with that as a prerequisite for joining them.

Squall didn't make it far before he heard his name called out by a familiar voice.

“Yo! Squall!”

He stopped, turned, and looked up to see Raijin of all people standing at the glass rail of the second story walkway. He was waving at him. Then he turned and ran backwards. Squall stayed in place as he mentally tracked Raijin's movements down the hall, down the stairs, then-

Laughing slightly, Raijin, with Fujin right on his tail, came running towards him.

“What are you doing here?” Squall asked them.

“What am I doin'?” Raijin asked, smiling at him. “I'm a messenger, ya know? Brought you new orders from Headmaster Cid, ya know?”

“What kind of order?

“I dunno,” he shrugged. “Didn't tell us and we didn't ask. Gave it to the head honcho here. Just did what Headmaster Cid wanted, ya know?”

“EXPLAIN,” Fujin ordered him shortly.

Raijin nodded, complying happily. “We were suppose'ta go to Timber, but the trains have all stopped going there. So we had no other choice but to come here. Kinda relieved to see you guys here too.”

“SEIFER?”

“Oh, yeah! Wasn't Seifer with you? He said he was coming to Timber, too. Did he find you?”

Squall hesitated. These two worshiped Seifer. They probably thought he was Hyne himself, come back in human form. How did you tell people who cared that much that the center of their affections had died just like that?

Like ripping off a bandage, he decided. There really was no way to break it gently.

“Seifer is dead,” he said, controlling his voice. The two of them started, staring. “I heard he was tried in Galbadia, then executed.”

He was prepared for tears. For anger. For disbelief. He was not prepared for derision and laughter.

“LIES!”

Raijin was holding his gut he was laughing so hard. “That's gotta be a lie, ya know?! There's no way he'd put up with a trial, ya know? Or an execution for that matter. It's just so not Seifer, ya know?”

Actually, he did know. Just trying to picture Seifer sitting still for his own trail was funny. He definitely wouldn't have been easily killed. 'Easily' being the key word though. There was more than a good chance that he just fought to the very end. Which would be very Seifer.

“FIND!” Fujin stated simply in her way.

“O'what?” Raijin turned to her and smiled. “We're gonna meet up with Seifer?”

She made no motion to indicate yes, but it seemed that single word was enough. Raijin turned back to Squall and smiled.

“Well, see ya, Squall. We're gonna head off to Galbadia to look for Seifer.”

And just like that, the two of them ran off. Raijin smiling, Fujin...herself. Squall watched them go and wondered if they were right or deluded. In a way, he found their unwavering loyalty rather nice. Seifer was lucky to have two such people as them.

Well, he had been lucky...

Squall moved towards the entrance at a much slower pace. As he moved, he spotted the bright blue of Rinoa's duster running towards the entrance. She was coming with them. He still needed to find a way to get her back to Balamb. He would have to ask the headmaster here to see to it before he left. If he was going on another assignment, she needed to be safe.

Quistis was already waiting at the front gates when he arrived. She looked up at him as he approached and her face set into an expression of relief.

“There you are. We were looking for you.”

“Why?”

The short question didn't really invite an answer. Quistis just smiled instead. “Come on. He's meeting us further down the street. Let's go.”

Zell was sprinting their way as Squall and Quistis reached the front. He was sweating and breathing hard, but he had made it through his punishment fast enough. Which Squall expected. He was a hand to hand fighter and therefore needed to be strong.

Rinoa was leaning back against a tall, stone plant box on the side of the road. Squall diverted away from Quistis to move towards her. She smiled as he approached.

“Hey,” she smiled, leaning back. She looked rather good for a girl who just found out her old crush had been executed. Squall was beginning to think that maybe she felt less for him than Seifer had felt for her. He had, after all, attacked a president for her. She had just found out about his death for said attack and now she was looking at him with bright eyes.

“You okay now?” She asked, referring to his outburst.

Squall nodded.

“Want to talk about it?”

“I'd rather not.”

“Okay then,” she smiled, accepting the answer. He was rather surprised. Most people would insist on pressing him for details. They just couldn't leave well enough alone. “Oh! Hey, I think that's him.”

He followed her gaze and saw a vehicle driving their way from the garden entrance. Because the headmaster couldn't just walk out here like a normal person.

Squall was about to open his mouth to tell her that he would arrange transportation for her, in the private SeeD cabin, back to Balamb for her own safety.

She didn't give him a chance.

“Just pretend I'm a SeeD, too,” she smiled at him, standing up straight. “It'll be less complicated that way.”

And just like that, there went that plan. That was an order. She had just forbidden him from revealing her identity and it didn't matter what that envelope held. Her orders were high priority for him. He couldn't ask for transportation for her now.

He made no show of his annoyance at her insistence on coming. He merely walked back to where the others had all fallen in line. Zell, Selphie, Quistis, Squall, and on his right, Rinoa. She smiled at him as the car parked and a man in a long blue suit stepped out.

He looked like the headmaster for a military academy. Regal, tall, tough. He had no softness anywhere on his body. Almost the polar opposite of Headmaster Cid. Immediately, Squall liked him less. He certainly didn't have the same kind, fatherly smile.

As he stepped closer, the SeeDs moved. Their legs locked together and they stood straight. Rinoa noticed their movements almost too late and she hurried to copy their pose. Their hands came up, the backs of their hands facing the headmaster. Rinoa mimicked them. Had her palm facing him. Then hastened to turn it.

“Good day,” he nodded as they lowered their hands again. If he noticed Rinoa's inexperience in a simple salute, he gave no indication of it. “I have official orders from Headmaster Cid addressed to you. Following regulations, I have gone over these orders myself. After careful consideration of our options, we have decided to fully assist and cooperate with Headmaster Cid.”

As he spoke, he was pacing about in front of them. Not really looking at them. Treating them like machines ready to receive orders.

Treating them, Rinoa realized, how they were used to being treated. The friendly, open way she had greeted them seemed silly now in contrast to this stark, distant approach.

…

She was going to stick by hers as the right one.

“Actually,” the headmaster continued, stopping to stare out at the skyline. “We too, have been planning something like this for quite some time now. In order to stress the importance of this mission, I must first brief you on the current situation.”

Finally, he looked up and seemed to realize that they were all standing at attention. “At ease.”

Everyone relaxed including Rinoa, glad now that was over. She was pretty sure she had locked her knees together. She thought she might pass out if he kept talking.

“You all know about the sorceress being appointed as the peace ambassador for the Galbadian government,” the headmaster continued his pacing. “However, this ambassador thing is just a cover up. There will be no peace talks, only threats. The president has set a sorceress as his ambassador for just that reason. Sorceresses create fear among people. Therefore, 'peace' talks are impossible.

“Galbadia is planning to use fear to negotiate favorable conditions for itself. It is clear that Galbadia's ultimate goal is domination over the other nations in the world. Perhaps to even set itself up as a super power so that it can be a threat to Esthar.

“Our garden, and yours, is no exception, either. It is a fact that the sorceress is planning to use this garden as her base of operations. Galbadia Garden, while part of Galbadia, has always considered itself rather separate from the government. However, with a sorceress holding her power over our heads, that is not an option. We have very few options available to us.”

He stopped and turned to face them all again. Despite that, he still seemed to be looking at a spot over their heads. Rinoa thought he was rather rude. The others weren't bothered. As he continued speaking, he sounded robotic. Like he was reading from a pre-devised speech.

“We entrust world peace, and the future, to you. Details of the mission are enclosed in these official orders. Remember to burn them once you've read their contents. You are the leader?”

Squall looked to Quistis. She had seniority over him. She made no move to claim leadership. Which left him little choice.

“Yes, sir.” He didn't offer his name, the headmaster didn't ask. Rinoa didn't like this coldness. Though it did sort of explain Squall's attitude.

“Then here. Make sure the ashes are spread out for good measure. You can never be sure when a sorceress is involved.”

Squall nodded and took them. He opened the envelope and gave the contents a cursory glance. The others remained silent at his side as he looked them over.

“Any questions?” The headmaster asked, standing back.

“These orders say 'by means of a sniper',” Squall looked up. “We have no one with that skill.”

That was odd. Headmaster Cid would know they had no sniper. Why would he give them orders that demanded for a skill they did not possess?

“Don't worry about it,” the headmaster shook his head. “Let me introduce you to an elite sharpshooter from Galbadia Garden I will be loaning you. Kinneas!”

The all looked off to the side, following the headmaster's gaze.

Kicked back on the grass, a young man wearing a long tan trench coat was lounging back with one hand under his head and one leg crossed over the other. He was so still he could have been a statue. He had one finger pointed up to the sky. Unmoving as a butterfly dancing around.

As they watched, the tiny, fearful creature landed on the tip of his finger. Looking up at it, the young man grinned in triumph. Then, mimicking the kickback of a gunshot, he 'blasted' the butterfly. It flew away as the headmaster called for him again, aggravated.

“Irvine Kinneas!”

Like it was his own decision, Irvine Kinneas rolled over and came up on his feet in a smooth, coordinated single move. The dark gray barrel of a shotgun hit his shoulder as his long, auburn hair hit against his back. He reached up, adjusting the black cowboy hat on his head before turning to face them and grinning.

His boots shuffled against the concrete ground as he walked their way. He stowed away his shotgun on his back, under his trench coat where it couldn't be seen, as he came in closer. His hands went to his pockets as he moved down the line, glancing at them all.

“This is Irvine Kinneas,” the headmaster said, indicating to him with irritation. “He will be your sharpshooter. You may leave whenever you are ready. Failure is not an option. I expect only perfection from you all.”

With that rather cold dismissal, the headmaster turned and began heading back to his car. Irvine turned and took aim with the same gun that had blasted the butterfly.

“ _Bang_!” He said, grinning. “What a stiff.”

The others ignored Irvine as they descended on Squall and the papers in his hand.

“What kind of orders did we get?” Rinoa asked, bringing up that 'we' thing again. Squall supposed he could have fought it. Really, what would be the point? Besides, she hadn't said he was allowed to disclose her identity to Irvine. He was still under orders.

“Our next mission,” Squall said, turning over the paper and frowning. “This is is no ordinary mission. It's a direct order from both Balamb and Galbadia Garden.”

That in itself was unusual. But it was the nature of the orders that really made it special.

“We're to assassinate the sorceress.”

Rinoa took a surprise step back as the others gaped at him.

“You can't be serious,” she said.

“That's so awesome!” Zell laughed.

“I can't believe we're getting such a high profile mission so early!” Selphie squealed.

“I'm sure Headmaster Cid put the right people on the job,” Quistis nodded, smiling gently.

Rinoa shook her head. How was she always surprised at the way they reacted? She had to remember that she was raised very differently from these people. Their 'normal' and hers were on opposite ends of the spectrum.

“We're to shoot her from afar,” Squall continued over their excitement. “Kinneas will be our sharpshooter. We're to support Kinneas to get him in place and, should he fail, we are to attack head on.”

“Thanks for that support,” Irvine grinned, cocky. “But I never miss my target.”

Squall would rather hope so. “Basically, eliminate the sorceress. That's our order. We're to head to the capital of Galbadia, Deling City. There, we'll meet up with General Caraway to go over details of the plan.”

Squall's eyes moved to Rinoa as her body suddenly stiffened. He looked up but she was deliberately looking away from them. Definitely not inviting questions.

Well, if she was going to give him the courtesy of not pressing for information, then he would return the same kindness. It was not his business.

“We should get going,” he said, folding the orders. “Zell, burn these”

“Yup!” Zell took the orders in hand. “Ifrit, light 'em up!”

Rinoa smiled as Irvine started as a fireball appeared in Zell's hands. The papers, the evidence, was razed to ash very quickly.

“Aero,” Quistis threw out her own spell. The smoke and ash was blown away.

Zell shook his hand, putting out the fire. Then, grinning, he blew on his fingers.

“I don't think we should move as a big group like this,” Squall said, looking between the six of them. It was bad enough that he was suspicious on sight. No need to make it worse by traveling in such a large party. “We'll split up here and meet up again in Deling City before seeking out General Caraway.”

“Well then,” Irvine grinned, stepping forward. “We'll need to choose traveling parties for the trip. If I might make a suggestion?”

Squall raised his eyebrow as Irving stepped closer. Not to him, but to Selphie. He took her shoulder and steered her over to Rinoa. Standing between them, he grinned over at where Squall was left with Quistis and Zell.

“How's this?” He asked as Rinoa and Selphie exchanged a glance under his head.

He had deliberately picked the two youngest girls to be on his party. Rinoa was the most attractive of the three girls. Followed, Squall had assumed, by Quistis. The former instructor who was giving Irvine a cold look, however, had not been picked. She looked more irritated that he had picked by attractiveness than the fact that she had been passed up.

It was also not a good match up of powers. Irvine and Rinoa were their most precious cargo. Rinoa because she wasn't SeeD and, in fact, an employer. And Irvine because of his skill that made him invaluable to the mission.

Then again...

Selphie was no pushover. Her speed and fast eye could get the three of them to Deling City without issue. Especially if Squall, Zell, and Quistis, the best fighters, went first to clear the way. Selphie would act as protection for the most valuable cargo, and they would be the vanguard.

Looking at it that way. He was rather satisfied.

“Alright then,” he nodded, surprising everyone. “Have a good time.”

Selphie made a face, putting her hands to her hips. “Are you being sarcastic?! You are, aren't you? Well, fine then! We _will_ have a good time!”

Rinoa was nodding along with her, her nose in the air. “We understand perfectly, Squall.”

Then, her sweetest smile in place, she reached out and took Irvine's arm. “Come on, Mr. Kinneas. Let's be on our way.”

H-Hey. Wait. What was she doing? Why was she holding onto him like that?

“Call me Irvine,” Kinneas replied, covering her hand with his, only serving to annoy Squall further, as he gave her a sweet smile in return. “I'm a pretty lucky guy. Hand in hand with two be- _autiful_ girls.”

Selphie wasn't used to being called beautiful. Spastic, tiny, psychotic; these were things she was used to. The compliment was far more effective on her than Rinoa. She looked like she melted as she took hold of Irvine's other arm earning a smile and a wink from him.

“Irvy Kinnepoo,” she purred at him. “I'll make sure we have a real good time.”

And what the heck was with that? Squall frowned to himself as Irvine walked away arm in arm with both girls. What had he said that was so terrible?

Women. He didn't understand women.

“I think I feel sick,” Quistis said, making a face at his back.

“Irvine Kinneas,” Zell growled at him. “Loser!”

Quistis grinned before reaching out and taking Squall's arm in a manner not dissimilar to the way Selphie had grabbed Irvine. “Come on, Squall. Let's go!”

H-Hey. What was she doing? Why was she holding onto him like that?

“Squall, let's get going!” Zell jerked his thumb forward to where the others were. “We have to get there before they do!”

Oh, grow up!

Squall didn't have a chance to get to tell him. Zell and Quistis were already running forward. Quistis was dragging Squall as she did so. Since it was his plan to get ahead of them and act as vanguard anyway, he allowed her to do so.

As they passed the slower team, Rinoa blinked and stared at the way Quistis was holding onto Squall, a large smile on her face.

H-Hey. Wait. What was he doing? Why was he letting her hold onto him like that?


	13. Deling City

The grand station that connected Galbadia Garden to Deling City was a popular spot for Galbadia Garden students. There was no oversight here by faculty and staff so they could relax and be more like normal students.

Walking through them, Squall was rolling his shoulder. They had run into another wendigo that, luckily, was by himself. Fighting him without Rinoa's gravity powers had been difficult and he thought he had strained his shoulder ducking out of its grasp.

Zell was stretching as Quistis took a prim seat on a bench while Squall went off to buy tickets. When he came back, Zell had managed to find a food stand. They split up some food and ate there as they waited for the others to arrive.

It took a few hours. They were moving slower. Eventually, right before the train was about to leave, they finally caught up. Selphie was still mooning over Irvine who appeared to be enjoying her attention. Rinoa was no longer holding his arm. She was walking just a little ahead of them and, upon catching sight of Squall and the others, she increased her speed slightly.

“How was the trip?” Zell asked, grinning at her face.

“I regret everything,” she said, passing by him quickly. Putting space between her self and Irvine's wandering hands.

Squall held up her ticket and she took it gratefully.

“Let's just get inside,” Squall said, trying not to think of why he was pleased that she wasn't as enamored with Irvine now after a few hours traveling with him.

Squall went in the train first. His eyes moved immediately to the ticket receptor. Rinoa and the others filed in behind him as he moved towards it. Selphie was skipping aboard as the machine accepted the ticket and dinged, unlocking the door for him.

Selphie was grinning as she stepped in close. “You caught on!”

Laughing, she raced forward into the compartment. Where the big window would be. Irvine walked onto the train as she disappeared. His eyes remained on her, a strange look coming over them as the intercom announced the imminent departure of the train.

“It's not that far to Deling City by train,” Squall said. “There's really no need to try to find a compartment.” This train wouldn't have the private SeeD car that the one going to Balamb possessed anyway.

Rinoa looked a little uncomfortable as the train's engine rumbled and the locomotive began pulling away from the station. She sighed.

“Deling City, huh?”

Squall raised an eyebrow at the behavior. He didn't get to ask.

“Hm,” Irvine grinned, murmuring under his breath. “Perhaps it's fate?”

Squall turned to watch as he walked through the door towards where Selphie was staring out of the large window. It shut behind him before they could see him reach her.

“So, what do we do about _him_?” Zell asked, making a face. “I don't really like the fact that Headmaster Cid sent us on a mission with someone who isn't SeeD.”

“It is odd,” Quistis agreed, crossing her arms over her stomach. “We have plenty of sniper trained SeeDs. Why couldn't he have sent one with the message?”

Rinoa looked between them, feeling suddenly very out of place. At least Irvine was designated to be here with them. She wasn't SeeD either and she had just forced them to accept her. Neither Quistis or Zell brought it up though.

“Hey, Rinoa.” Zell's call pulled her from her thoughts.

“Uh, yes?”

“What was he like? On the road?”

She shrugged. “I don't really know how to say it properly.”

“She means politely,” Quistis grinned as Squall looked at her with a hand on his hip.

Rinoa scratched her head, just behind her ear, awkwardly. “He kind of just kept flirting with us. I've never heard so many compliments in my life. He just kept going with them. Kind of made them all seem disingenuous. And he kept grabbing. I didn't really appreciate that.”

Squall frowned at her, his eyebrows furrowing, but Zell looked uncomfortable.

“Uh, no. I meant like, how was he as a fighter?”

“Oh!” Rinoa's face went red. “I-I don't know, actually. We didn't fight anything. I guess you guys must have gotten all the monsters between here and there.”

A sound from the front of the train had them turning. Before anyone could ask him to, Squall was already walking forward following after Irvine.

Selphie was at the window, as she usually was. She wasn't really looking outside though. She was staring down at her hands, her face bright red, as Irvine stood beside her, fawning over her.

“Selphie!” He moaned out like a lover. “We're destined to be together!”

“Y-Yeah, right...” she laughed nervously. She let out a long breath, trying to control her heart.

“A sigh of love?” he asked, grinning at her, leaning in close.

“N-No!” She turned to him quickly, her face even brighter red. She was so much shorter than Irvine, so tiny, that it seemed like he was bullying her somehow.

Irvine grinned at the look on her face. He winked and leaned back. Then, turning, he caught sight of Squall. His grin changed, became just a little bit cocky as he stepped forward.

“Pardon me,” he grinned. Though the polite thing to say, it sounded so rude somehow.

Squall stepped aside and let him walk out of the car and back towards the others. As the door shut behind him, Squall turned and looked over to Selphie. She was breathing just a little hard, her hand on her heart, her eyes downcast.

“My heart's beating so fast,” she said, mostly to herself. “What is this I'm feeling?”

“It's an important mission,” Squall said for lack of anything else that might be more helpful. “Better get used to the pressure.”

Selphie nodded. He knew very well that wasn't what she was freaking out about, but he would really rather not deal with the other issue. She seemed to accept his words anyway. Slowly, she returned to the window and began singing her train song again.

Another sound from the previous compartment had Squall returning. His feet moved faster this time and he wasn't at all surprised at what he saw.

“Rinoa!” Irvine moaned like a lover.

Obviously uncomfortable, Rinoa escaped from his gaze and ran to the other end of the car. Squall's eyes narrowed on Irvine but it wasn't him that snapped.

“Irvine Kinneas!” Quistis stomped, her angry instructor voice in full force. “You're playing a major role in this mission. Now behave yourself!”

Zell was rolling his eyes as Rinoa hid behind him. “This is why I don't like non-SeeDs on our missions. No respect. Hey, Squall. You want me to teach this guy some SeeD manners?”

Irvine tsked at them, making a face as he turned away. That joking face of his was so abruptly gone that it was almost confusing.

“No one understands me,” he said, like he might be disgusted with them. “Sharpshooters are loners by nature.”

Then why the obsession with the girls? Squall's eyebrow raised at him.

“We hone our instincts,” Irvine continued, pulling his hat low over his eyes. “Pour our whole being into a single bullet!” As if to illustrate, he slammed his fist into his hand. The smack of his leather gloves echoed loudly in the otherwise silent cabin.

“The pressure of the moment...An instant of tension...That's what...I have to face alone.” Irvine said to them, tossing his hair back. Squall rather missed the playboy persona to these dramatics. “It's not easy. So, like, just do me a favor and let me be. You get my drift?”

In other words, allow him to do whatever he needed to relax so he could bear that moment of tension later. Translation: Just let him mess with the girls.

Zell looked his Squall, his fist shaking as he resisted the urge to punch Irvine.

Irvine wasn't SeeD though. Squall had no power over him. He could threaten and cajole all he wanted, but Irvine was going to do as he pleased anyway. Considering his attitude towards his own headmaster, he didn't think he was particularly concerned with punishments for his actions.

Squall just shook his head. They would just need to deal with it. For now.

Zell growled and let out a cry of annoyance. He couldn't contain his own anger. He slammed his fist down against the train floor. Everyone stumbled a bit as the force of it shook the entire train. There was now a large dent in the metal floor where Zell's fist had landed. It only took a second before the intercom was switched on and the nervous conductor called out.

“ _Err, there was no damage to the train from that, er, minor vibration. I, uh, repeat...There was no damage to the train from that...minor vibration..._ ”

Squall shook his head at Zell. He was really going to have to work on his temper. And while Squall had no power over Irvine, he certainly had it over Zell.

***

It was nightfall by the time that the train pulled into the central station at Deling City. The hissing of the tired train as they stepped from the inner compartment echoed in the large hall amongst the other, similar trains.

“ _The train to the D-District Prison is leaving from platform 3,_ ” a robotic voice was saying over their heads as they moved towards the escalators up into the city.

“Never been here before,” Zell said, looking around with his hands behind his head.

“It's full of the best women,” Irving told him, grinning with his hands in his pockets. Zell glared like he was angry Irving had chosen to walk beside him.

At hearing him speak, Rinoa stepped just a bit closer to Squall. She was looking over her shoulder uncomfortably at Irving.

Squall was ignoring them. He was using his inventory to absorb his weapon. He didn't want to have it out walking through Deling City. While he had made sure not to look at the camera in the Timber TV studio, he didn't want to risk anyone recognizing him or seeing him as a threat. Better to put it away while in the city. There was no problem here his fists couldn't solve anyway.

He and Rinoa stepped onto the escalator first. The others were just behind him. They rode up slowly as the laughter of kids playing on the steps on the opposite side washed over them. Squall heard the others make an awed sound as they reached the top.

Deling City was clearly preparing for something. There were large balloons and lights in the sky. There was a lively energy here even though it was past nightfall. It looked like there was some large, city wide party going on around them.

“What's with this?” Selphie asked, laughing delightedly. “It's like a festival!”

“Are they preparing for something or it always like this?” Quistis asked.

“We're going to Caraway's Mansion, right?” Rinoa asked, oddly calm. Squall expected her to be as excited as Selphie at the city. “Just take bus eight.”

She pointed not very far where a bus stop was right there for those taking trains. A ticket seller was standing there. Tickets were only a single gill and they all purchased one then stood back to wait for the bus to arrive.

“The mansion is on the other side of the city,” Rinoa said, tucking her ticket away. “And the city can be a little confusing sometimes. The bus is just faster.”

“Sounds like you know this place pretty well,” Zell smiled.

Rinoa didn't answer him. She was looking away, still standing rather close to Squall. He didn't really care. He was curious, but, honestly, he mind was elsewhere.

This was where Laguna was from. It looked slightly different from how he remembered it in the dream, but it was still Deling City. He wondered if, even right now, Laguna was being held in a hospital somewhere after that fall down the cliff. Or maybe he was already...

If he even really existed. Squall had to remember he still was just a dream. There could even be some magic at work here he didn't know about.

Could even be faeries.

The thought of Laguna's ridiculous idea had him grinning wryly at his inner joke.

Beside him, Rinoa blinked at the sudden smile. Quistis and Selphie were talking about the city, Irving was winking at a passing girl, and Zell was growling at Irvine. No one was saying anything funny. So what was he smiling at?

He was lost in his own thoughts. That distant look in his eyes that seemed so dismissive when staring at someone was on his face. His thinking face, she realized. He was thinking something. He always seemed to be thinking something.

If she asked, would he share those thoughts with her?

Squall noticed her staring and his eyes focused on her. “What?”

She shook her head. “Nothing.”

No. He wouldn't share. He never shared his thoughts. He thought of something funny, but he didn't want to share it.

No, that wasn't right. It wasn't that he didn't want to. He just didn't. He was making no effort to get any closer to any of his friends. Jokes, stories, kindness. He was doing his best to stay aloof. And, whenever she got too close, he would do something to make her mad and push her away again.

Was he doing this on purpose? Why would he?

“What?” Squall asked again as she kept staring, his brows furrowing in annoyance.

She smiled brightly. “Nothing.”

Squall looked at her, confused at the sudden change in her expression. Was she laughing at him?

The bus pulled up to the terminal and they climbed aboard. Buses ran all through Deling City allowing the citizens to get anywhere they needed to go quickly. Open to the outside, they weren't really meant to be used for long periods. They were efficient though.

Squall and the others sat near the back, away from everyone else. They were ignored as those riding the bus were absorbed in whatever they were doing. They didn't care about the teenagers.

The buses also offered a nice view of the city as they passed through. The lack of windows didn't deter Selphie at all from leaning against the edge and staring out. The wind threw her hair about as she leaned out over the side.

Doing so pushed her hind end out as a sight for Irvine to ogle to his heart's content. Zell growled at him, Irvine smirked back. Quistis sighed.

Squall ignored it all as he watched the buildings pass by. Rinoa had chosen to sit next to him and he was pretending he wasn't noticing her staring again.

It didn't necessarily bother him that she stared, but he would dearly like to know what was going on in her head as she did so. Just what did she find so fascinating?

“Rinoa, do you know the stop we need to get off at?” Quistis asked her.

“Hm? Oh, yeah. It's not going to take too long.”

“Been to Deling City often?” Selphie asked, finally turning from the view.

“I'm familiar with the area,” Rinoa said, not really answering the question. She leaned back against the seat, frowning around her.

Squall took the opportunity she wasn't staring to watch her in turn.

The days out under the sun, fighting and hiking, though relatively short, had already left their mark on her body. Her skin, so pale before, had really livened up with a sun kissed tan. Her black hair seemed somehow darker, while the highlights in her bangs popped out all the more. It was too early to be building muscle, but she moved as though sore. No scars yet marked her body, from which Squall took satisfaction. However, her skin already had lost its overly glossy look after bearing the elements for so many days and nights.

He liked the change. It made her look more natural. More alive. Less like she belonged on a pedestal and more like she could fit into his arms.

Rinoa's eyes lifted and she caught him looking at her.

“What?”

He gave her a wry grin before turning away. “Nothing.”

Rinoa chuckled. She actually chuckled at his joke. Which was probably a first. She had understood he was mimicking her and found it funny. No one ever laughed appropriately with him before. He rather liked the warm feeling that came from having a joke laughed at.

As promised, the trip to Caraway's Mansion didn't take long by bus. They disembarked and looked up at the multi-story house set on a wide lawn behind a tall, stone wall. There was a gate, but it was wide open at the moment. There was, however, a single Galbadian soldier guarding it. Which Squall found laughable. What would a single guard be able do?

As the others climbed down after him, he looked over the windows. They were all drawn, hiding whatever was inside. A smart decision for someone who might have reason to fear snipers.

Unlike the lower ranks of his military, General Caraway wasn't a useless buffoon. He had been at his job for almost twenty years now and he was responsible for the annexing of Timber. He was a smart, tactically based man. Squall didn't understand why he would suddenly be seeking to oppose the order of his president so flagrantly.

Was it a coup d'etat? Was he seeking more power for himself?

No, that didn't seem right. If that were the case, why not hire them to kill the president himself? It wasn't like they would have qualms about doing so. They _were_ mercenaries. If he wanted the president's position, this was the most backwards way to go about trying to get it.

No, more likely, General Caraway was as afraid of the sorceress as the garden headmaster was. If she came to power, he would no doubt become her puppet. All the freedoms he likely enjoyed as general would be gone in the face of her power.

“Shall we?” Irving asked, gesturing towards the guard as the bus pulled away.

As he was leader – though he couldn't imagine why – Squall stepped forward first. He nodded to the guard formally.

“We're here from Galbadia Garden to see General Caraway.”

“Well, you've come to the right place then,” the guard grinned at them sarcastically. “General Caraway's mansion is right through this gate. Too bad I can't just let you walk in.”

What was with this guy's attitude?

Whatever.

“I believe he's been informed of our arrival,” Squall said, crossing his arms.

“Yes, indeed,” the soldier laughed at them, mimicking Squall's posture. Rinoa wondered if he would be as carefree if he knew that Squall could kill him with one hand. “However, I was ordered not to let you through until your skills have been tested.”

“What the hell's he talkin' about?” Zell asked, glaring.

Great.

“Test our skills? What does he want us to do?”

The guard grinned at the question. “A ways north of here, set at the end of a long peninsula, you'll find the old ruins that is the Tomb of the Unknown King. All you have to do is get there. Real simple. But, you have to bring back proof you were there. A code number.”

“A code number?”

“We came all the way out here for this?” Zell snapped, rolling his eyes. “Who does he think we are?!”

“Who do _you_ think you are?” the guard returned, sneering. “How do I even know that you're the ones he's waiting for. You could be regular Galbadia Garden students trying to see him. Which happens often. They all want to call on him to hope to advance themselves in the army later. If you are who you say you are, then this will be easy for you.”

He wasn't wrong. And Squall couldn't very well tell him no.

“Fine. What code number?” He asked as Quistis reached out to calm Zell down.

“There was a student from Galbadia Garden here yesterday, in fact, who has yet to return from the test at the Tomb of the Unknown King. Your objective is to go to the tomb, look for traces of this lost student, and return with his ID number. Of course, I don't recommend going in any further than you have to. You may never make it back alive.

“Here. A map for you. It's a rough sketch of the inside of the Tomb. There's no real landmarks once you get inside, so don't discount the map. I've heard it's a rather small place, but it's very easy to get lost inside. Not to mention, there's some powerfully defensive monsters living in the walls. The kind of stuff that likes the dark and cramped spaces. I wouldn't recommend fighting them. Got it?”

“Got it,” Squall said, tucking the map into his jacket.

“I also have information, if you're interested. But, uh, nothing comes free in this world.” The guard showed his palm, rubbing his fingers together. “If you know what I mean.”

Squall shared a look with Quistis. She shrugged.

Whatever.

“What are you doing?” Rinoa asked as Squall pulled out his PDA. With a press of a few buttons, he had transferred 3,000 gil to the guard.

“How kind of you,” the guard grinned at his bank account on his communicator. “It's well known that there's a GF that's taken up residence inside that tomb. If you're as good as you think you are, I see no reason you can't go for it. It might be worth your time. I hear that the GF is a real mover and shaker. However, you'll need to get deep inside the tomb to find it. I've heard that anyone who went looking for it either never returned, or returned beaten nearly to death. One man said he found the GF, but he lost it again and couldn't find it a second time. Maybe it's skittish?”

The guard laughed at them. “I also know a hint for defeating it from that man, if you're...interested?”

Squall handed over a second payment, ignoring the way Rinoa grabbed the arm of his jacket. She glared daggers at the guard, but he didn't seem to care.

“You're so generous,” the guard snickered. “The man was rather...let's say annoying. He did say, however, that the monster had a weakness. He said to defeat it, he had to stay above ground. So, there you go. Stay above ground. Hope it was worth the price!”

The guard was laughing at them more genuinely now. Rinoa and Zell were both growling at his attitude, but Squall didn't seem bothered. And as he was the leader, neither of them were going to speak over him.

Squall put away his PDA, looking at the man with that cold, unaffected gaze of his. Rinoa had never been such a fan of it as she was at this moment.

“That's helpful information,” he said, stopping the guard's laugh. “Hope it was worth the change.”

“Change?” The guard repeated, confused.

Squall shrugged. “I know how much Galbadian soldiers make. I feel like I'm giving to charity. Don't spend all that gil in one place.”

Rinoa was snickering as Squall turned and began walking them away. Her laughter was just as much an insult as Squall's words and she could feel the guard's glare on their back.

“What an ass,” Zell grumbled as they walked down the street.

“Seriously,” Selphie sighed. “It's so unprofessional.”

“If the Galbadian government paid their soldiers a more suitable wage, that sort of thing wouldn't happen,” Quistis said wisely. “It's hardly his fault.”

“That was a nice burn though,” Irvine grinned at Squall's back. “Seriously though, how much did that 6,000 set you back?”

Squall looked confused at the question. “Exactly 6,000.”

Irvine made a face as Rinoa giggled. “No, I mean how much did it hurt?”

“Not at all. I don't really care about the money.”

“Oh, you're one of _those._ ”

One of those what? What was he not getting here?

“It's not really a big deal. That guard probably only makes that much in a month.”

“Wait,” Irvine frowned. “How much do _you_ make in a month?”

“I don't know. I haven't been working for a full month yet. I've only gotten a few paychecks.”

“A few?!” Irvine was taken aback.

“You can just multiply them together to get a general idea,” Zell said helpfully. “Instructor, you're good at math right? What's the standard SeeD rank 10 pay in a month?”

“You're rank 10, Squall?” Quistis asked, smiling at him as though proud.

“No, not anymore. That's what's making it hard to calculate. I've gone up in rank since then. It's not as easy as just multiplying the two numbers together any longer.”

“Wait, you were already promoted?” Zell frowned.

“So was I,” Selphie beamed.

“What?!” He looked between them. “That's just not right...”

“Okay, okay!” Irvine cut them off. “I get it. Sorry I asked.” Damn SeeDs...

Rinoa was laughing again. She was standing a little close to him as they walked down through the streets of Deling City. The others stayed behind the two of them. Squall honestly expected her to go stand with them as they were more friendly and talkative. She didn't seem inclined to move from his silent side though.

“Do you know if there's a junk shop around here?” Squall asked her.

“Um, yeah,” Rinoa thought for a second. “I think it's just down the street from the hotel.”

“I know how to get there.”

“You do?”

“I was here as Laguna at one point. That's really the only place he went. This way, right?”

“Yeah...” Rinoa frowned as he picked the correct turn without needing to be helped.

Those dreams of his and the others were kind of scary. What did they even mean? She knew that Squall didn't want to talk about them, but she couldn't help but be curious. It was just such a strange and confusing thing. And it showed him the layout of a city he had never been to before. So did that mean it was reality?

The Deling City junk shop smelled of grease, hot metal, and gunpowder. It was like perfume. Squall took a deep breath of it as he came inside. That was a smell he enjoyed. It almost made him feel like he was at home.

The old man working on an impossibly large sword looked up as they came inside. He grinned at the sight of them and lowered his tools.

“Welcome! The six of you looking to buy weapons?”

“No. Looking to upgrade them.” Squall stepped forward and pulled his gunblade from his inventory. It thudded loudly as he set it down on the counter. Rinoa grinned to see the old man's eyes go wide at the sight of it.

“Now, that's a fine gunblade you got there, lad.”

The others were laughing and spreading out behind him, taking a peak at the wares offered. There were a great many pictures forming a portfolio of the man's previous work. Quistis was thumbing through a book that detailed full weapons for sale. Selphie somehow had already gotten her hands on one of the weapons inside a case and was holding the staff in her hands curiously. Irvine was over by the ammo, Zell was looking at leather selections.

Rinoa realized that this was the SeeD version of a day at the mall.

“How long would it take to upgrade the gun?” Squall said, pointing to it. “The ammo I'm using currently isn't armor piercing.”

“And you need the power to make it so. Well, you've come to the right place. That's a while-you-wait kind of upgrade. Shouldn't take too long. This is a fine weapon. You've maintained it well. The construction cost is set already, so all you need to do is pick out the materials.”

“I have the materials. What do you need?”

Rinoa watched as the two of them haggled over what was needed to upgrade the gun. Squall started pulling things from his inventory and placing them before the man. It was mostly only metal pieces, but the metal was of a superior quality to what the old man had in the shop.

“Nice having your custom,” the old man grinned, gathering the gun and supplies. “HEY! Benero! Got a gunblade for you! Fix it quick!”

The old man gave the blade to a man behind a small window in the back before turning with a smile in place once more. “Should be ready soon.”

“Excuse me,” Quistis got his attention, smiling at him. She pointed to the book. “How much for this whip here?”

“The Slaying Tail? Ah, that's a fine one. Very fast. Sharp spike there at the end provides some kick. For you, gorgeous, I'll knock off 10%. 200 gil and a pretty smile for an old man.”

Quistis obliged with the smile immediately, adding in a giggle at his charm. “I'll take it. Do you do trade ins? I won't need my chain whip.”

“Yeah, hold on. HEY! Zenero! Get me a Slaying Tail from stock!”

As Quistis and the man haggled over the price for trading in the chain whip, Squall turned to Rinoa and held out his hand.

“Give me your blaster.”

“Huh? Why?”

“Why do you think?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, we don't need to upgrade mine. I don't have anything to upgrade it with.”

“It's fine. Hand it over.”

“You don't know what 'fine' means,” Rinoa grumbled but she detached the weapon from her arm. She felt suddenly naked without it. Which was strange as she used to go without it all the time. She was spending too much time around the SeeDs.

“Hey, old man,” Irvine came over, holding an armful of ammo. “I want this. And I want that anti-recoil special on my Valiant.”

“You sure? That really detracts from a gun's looks. Makes it kind of ugly.”

“Please,” Irvine grinned. “I'm pretty enough to make up for it. What do you need?”

A few minutes later, the old man was handing the hidden Benero the gun for upgrades. Irvine was spending a great deal of money buying ammo, and Selphie was crying out in delight because she had found the nunchakus. And one of them came equipped with two spiked maces at the end of the blue wood body. Selphie was almost drooling.

“Mister! Mister! This one here! Right here! Can I have it?”

“Huh?” The old man blinked at what she was looking at. “That one? No offense, miss, but the Mace Pummel is a bit of a heavy hitter. Wouldn't a sweet thing like you feel more comfortable using one of the smaller models at the bottom?”

“No!” Selphie beamed. Taking her own initiative, she vaulted herself clean over the counter. The old man cried out, but she ignored him as she opened the case.

The blue handled nunchaku were right there. And she pulled them out with one hand despite the weight that the spiked metal would have made. The old man's jaw dropped slightly as she cuddled them. Like they were fluffy chicobos.

“I'm going to call it the Morning Star.”

“The what?” Zell made a face at her, standing with two pairs of gloves in each hand. “Why give a basher like that such a...cute name?”

“Because, the mace look like stars, don't they?” Selphie laughed, stroking the ends.

“Maybe. If you squint,” Zell frowned at her as Slephie put her now old nunchaku on the counter along with payment for the Morning Star. She was cooing to it like a baby as she returned over the counter. It was kind of scary in a way.

The old man started laughing. “Well, aren't you all a strange bunch. Ah, here we go. Young lady. Your Slaying Tail. Fresh from the box and made with only the finest quality ingredients.”

Quistis beamed as the old man took a box from the small window and brought it over to her. She pulled off the lid and her face lit up like he was giving her fine jewelry. The whip inside was much more beautiful and sleek than her last one, so he might as well have. She took the handle in her hand and smiled at the smooth feel of the leather grip.

“Perfect. Ah, and it's got great weight. Oh, I'm going to enjoy this very much.”

“Hey, old guy,” Zell came up to the counter. “These gloves here, what's the hide?”

“Those are made with fish fins. And those ones, I believe, are dragon fins. Uncommon.”

“And the metal?”

“Ah, that's special. That one is made with web silk from caterchipillars. The other is M-stone pieces. Both are very good. The dragon fin is more comfortable, but the caterchipillar web is much better for leaving a good dent. Doesn't wear down like metal does. And provides a nice little cushion for the knuckles. That's just a bonus.”

“I'll take them both,” Zell grinned. “And I want you to rip the web from these and the M-stone from these and switch them. I want dragon fin with caterchipillar web.”

The old man looked surprised for just a moment. Then he laughed. “What a great combination. Alright, give them over. I'll make the new weapon at no extra charge. HEY! Genero! Got a patch job for you!”

The old man passed the gloves back through the window before turning to them again. His eyes landed on Rinoa, the only one not to have upgraded or outright bought a new weapon.

“And you, darling?”

Squall set her Blaster Edge on the counter and the man came forward. He pushed up his tiny glasses as his hands moved over the body of the weapon. He pressed the release, letting the blade unfold from where it was tucked away. He made a sound in the back of his throat.

“Latest Blaster Edge model with the standard pinwheel blade. Low power, but the homing magnetic technology means you'll never need lose your weapon. Great for beginners and those not wishing to get in close to do combat. Hm, must say, rather boring in comparison to the others.”

Rinoa felt her face flushing almost in shame. Squall didn't appear bothered.

“She's having a problem with firing times. It's a bit too slow. It also leans too far left. She's having to overcompensate. The motor could use a bit of a tune up. Make it fly faster, hit harder. And the pinwheel blade is already dulling from use. I'd say sharpen it, but I think I'd rather just buy a new blade with superior metal.”

“I think I actually have something for this. Yes, here we are.” The old man reached under the counter and pulled out a box. “Top of the line for the Blaster Edge series. Only premium shooters even want this blade. It's a bit heavier, but it's got a great deal more striking power. The company doesn't make them better than this.”

Squall lifted the lid from the box and Rinoa's mouth fell open at the gleaming, slightly blue, metallic blade with golden inlay. It was longer, sharper than the pinwheel. It had a pointed rather than circular design.

“The fins give it stabilization,” the old man said as Squall lifted it from the box. “And that's a magic stone there in the center. Helps with accuracy. Don't know if you want it though. I wouldn't recommend this blade for those...unused to combat.”

“She'll take it,” Squall said over the man, setting it back down. “Now talk to me about the motor.”

“Ah, yes. Well, the Blaster Edge has a well known flaw in that the magnetic technology takes a while to disengage. Makes accurate shooting difficult. The left leaning tendency might just be a fluke in the design. I should be able to tune it up.”

“I want it better. Don't just tune it up.”

The old man laughed. “I like you. Alright, let's see what I can do.”

Mumbling to himself, the old man opened the blaster open to poke about in the electronics. He was at it for a few minutes. While he was doing so, Irvine's gun came back. It was less elegant now, but he purred over it all the same. He didn't seem bothered by it's physical appearance. He took his time loading it with his new ammo, like it was a lover rather than a weapon. Selphie was still cooing over her Morning Star, Rinoa thought it was probably more than just a SeeD thing.

“Okay,” the old man nodded, coming up from the blaster. “I should be able to improve on the mag tech, as well as fix the left lean. For added power and stability though, I'm going to need a part I don't keep in stock. A sheer feather from a thrustie. If you want to go hunt one down-”

“Selphie,” Squall called over his shoulder. “You still have those sheer feathers?”

“Hm?” she pulled herself from loving her new weapon with some difficulty. “Oh, yeah! Here.”

The old man was laughing as Squall passed over the 'feather'. It didn't much look like a feather. It was long, stiff, and didn't have a feather vane. It did have a small tuft of bristles at the tip, but that was nearly as stiff as the rachis.

“Ah, perfect,” the old man smiled. “Yes, this is a fine feather. Okay, I can have it ready while you wait. For the custom job though, it's going to cost. The blade, the upgrade, altogether I'm going to have to bump it up to 300 gil.”

“200,” Squall said. “And I'll give you three more sheer feathers for future use.”

“Deal!” the old man grabbed onto the bargain with a laugh. “Alright. HEY! Benero! Got another blaster to upgrade. Add the blade, I'll fix the motor.”

“Squall, what are you doing?” Rinoa frowned. “I don't have 200 gil.”

“It's fine. I'll pay for it.”

“Wha-No! You can't pay for my weapon!”

Squall pushed a few buttons on his PDA then looked up. “Too late. Already done.”

“Squall!”

“What?”

“I'm pretty sure our contract doesn't force you to pay for me! That's too much.”

“It's only 200 gil. I just gave away 6,000. It's fine.”

“It is _not_ fine,” Rinoa sighed, looking guilty.

She didn't really understand. She couldn't imagine what it was that would make him want to spend that much money on her.

She didn't know how he felt about it. She couldn't. His offer to teach her how to fight wasn't given in jest. He had meant it, and that meant he had taken her on as a responsibility. Like when upperclassmen would be put in charge of an underclassman during their first trip into the training center. It was his job to make sure that she learned and that she was okay.

She didn't know how to upgrade her own weapon yet. She had never needed to. He couldn't expect her to know something she was inexperienced with. So upgrading her weapon came under his duties as a teacher until she could do it herself.

Wounding himself to obtain her a GF was not dissimilar to an instructor picking one of the very low level GFs for their students to learn with. Teaching her how to fight. Teaching her to care for her equipment, providing her with said equipment. He had taken over her as a responsibility, therefore it was his job to provide for her.

Besides, 200 gil was nothing. The 300 gil was nothing too, but he was trying to demonstrate to her how to haggle. The importance of stripping monsters for parts. How to determine what a weapon needed in order to improve.

Zell's gloves, re-purposed and custom, came out first. Zell hastily traded out his current pair for the new ones. Then he started shadow boxing in the corner. The others were all admiring their new weapons as they waited.

Rinoa had fallen silent at his side. Which suited Squall fine. He didn't mind standing in silence. He was hoping she might be getting the others' enthusiasm for weapons. She would need to do this herself the next time she upgraded.

Their weapons came out at the same time. The Blaster Edge's new blade had been shined and buffed before installation. Squall's gun had been completely replaced. The new revolver was slightly bigger, darker, and extended further down the hilt. The hilt had been changed out for a different material, but the craftsman in the back had transferred Squall's key chain over to the new one. Rinoa's blaster's motor was unchanged, but the straps had been swapped out and a new girdle had been added at the end to wrap around her hand to prevent it from sliding.

Rinoa slid on the improved weapon and smiled at the new girdle. It made holding the weapon easier despite the fact that the blade was now heavier.

Squall was inspecting the new gun. His blade remained unchanged, only the gun half had been affected by the upgrade. Now bigger, it was also slightly heavier. However, the new gun would be able to discharge armor piercing rounds. Which, according to the guard's information, he would need against heavily defensive monsters in the tomb.

Rinoa pressed the concealment button and the edge sunk in on itself and folded out of the way. Like it had never even been there. Rinoa was thoroughly impressed.

“Thank you, Squall,” Rinoa said, smiling at him as she touched the weapon. “I love it.”

Squall nodded to her once before stowing his gunblade back in his inventory. Rinoa, however, couldn't stop touching the new blaster. She couldn't wait to get to use it.

“Your blade model is called the Valkyrie,” the old man said. “And, young man, yours is called-”

“Shear Trigger,” Squall cut him off easily. “Thank you. Rinoa, let's go. I want to stop by the item shop as well before we get going.”

The others were talking happily, like normal teenagers, as they left the store. It was the first time Rinoa had ever seen them being so normal. Sure, it was about weapon upgrades, but the reaction to something new was normal anyway.

“So, Squall,” Zell called up to him as they walked through the busy streets. “You wanna rent a car to get to the tomb? I don't know if they rent out ones that can fit all six of us.”

“All six of us aren't going,” Squall said. “I'm only taking two of you.”

“What? Why?” Rinoa frowned at him.

“It's excessive for more than that to go fetch a code number. Selphie, you especially I want to stay here in Deling City.”

“Huh, me?” She pointed to herself.

“Yes. I want you to gather information. I want to know as much as possible about the goings on in the government. What the people know about the sorceress. Anything you can find out.”

“Yes, captain!” She saluted him.

“Stop calling me that. I'm going to go to the tomb and I'm bringing-”

“Me!” Rinoa grabbed his arm quickly. She didn't realize how strange a move that was until everyone was looking at her. “Um, I want to go.”

Squall raised an eyebrow at her. Not quite asking why, but clearly curious.

She cleared her throat self consciously, releasing his jacket and carefully smoothing down the leather she had bunched up. “I...want to practice fighting some more. And I want to test out my new blade. I'm not going to get fighting practice in the city.”

She looked up at Squall from under her lashes. The lie sounded hollow to her own ears. She could only imagine how stiff it was to them. They were smart, there was no way they wouldn't realize that she was lying. But she really didn't want to stay here.

Squall nodded once. “Alright. It will be a good chance for you to fight different types of monsters. Irvine, you're also coming with us.”

“Huh, me?” Irvine blinked. “Why?”

“Because I want to see how you fight. I don't know how you'll react in a combat situation and if I'm going to be fighting with you, I want to learn how on a relatively easy assignment. Selphie, you and Instructor Trepe find information. Zell.”

“Yes?"

“I want a layout of the city. In case we need to fight our way out afterwords. I want more than a map, I want you to be familiar with every twist and turn.”

“Got it!” Zell jumped to attention.

“It's pretty late and I don't know how long we'll take at the tomb. We shouldn't take longer than a few hours though. We'll meet up at the hotel tomorrow around noon before going to the General's house. If we're not there, feel free to come looking. Move out.”

Selphie and Quistis turned and ran one way. Zell ran another. Irving winked at Rinoa. Squall gave him a dry look before turning to her.

“Know where we can rent a car?”

She nodded. “There's a place that way.”

***

There was no road leading to the Tomb of the Unknown King. It was, however, a long stretch of flat land. They only needed a car that wouldn't mind going off road. Rinoa shouldn't have been surprised that Squall knew how to drive. Somehow, she was.

“This one of those various skills SeeDs need?” She asked as she settled into the passenger seat next to him. Irvine was forced to sit the back.

“Absolutely,” Squall said before throwing it in drive.

He was fast, but skilled. The bumpy road didn't bother him. He kept such slick control over the vehicle that Rinoa was certain she had born rougher rides of paved streets. By the time they reached the Tomb, it was far too late to go in. Squall insisted on sleeping outside, on the old, broken cobblestone path that lead to the entrance.

“I'll take first watch,” he said as Rinoa struggled to light the campfire. He wasn't helping her this time, he was making her do it on her own. “Irvine, you've got second watch. Rinoa, third.”

“Wha-Me?!” She squeaked, losing control over the fire starter. Grumbling, she picked it up out of the thatch she was having trouble trying to light. “Squall, I-I don't know. I don't think you should be giving me such an important task. I mean, what if we get attacked?”

“Then you wake us up. Same thing I would do if I was on watch. Keep lighting the fire.”

“But what if I mess up?” She said, nearly wringing her hands.

“Then we're going to get eaten or hurt by a monster.” He was merciless. And she groaned at the thought of that sort of blame being on her head.

Irvine gave her a strange look as she went back to trying to light the fire. “You're not...SeeD. Are you?”

Rinoa jumped and Squall rolled his eyes under his lids.

“Well...no,” she admitted, trying to light the thatch again. “I'm his employer.”

“Then what are you doing here?” Irvine frowned at her. “Did you at least attend a garden?”

“Well...no...”

“Hey, what's with this? Why is she even here then?”

“Our contract is none of your business,” Squall told him, leaving no room for questions. “You're not SeeD either, Irvine, I'll remind you.”

“Yeah, but I'm at least garden trained! She can't even light a campfire! I don't think she should be put on watch either. No offense, cutie, but I'm not willing to take that chance.”

Rinoa flinched but she couldn't exactly complain. It wasn't like it wasn't true.

“She'll be fine,” Squall said, as though supremely confident. “I've seen her fight. I've never seen you fight, I've never trained you before. Of the two of you, you're the one I'm most concerned trusting on watch, Kinneas. Now, if I were you, I would get to sleep. Second watch is the worst one. Rinoa, try to cover the thatch from the wind before lighting it.”

“Oh, Hyne,” Rinoa cursed before moving her body to cover the tiny would-be fire.

Looking uncertain, Irvine leaned back as instructed. He pulled his hat down to cover his eyes so the light of the fire wouldn't bother him. Squall sat back, watching as Rinoa struggled. He made no offer to help. Not that she expected one. And when she finally succeeded, the thrill of victory was that much sweeter for achieving it on her own.

“Oh, yeah,” she nodded to herself as she and Squall fed the growing flame. “That's how we do it.”

“Well done,” Squall said in monotone. She didn't know if he meant it or not, but she was going to assume that he did and refuse to let it dampen her spirits.

“I can't believe that stupid man is making us come all the way out here for something like this,” she said, glaring over at the dark temple. She could hear water moving from behind it, could see winking moonlight from the small stream under the bridge. “It's ridiculous.”

“He's just doing his job,” Squall shrugged, uncaring.

“I'm not talking about the guard. I meant the general. Who does he think he is? Sending you out on a stupid thing like this to prove yourself. You're SeeD! Proof enough, right?”

“Not for everyone. Some still want our skills to be tested to determined that we're good enough. He just wants to make sure he's getting everything he's paying for.”

“No, he wants to flaunt his power! You're SeeD! You've pushed yourself harder than most anyone to earn that title. Everyone knows what Balamb puts the SeeD candidates through. Even if only half of it's true, his own soldiers are pathetic in comparison.”

“I'm sure it's over exaggerated. It always is,” he said calmly, poking the fire.

“I mean, yeah,” Rinoa laughed. “Those rumor about things like torture training are just ridiculous.”

“Torture training. That's funny.”

“Right? There's no way they would actually torture you as a lesson.”

“Of course not. It was more like a weekend seminar kind of thing.”

“Wait! What?!” Rinoa's big eyes turned to him in shock. “Are you telling me there was torture training?”

“Seminar,” Squall corrected. “And you got a full week off afterwords to recover.”

“What?!” Rinoa's voice ripped through two octaves. “That doesn't make it better.”

“What are you upset about? I thought you already knew.”

“I didn't think it was true!” She shook her head, trying to wrap her mind around a place willingly torturing it's students. “How is that even remotely okay?”

“I told you before. SeeDs _choose_ this path. We make the choice knowing that the seminar is a required credit. And it wasn't even real torture anyway. We had a safe word we could say if it was going too far. And there was nothing life threatening. It was all very controlled.”

“A safe word...” Rinoa repeated numbly.

“Mine was flowers,” he gave her a wry grin. “It had to be something simple, easy to understand, and unforgettable in cases of extreme pain. I thought SeeD, flowers. Who could forget that?”

“Squall, you say that like it's completely normal,” she told him, shaking her head. “Why in the world would anyone want to put themselves through something like that?”

“Because you can't understand torture until you've been subjected to it. And wouldn't you rather know ahead of time what might happen in a controlled environment? The likelihood of a SeeD being tortured is very low anyway.”

“It is?” She asked, smiling hopefully.

“Of course. We're not sources of information, which is what torture is predominantly used for. Most SeeDs that are captured are usually just killed outright.”

“What?!” Rinoa balked. “Squall!”

“Of course, the enemy would try to buy us first. However, a contract is firm, and we don't change sides just because one offers more. So you don't have to worry about Galbadia being able to buy me away from you despite their superior funds.”

“Okay, was not even close to worried about that. I'm more worried about the fact that I now know that you'd prefer to _die_ rather than just turn on me to save your own life!”

“You would prefer betrayal?”

“Well...no. But I would prefer you not throw your life away!”

“It's part of the job,” he shrugged.

Rinoa said back on her legs, letting out a long breath. She wanted to be able to argue with him more, to try to convince him how crazy his words were. But the look on his face was completely closed off. He knew all her of her arguments, he had already weighed and gone over them in his own head. This price was one he accepted he might need to pay at any time.

Rinoa just didn't understand. What could drive a person to this?

“Squall...don't you have anything to live for?”

He blinked, his stormy gray eyes focusing over on her. The look of confusion within them told Rinoa all that she needed to know.

“What are you talking about?”

“Don't you have...a family?”

“No.”

Rinoa's face fell with her heart at the look on Squall's face. It wasn't sad, or even bothered. It was like she had asked him if he had ever sprouted wings and flown before. Of course not. What a silly question. Why would she even bother asking something like that?

And that's what broke her heart.

“Squall-”

“What's that?”

Rinoa felt her body tighten in anticipation of a battle. But when she turned, it wasn't a monster that Squall was staring at. Just behind one of the crumbling columns a light was dancing. Flowing. Almost shimmering in the glow of the moonlight.

“What is that?” Rinoa asked, drawing back slightly. She didn't know either, but just assuming it was bad seemed like a safe bet.

Squall was already up, moving towards the lights. Because he was going first, Rinoa stood and followed after him. The two of them came around the side of the column. A long sigh of delight came from Rinoa at the sight of the firefly like, pink lights coming from a crack in the ground.

“What's that?” she asked, wanting to touch it. Fearing to do so.

“It's raw magic,” Squall said, kneeling before it. “Magic runs all throughout the inside of the planet. And, sometimes, if can come up from below in fountains like this. Didn't you learn that in school?”

“Well, yeah, but I've never seen one before.” She kneeled down next to him. The lights almost felt like the tiniest of breezes on her skin. “What kind of magic is it?”

“Only one way to find out. Take it.”

“What? Me?”

“Yes. Take it. See if Diablos wants to keep it. If not, you can put it in a capsule.”

“How?”

“Just reach out and take it.”

Trusting him, Rinoa lifted her hand and moved towards the light. She didn't even need to try to draw it up. Diablos absorbed it through her arm without her needing to do anything to assist him. The lights, swirling independently before, just zoomed towards her.

It only took a moment. Then the light was gone and she could feel Diablos sorting through the new gained power in her mind.

“So?” Squall looked at her. “What's the spell?”

Rinoa closed her eyes, listening to Diablos as he adjusted to the new power. Judging it to see if he was willing to use whatever it was.

“Flow? No, float!” Her eyes snapped back open with a laugh. “It's a float spell!”

Squall nodded and stood. Rinoa followed after him, grinning.

“He said he's happy to use float. Even though, technically, floating is defying gravity.”

“He could just think of it as loosening gravity to the point where you are no longer stuck to the earth.”

“He says he doesn't like your sass,” Rinoa laughed. “You know, it's kind of nice having him there now that I've gotten used to it. Even if the nightmares are weird if I forget to take him out.”

Squall nodded, agreeing to all of the statements before leading Rinoa back to the campfire. Irvine was already asleep. Squall took a seat across the fire from him. Rinoa sat beside Squall, wrapping her arms around her knees.

The constant swirling of cool air around his body was in direct contrast to the heat of the flames. It didn't escape Rinoa's notice that Squall tended to stay further from the fire than the others.

“Does the cold bother you?” She couldn't help but ask.

“No. Not when I have Shiva. Just one of the benefits of having her as a GF.”

“So is cold not dangerous to you anymore, or do you just not feel it?”

“Sort of a combination of the two. I spent a winter night outside when I first got her to test her. I was technically hypothermic in the morning, but I was fine otherwise. If I had unjunctioned her before warming up again, I would have been in trouble, but so long as we were connected, the lower temperature was completely natural to me.”

Rinoa made a thoughtful sound as she ran that over in her head. “Diablos doesn't have temperature control. But, sometimes, I feel like he's making my weapon lighter to wield.”

“It's possible. He is the master of gravity and time. You get his benefits as his master.”

Rinoa smiled. “I wonder if I could fall off a cliff without getting hurt.”

“Let's not test that theory.”

“Oh, so you can spend all night out in the snow, but I can't jump off of one measly cliff?”

“No. Start with a small ledge and work your way up. I could return inside at any time when I was out in the snow. You can't un-jump from a cliff.”

Rinoa started laughing and Squall gave her a look.

“I'm sorry. It's just, you're so very _serious_.”

And was that wrong? Why was she laughing at him? Was it somehow wrong to be serious? He just didn't want her trying to jump from cliffs. How did he know she wasn't serious?

“You should get to sleep,” Squall told her, rather than follow that line of thought. “You have your own watch tonight.”

“Oh, right.” That sobered her up. “I still don't know. Squall, that's a lot of responsibility. I'm not a SeeD. What if I mess it up?”

“Didn't you come out here to train?” He asked dully.

She flinched because they both knew very well she had been lying. At this point though, all she could do was nod along.

“Then it starts with watch. Trust me, the hardest part is staying awake.”

Rinoa giggled. Just slightly. But she giggled. She actually responded to his joke. That was twice in a row now.

He watched as she moved just slightly away from him, closer to the warmth of the fire. He pretended not to continue watching her out of the corner of his eye while she fell asleep.


	14. Tomb of the Unknown King

The next morning, after Squall and Irvine had awoken, the three of them cleaned up their campsite and faced the entrance of the Tomb. In the morning light, it was a lovely place. It was bright, covered in vines, and sparkling from the water that moved around it.

“We have a few hours,” Squall said, moving towards it. “Let's just get in and out as fast as we can.”

“Are we going for the GF?” Rinoa asked, smiling as she moved over the path. Nothing had attacked them last night, but she still considered her first watch a perfect success.

Squall shrugged, unconcerned. “Do you want to?”

“I do,” Irvine held up his hand, grinning at them. “I've never held a GF before. We don't use them at Galbadia Garden. But if I'm hangin' with SeeDs, might as well learn, right?”

Squall looked at him for a moment before nodding. “Alright. We'll have to move faster then. I'll take the rear guard. Rinoa, you and Irvine-”

“AHHH!”

Squall had his Sheer Trigger drawn and ready before Rinoa even realized what had happened. Irvine was slower than Squall, but only slightly. His new Ulysses was pulled out and aimed as two girls in Galbadia Garden uniforms came running, terrified and bleeding, from the Tomb.

“F-Float!” One was yelling desperately and uselessly.

They both ran past the three of them and away from the Tomb. Squall lowered his blade and looked at the thin blood trial one of them had left behind.

“Well, that's encouraging,” Irvine said, leaning his gun up against his shoulder.

“Were they in there the whole night?” Rinoa frowned, feeling unexpectedly guilty.

“Let's go,” Squall said, choosing not to sheath his blade. “Rinoa, you and Irvine take point. I'll watch our rear. Move quickly.”

Wondering what made him think she was qualified to take point, Rinoa stepped forward in time with Irvine to move towards the Tomb. Squall was just a step behind them. It was only knowing he was behind her – like a force moving her towards a cliff – that kept Rinoa going.

The idyllic scene of the Tomb on the outside couldn't have been more in contrast to the dark, cold, stone walls that seemed to suck all the life out on the inside. Everything was wet and damp from the twin streams running along beside the path. There was greenery, and the air was fresh. Ish. It smelled like mold and mildew.

“I can't see,” Rinoa said, frowning into the deep darkness before them. There were no lights, no cracks, no nothing to let in any sort of light.

“I got you,” came Irvine's voice from the darkness. “Rule number one at Galbadia Garden: always be prepared.”

As he laughed, a light from a scope appeared. He winked at Rinoa and attached it to the barrel of his Ulysses. He then kept it forward, grinning.

“And that, ladies, is how you do it. They don't teach you preparedness at Balamb, Squall?” Irvine grinned over his shoulder at the SeeD captain.

“Yeah. I brought a Galbadian student for my light,” Squall returned earning a dull look from Irvine and a laugh from Rinoa.

He turned from him to her, watching the way her eyes lit up at his words. This was getting dangerous fast. He was quickly becoming accustomed to the sound of her laughing at his jokes. It was definitely not good to get attached to something like that. He was only going to miss it that much more when it inevitably stopped coming.

Note to self: Stop making jokes. This was worse when no one understood or laughed.

“Squall, where are we going?” Rinoa asked as she looked around the damp stones surrounding her. She was suddenly fiercely glad that she wasn't claustrophobic. Even without that fear, it almost felt like the walls were closing in around her.

Squall pulled the map – which was rather unhelpful – from his pocket and looked it over. “Well, it's all basically just two big circles connected by four spokes. So it shouldn't be too hard to know where we are so long as we keep track of all our turns. I don't know how far in the Galbadian student made it, so we're going to have to comb through each section carefully.”

“Yeah,” Irvine said. “Or we could just stop right here a couple meters from the entrance.”

Squall looked up and caught sight of the shining metal of a discarded saber on the ground. Beside it was a Galbadia Garden uniform jacket that had been stained with what looked suspiciously like dried blood and a broken PDA.

The three of them stepped close and Rinoa leaned down. She made a face but didn't hesitate to reach into the jacket pockets of the discarded clothing. In the inner pocket, she pulled out a school ID and a picture of a smiling girl with short brown hair.

“Aw, he had a girlfriend,” Rinoa said sadly, stroking the picture.

“ID number,” Squall reminded her.

“Oh. Right. Uh, 154. Want me to write it down?”

“I've got it. Well, that's technically all we need. Not too late to turn back, Kinneas.”

“Psh! Please,” Irvine gave him a look. “I'm not scared of a GF, no matter how big a mover and shaker he is. Let's keep going.”

“We're not quitting halfway through,” Squall warned him. “If we're doing this, we're doing it.”

“Try not to fall behind,” Irvine agreed.

Rinoa looked between them, noticing the sudden tension in the air around them. Like they were measuring each other. Squall, a proven SeeD, and Irvine, from Galbadia Garden. The garden that strived without admitting it to be like Balamb Garden. They did their best to surpass them and never seemed to be able to cross into the territory that SeeD resided in.

Rinoa knew for a fact that Galbadia instructors told their students that they were better than SeeD. They weren't heartless mercenaries. They had honor and integrity. They were going into the all powerful Galbadian military unlike the money hungry, disloyal SeeDs who worked for anyone that would meet their price.

She could practically see Irvine oozing that confidence. That arrogance. He wanted to test Squall just as much as Squall wanted to test him. To prove he was better than SeeD. Rinoa had never seen Irvine fight before. She didn't know how he compared to Squall.

However, she had seen Squall fight. She had seen him take down Galbadian soldiers and monsters alike with almost equal ease. If she was putting gil on the contest...

“Rinoa.”

“Uh, yes?” she stood up quickly, looking at Squall.

“Call Angelo in here.”

“Huh? Why?”

“He'll be useful. Call him in here.”

Rinoa hesitated for a moment. Her dog had been following them since Timber. He would stay out of the way of monsters unless he felt Rinoa was in danger. They hadn't really been seeing much of him, but that didn't mean he wasn't here.

Rinoa lifted her fingers to her mouth and let out a single, ear busting whistle. It echoed down the halls and out of the Tomb. It didn't take long for her to hear the clack of claws against stone. She turned and faced her dog with a big smile.

“Hey, Angelo,” she said, leaning down to pet his head.

“Where did that dog come from?” Irvine frowned.

“Rinoa, keep him with us.”

“Sure, but why?”

“I told you before. Dogs are excellent at alerting people of danger and you told me that he was good at tracking. It's too dark in here to rely on a single flashlight. Angelo's nose will come in handy. And we might be able to use him to track down this GF.”

At the sound of Squall's voice, Angela turned to growl at him. Squall bared his teeth slightly in return, incising the dog further.

Rinoa frowned, rubbing the thick fur at his neck. “Angelo? What's wrong with you? It's just Squall.”

That did nothing to ease the dog's anger.

“Let's keep going,” Squall said. “We'll make sure that Angelo doesn't get hurt, Rinoa. Just make sure he's keeping on lookout.”

“Angelo,” Rinoa took her dog's head and made him look her in the eye. “Nose up, boy. Stay alert.”

Angelo gave no sign that he heard her, but Rinoa stood up, confident that he understood. Squall didn't question her about it either. He stood back and let the pair of them take point, ignoring the dark look Angelo gave him as he passed by.

“So, like, I'm no expert on canines,” Irvine said softly, “but I don't think that dog likes you.”

“Whatever,” Squall murmured, keeping pace with Rinoa.

At the first turn in the tomb, Squall allowed Irvine to pick which direction he wanted to go. This was, essentially, his mission after all. After a moment of deliberation, Irvine pointed to the right and they decided to follow the circle around and visit the ends of each spokes. The only way to find this thing was to be thorough.

A couple times as they were walking, Angelo would stop dead and his ears and nose would twitch as he sensed something beyond their perception. Whenever he did so, the other three would immediately stop and see if whatever it was came in closer.

“This place is creepy,” Rinoa said, rubbing her cold arms after the third such display. Angelo was walking just ahead of them, bathed in Irvine's light, as he sniffed his way down the seemingly endless turns of the maze.

“Don't worry, beautiful,” Irvine winked at her. “I'll protect you.”

“Uh, thanks?” Rinoa said, confused.

“Focus, Kinneas,” Squall told him coldly.

“Dude, I think you're an ice monster,” Irvine grumbled, shivering. “Why is everything always so cold around you?”

“Maybe you're just scared,” Squall suggested calmly making Rinoa giggle.

In his head, Shiva felt satisfaction at his chill. That's what he got for constantly coming onto women who didn't appreciate or invite such actions.

The slight tinge of possessiveness for Rinoa in particular was ignored by Squall. Even if it was technically his and not Shiva's.

The deeper into the tomb they went, the more Squall started to be able to hear what was alerting Angelo. The dog, then himself, would start stopping and listening at the same moment. It was almost funny, in a way, for Rinoa to watch. Squall even had a fur collar, just like Angelo. She wondered if he would be as receptive to being pet.

The sudden mental image of her rubbing his belly had her laughing to herself. Laughter that quickly faded when she remembered what his 'belly' looked like and she realized that she would enjoy rubbing his abdomen probably far more than he would.

The boys gave her a look about the random laughter that stopped as suddenly as it began. Neither of them questioned it though as they turned into what, Squall believed, was the first 'spoke' of the tomb wheel.

The noises were coming from behind them and Squall turned in time to see something run past the hall they had turned into. It had moved too fast to make out what it was.

“Squall?” Rinoa turned to him when she heard his footsteps stop.

“Let's just keep going,” Squall told her, backing up.

Squall didn't know what to expect at the end of the 'spoke'. The map wasn't very helpful. It showed that there was a room there, but not what it might hold.

“Woh, look,” Rinoa beamed as she came inside head of them. “A statue.”

“Kind of an ugly thing,” Irvine made a face at it.

Squall stepped forward between them towards the statue. Standing upon a thick stone platform covered in old, unreadable symbols, the statue looked like a cross between a bovine and a man. A pair of thick, heavy horns adorned its head and it wore what looked like very old style armor. The craftsman of the statue had been very thorough in carving it. Squall could almost pick out individual hairs even in this dark gloom.

Squall frowned as he came in closer. He heard Rinoa moving around the room behind him while Irvine shined the light about. Angelo stayed in the entrance though, growling into the empty room.

“There's nothing else in here,” Rinoa was saying.

The statue was staring straight ahead at nothing. Through Squall. But its eyes...

Stone didn't shine like that...

Squall blinked at the slight breeze of warm air. Breeze. Stop. Breeze. Stop.

Like it was breathing.

The eyes blinked.

“It's alive!” Squall yelled, jumping back.

He wasn't fast enough. The 'statue's' fist shot out and slammed against Squall's chest. He cried out in pain as his body flew back. He heard Rinoa cry out as Irvine clicked the safety on his gun. Squall was pushing himself up as the 'statue' stood up straight and roared.

“ _WHO GOES THERE?!_ ”

“It's the GF!” Squall warned, climbing back up.

Irvine let out two quick shots as the GF climbed down from his platform. The ground seemed to tremble as his hooves his the stone. The bullets did nothing but bounce off of its stone like skin. The GF slammed its fist to the ground and the stone buckled.

Squall, just on his feet, hit the ground as it rippled under him. Rinoa was thrown back against the wall and Irvine caught himself just before falling on his face. Angelo was backing up, growling. The GF ignored them and pulled his fist from the ground.

He was pulling something with it when he did. A long stone staff turned into a heavy, large stone mace with long, wicked spikes. It held the weapon in it's hands, growling at them.

“ _DIE, INTRUDERS!_ ”

The GF charged, swinging out his mace as he did so. Squall ducked and rolled to avoid getting pummeled and trampled. When he came up again, he had his gunblade at the ready. Rinoa was already shooting off her Valkyrie as Irvine unloaded rounds from Ulysses.

The guardian's thick skin just absorbed the force of the blows without being affected. It turned, snarling at Squall as he was the one who had gotten closest.

“Rinoa! Diablos, now!”

“Uh, right!” She closed her eyes and reached into herself.

Squall dove out of the way. The beast was focusing on him. Irvine cursed as he opened his shotgun and pulled out a new ammo pack.

“Squall, watch yourself! I'm using my demo ammo.”

“What?” Squall let out an involuntary cry as he felt the wind coming off of the giant mace as it passed right by his arm. That one had been too close.

Irvine chuckled to himself as he opened his package of demolition ammunition. It was his heavy duty firepower. These babies could knock a hole in a concrete wall.

Irvine jerked his hand back, snapping the barrel back in place. Laughing, he took a quick aim and let off all four rounds in quick succession.

The first burst against the GF's shoulder armor but caught his attention. The second hit his arm. The third half hit his shoulder, half missed. By then he was turning and the final shot landed square on his chest. Each blow drove him back slightly.

Irvine dropped back to reload. The GF roared in anger and jumped. When it came down, it slammed into the stone ground with far too much power for even its large size. The ground buckled again, rippling almost like it was water.

Rinoa cried out as her concentration was broken and she was thrown down. Squall still couldn't make it to his feet. And Irvine lost control of his weapon. It slipped from his fingers as he fell backwards and skidded away from him on the rocking earth.

Squall stood up quickly, breathing fast.

A real mover and shaker. Ha. So funny.

What was the other hint again?

Laughing at them with a deep, rumbling voice like boulders bashing together, the GF looked between the three prone humans.

“ _WEAKLINGS!_ ” It roared at them. “ _I WON'T LET YOU DEFACE THIS TOMB!_ ”

It started jumping again and they all cried out. The ground was rocking, shaking, and the three of them were getting tossed around like feathers in a storm. Worse than that, the stone ground was actually pummeling them as they came back down on top of it. Rinoa was crying out in pain. Squall was doing his best to protect his head. Irvine, who had bounced near the pedestal, was trying to hang on to the side and keep himself from being knocked around.

In the hallway, Squall heard Angelo cry out in distress at hearing his mistress's yelps of pain. The GF wasn't extending his power that far. The dog was staying out of it. But he was dancing at the edge, looking like he dearly wanted to change that fact.

“Squall!” Rinoa called out desperately as she was knocked between the wall and the ground.

Damn! He needed that GF to stop moving!

“Shiva! Blizzard!” Squall yelled, throwing out the spell rather clumsily.

The spire of ice that erupted from the earth missed the GF. However, with his next jump, he shattered the column and the shards of ice that flew slammed into his face, eyes, and ears. Crying out, he stopped and fell back.

The earth calmed. Squall jumped to his feet, ignoring the way his bruised and battered body complained at the movement. It didn't last long anyway. Shiva gave him a cure spell and he was only stiff, not pained, from the beating.

Growling, the GF sent Squall a dark, hate filled look. He brought back his mace and lifted it. Like he was going to slam it to the ground.

Stay above ground.

That was it!

“Rinoa! Cast float! Now!”

Her immediate instinct to question the order was tempered by all the fighting she had been doing with him recently. He gave an order in battle and she followed it. Reaching out for Diablos again, she threw her hand towards Squall.

“F-Float!”

The effect was instantaneous and more than a little disorienting. Squall's belly dropped like he had just fallen down the stairs even as his body rose. He didn't float very high, just off the ground. He scrambled for a second, but he didn't need to. It almost felt like he was walking on the air. Or swimming through water.

The GF charged at him and Squall jumped to the side-

-and he flew away. He twisted in the air reflexively and his feet hit the wall like a feather. He wasn't just floating. He was practically _weightless_!

“Float!” Rinoa threw the spell at herself this time. She cried out in surprise as he body came up off of the ground. She twisted awkwardly, trying to hold onto the wall like she might fall off of it.

“Hey! What about me?!” Irvine asked as the GF changed direction and charged towards him. “How about some love for the sniper, eh?”

Grinning, Rinoa turned towards him and said, much more confidently, “Float!”

Irvine's body detached from the ground and he made a sound of surprise as he clung tighter, for just a moment, to the pedestal.

The GF was still charging him down. Irvine let go and tried to push himself away. The GF was right on top of him, the mace pulled back.

Squall's cry was somehow louder than the beast's as he landed against his back and slammed the gunblade down. He had no weight to put behind it, so it was only muscle strength. The GF cried out as a long red mark opened and blood came spilling out. Using the GF as a springboard, Squall launched himself away as it turned and swung wildly for him.

Squall floated out of his reach and landed above the opening of the door. He crouched there, his hair floating around his head as he grinned.

“ _WORTHLESS NUISCANCE!_ ” The GF started jumping again and the three of them braced themselves, wincing in anticipation of the pain.

The earth rocked around them. The walls groaned in protest as the bedrock shifted. Irvine felt almost seasick seeing the way the normally stable earth rippled. It was somehow disturbing to see even as he knew it was magic that manipulated the stone.

Yet, despite that, the rocking earth didn't touch them. Floating as they were, all three of them were safe out of harm's way. Rinoa laughed in delight as she realized she wasn't getting thrown around. The sound of it focused the GF's angry eyes on her.

Roaring, it charged her down. Rinoa cried out and tried to swim in the air instead of pushing against the ground. Panic lit up her face as the stone mace was raised above her head.

Squall leapt from the wall like a bullet from a gun. He shot forward and twisted in the air. His gunblade came up as his body hit the ground. The mace came down and Squall grunted at the sudden force of the heavier weapon slamming into him.

“Squall!” Rinoa cried out.

“Irvine! Move her!” Squall yelled as he and the GF struggled against each other.

Irvine pushed away from the far wall. He skidded to a stop behind Squall, grabbed Rinoa's arm, then pushed off again, dragging her with him. He released her before he hit the other wall. He landed. She did not. She was left sort of flailing out in the air.

“Irvine! Don't just leave me here!” she snapped, twisting, trying to make her body obey.

“You'll be safe there,” he said, winking at her. “Leave this one to Squall and me, baby.”

“Irvine, you-” Rinoa growled, turning to look back at Squall.

“ _YOU THINK TO MATCH ME IN A BATTLE OF STRENGTH?!_ ” the GF growled at Squall. He sounded amused at the thought. “ _YOU'VE GOT GUTS, HUMAN!_ ”

Squall couldn't respond. His arms were shaking, his teeth clenched, as he tried to keep the enormous and heavily muscled GF from crushing him with his mace.

“Demo ammo, baby!” Irvine laughed, letting out two quick shots.

Squall dropped and rolled just in time to miss the mace crashing through his head and the spreading shotgun blast from peppering his body. He jumped up and floated to the ceiling. He gave Irvine a dirty look as the GF let out a cry of pain.

“Who were you trying to hit, Kinneas?!”

“I told you to watch out before, didn't I?” Irvine smirked. “You should be able to dodge that, shouldn't you, SeeD?”

Squall, deciding this was something best dealt with later, turned back to the GF. He was swatting at his face and chest, growling at the pinpricks of blood that had appeared at the shot. As though he could sense Squall's gaze, he looked up.

And grinned.

Then Squall watched as the wounds sealed themselves shut. Metal balls from the shotgun blast clinked against the ground as they were forced from his body. The long slash along his back healed leaving only a small bloodstain to prove it had ever been there.

The GF laughed at their expressions.

“ _I AM MINOTAUR! I AM THE EARTH! AND I CANNOT BE KILLED SO LONG AS I'M CONNECTED TO IT! YOU'RE GOING TO DIE HERE, HUMANS! THE SANCTITY OF THIS TOMB SHALL REMAIN AND HONORLESS GRAVEROBBERS SHALL BE KILLED!_ ”

Rearing back, Minotaur let out a cry as he threw his mace forward. Irvine barely dodged being impaled on it's spikes. It slammed into the wall, spraying rock shards. Rinoa cried out, covering her face as a few of the shards opened tiny nicks on her skin.

“Rinoa! Diablos!” Squall reminded her.

“R-Right!” Trying to ignore the fact that she was still floating out in the middle of the room with no way to move, Rinoa closed her eyes and reached once again for Diablos.

Minotaur leapt in the air, grabbing for Squall. He missed him by a hair as Squall jumped to the side and landed against the wall. Irvine was reloading. Squall lifted his own blade and fired three times in quick succession. Irvine fired a second later.

Minotaur covered his eyes and face as the hail of bullets rained down over him. Irvine's shots peppered his back, Squall's spread out across his arms and chest. The streams of blood the armor piercing and demolition ammo opened closed against almost as quickly. Minotaur was laughing at them as he lowered his arms.

Rinoa's eyes opened again, burning red. Turning in the air, feeling suddenly right at home being weightless, she threw out her hand as the power of gravity warped in the room.

“Dark messenger!”

Minotaur cried out. He was of the earth, he was even more susceptible to gravity than even the heavily armored monsters had been. It crushed him to the ground, stealing the breath from his lungs as his bones cracked under the force. He tried to cry out, but couldn't. His body nearly flattened on the ground as Diablos's magic slammed down against him.

And, at the same time, he was curing himself just as quickly. Squall cursed to himself to see Minotaur raising to his feet, already healing, as the gravity spell wore off.

“You're kidding!” Rinoa bemoaned.

“How are we supposed to kill that thing?” Irvine asked, reloading again.

Squall cast his mind around quickly. For defeating opponents that were able to heal, the easiest thing was to just to inflict more damage than their healing magic could repair. In other words, simply overload it by destruction.

That clearly wasn't working here. Which meant that they needed to find another option. In this case, remove what was making him heal.

Keep him above ground.

“Rinoa! Cast float on Minotaur!”

“What?”

“Just do it!”

Rinoa resisted the urge to question him further and just threw her magic at Minotaur. “Float!”

The three humans hadn't reacted well initially to the power of the float spell. The earth guardian whose power came from the stone beneath his feet reacted even worse.

Minotaur cried out as his hooves separated from the ground. He thrashed about, reaching for the stone again, but couldn't move back towards it. Float was separating him completely from the ground. He moved awkwardly, like he might not even know how to swim.

“Oh, yeah!” Irvine laughed, unloading his shotgun into the beast.

Minotaur roared in pain. His blood dripped to the floor but the ammo that could tear a hole in a concrete wall merely dug divots into his body. Minotaur turned and roared at Irvine, kicking out his limbs in an attempt to reach him.

“Shiva, give me aero on my blade,” Squall instructed, crouching low. He felt her acquiescence and a cold breeze started up from the metal saber.

Wind was earth's opposite. Its weakness.

Squall cried out and launched himself from the wall. He sliced across Minotaur's back in passing. The GF's back arched and he turned, swinging.

Squall was already gone. He landed against the ground, pushed off again, and sliced across Minotaur's side. He hit the corner of the room. Pushed back. Struck against Minotaur's shoulder and neck. His body raced past too quick to catch.

He landed again against the earth and brought up his blade again, twirling it around him. Magic erupted from the tip, encircling him. Squall stopped, his gunblade aimed dead center at Minotaur's chest. The magic crackled around him, lighting up the room with bright red and orange spheres of power. They contained all of the heat that Shiva absorbed to maintain her chill.

The power echoed into the barrel of his gun as Squall took aim.

The armor piercing magic shot of the gunblade. All power, burning energy. Concentrated into a single point of penetration that exploded upon impact and decimated flesh and metal.

Fated Circle.

Squall's finger jerked against the trigger and the magic all discharged at once. Minotaur roared out in pain and fury as the concentrated energy burst through his body. The large flash of light and smoke that followed obscured their vision.

“ _YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS!_ ” Minotaur roared through the smoke.

Squall felt something rush past him and he sliced out quickly. He felt his blade hit something, but it was too late to prevent him from escaping.

The air settled down and the light faded from their eyes and Minotaur was gone.

“Seriously?!” Irvine yelled loudly. “Squall, you let it get away!”

Squall resisted the urge to tell Kinneas to stuff it. He maintained his silence as he slid his gunblade back into its sheath. The float spell wore off and he felt his weight settle back down around him. It was actually rather comforting to have weight, substance, again.

“That was incredible, Squall!” Rinoa praised as her weight started coming back to her. She returned to the ground gently, beaming at him. “What was that?”

“A heat based magic shot.”

“Huh? But I thought Shiva hated the heat.”

“She does. To keep herself cold, she uses the heat to generate cold. It's kind of backwards. However, she often absorbs more than she needs. I can discharge that in a gunshot I call Fated Circle.”

“That was amazing!” Rinoa laughed, walking over to him as Irvine came back to earth. “Can Diablos do something like that?”

“I don't know. You only obtain that knowledge by working with him for a long time.”

Irvine hit the ground again and dusted himself off. “That's all well and good, but the GF got away.”

“He's not going to leave the tomb.”

“Yeah, how do you know that?”

“Because this is his home. GF don't like to leave their places of security. And the way he spoke. He considers himself a guardian of this place against grave robbers. He can't do that if he abandons it. So he's still here. We just need to find him.”

“And how do you propose we do so?” Irvine crossed his arms.

Squall turned to the entrance where Angelo was coming in, running for Rinoa. He was whimpered and she leaned down to rub his head and assure him that she was fine.

“Rinoa, Angelo can track based on scent, right?”

“Oh, yeah!” Her eyes lit up. “Squall, you're a genius! Okay, boy. Smell that?”

Obligingly, Angelo lifted his head and took a few sniffs of the air. To be sure, Rinoa led him over to the pedestal where Minotaur had been standing.

“Find him, Angelo!” Rinoa ordered excitedly.

Angelo put his nose to the ground and started sniffing. He followed Minotaur's trail to the door then barked. Just like that, he started running. Squall chased after him, the others just a step behind. He was trying to keep the turns they took in his head to make sure he didn't get lost. It was hard to do since Angelo was so set on tracking the scent.

He took them around the wheel and towards the center. The sudden flash of light from outside blinded them after so long in the dark and Squall had to shield his eyes as he stepped from the tomb and out onto a ledge above the stream that wound around the tomb.

Across the water, centered in the middle of the river and the circular tomb, there was a tall, circular room. The drawbridge to reach it had been pulled up and there was no where to swim across. Angelo barked at the drawbridge.

“He's in there?” Rinoa asked, petting Angelo's head. “Squall?”

He thought for a second. “If there's a bridge, there must be a way to lower it from this side. There's still two more rooms out here. We'll go to each one and see if we can find a switch of some kind. We only have a couple more hours to finish this and get back to Deling City. Let's not dawdle.”

They stepped away from the ledge and back into the darkness of the tomb. After a moment of debate, they decided to go right and come back around past Minataur's room. Finding the second room was easier than finding the first. There was an exit outside here and the light beckoned them closer when they came around the hallway.

“It's a waterwheel,” Rinoa said, stepping out onto the ledge.

“It's connected to these cogs,” Irvine pointed to the cogs that Squall was already silently investigating on his own.

His eyes followed the path of the cogs up to a chain in the ceiling. This was the closest thing they had found to a switch as yet. He moved outside with Rinoa, following the wheels of the cogs.

“We need to get the waterwheel moving,” Squall said at last, laying his hand against the old wood of the wheel. He looked down at the base of the wheel but the stone channel there was bone dry. It might have been connected to the stream, but there was no water running through it.

Turning around, Squall looked to see where the dry bed originated from. It continued around the side of the building and turned right, towards the back. One last room.

The three of them made their way that way. Angelo's ears kept twitching along with Squall's hand on his gunblade. Something was moving out in the tomb and Squall couldn't figure out if it was chasing them or not.

They reached the hallways leading to the backroom, lit again with light from the outside. But Irvine grabbed Rinoa's arm and stopped her from moving closer.

“What is it?” she asked, frowning.

“Squall, does that look like water to you?” Irvine asked, pointing.

Squall moved closer and frowned at the blue liquid on either side of the path. It almost looked like the streams that flowed through the rest of the tomb. There was something different though. Even in the sunlight it looked too shiny. Too blue.

Squall crouched down and picked up a pebble from the ground. He stood and tossed it.

It didn't splash into the water. It kind of smacked against it before slowly lowering down. The 'water' didn't ripple as it sank. It jiggled like jelly.

“Blobra,” Irvine made a face. “We need to be careful. Those things are tough. Don't even have real skin. Hitting them does nothing. And I think that one has set itself up as a trap there.”

“It's not a big deal,” Squall shrugged. “Rinoa, time to practice your magic. Blobras are weak against it, though it varies from blobra to blobra which spell will work best. Fire is usually a good start though. Burn it.”

“Right,” she nodded, rubbing her hands together. “Diablos, fire!”

She threw out her hand and a blast of fire shot from her palm. The blobra let out a scream that quickly faded as the fire burned it away. A curious smell like a cross between burning rubber and burning sugar filled the air and they all made a face. But the sound of water running filled the tunnel as the place where the blobra had been waiting ran with it once again.

“Woh,” Irvine breathed. “That...sucks. I once spent an hour beating my head against a blobra and all it would have taken was some magic?! That's it, I really want a GF now.”

Squall walked past the blobra trap first, to make sure it was truly clear and there had only been one, but Rinoa was just a step behind him. Irvine was still grumbling about time wasted as he followed them into the last of the tomb chambers.

“Squall, floodgates!” Rinoa pointed eagerly to the water being kept at bay by a large concrete door being held up with a metal chain. The dry stream bed below looked familiar.

“Sweet, let's open them and get out of here,” Irvine grinned.

Squall was already walking around to where the chain was anchored. He frowned at the way it was bolted into the wall. It required a key to open.

“Should we try to find it?” Rinoa asked, peering over his shoulder at the lock.

Squall cast her a gaze before looking at the metal. It was kind of old, slightly rusted. Squall would bet that, even with a key, that lock might not open.

“Shiva, blizzara.”

“What?” Rinoa blinked at the unfamiliar spell.

Squall lifted his hand and put it over the lock. A sudden and strong chill filled the air as the lock froze over under Squall's grasp. The metal groaned as the ice coated in and through it. A cold so deep that it actually disturbed the physical structure of the old metal.

Squall stepped back and pulled out his gunblade. He turned it around and swung down.

The pommel of the gun smashed against the frozen lock. Metal and ice shards exploded outwards as the sudden impact destroyed both. The ice was thawing even as it hit the ground. Such an intense cold wasn't meant to last for long periods.

“What was that?” Rinoa asked, awed. “That wasn't your normal blizzard spell.”

“No, it was stronger. I've used it to break metal and stone before. I don't have that many of them though, so I try to conserve them.”

As he spoke, Squall was reaching out for the concrete slab. Irvine was on the other side, grabbing for the other end. Working together, the two of them pushed the slab out down and out of its years old resting place. Water started rushing past them and down through the stream bed.

“Alright,” Irvine fist pumped. “Let's go get me my GF.”

“Let's check to make sure it worked first,” Squall corrected.

“Why do you gotta ruin my mood?”

“It's called being practical.”

“It's called being boring. But, whatever, practical. Let's go check to make sure it worked.”

Back in the second room, the waterwheel was not turning.

“What?!” Irvine's mouth fell open as they came inside. “You gotta be kidding me!”

“This is why we checked,” Squall said as Rinoa laughed. Crap. He had done it again.

Ignoring her mirth, he walked outside again to check the waterwheel. The stream bed was filled to the brim with rushing water. However, the waterwheel was still within it. Wondering if it had gotten stuck, Squall reached out and grabbed it.

He moved it quickly back and forth. It didn't feel stuck, it almost felt like it had been locked in place so it couldn't turn.

“Hey, Squall,” Rinoa called out from within. “Do that again.”

He grabbed the wheel once more and rocked it again, looking through the door at her.

She nodded and pointed. “This cog keeps trying to move when you do that, but this cog here is getting in the way and it can't.”

Releasing the wheel, he moved inside and followed where her fingers pointed. She was right. One of the cogs, slightly different from the others, was locking everything together. It almost looked like it wasn't even supposed to be there.

Squall reached forward and took protruding handle in its center in hand. He jerked up, against the force of the waterwheel pressing against it. Once. Twice.

On the third jerk, it slipped free and, like a well oiled machine, the cogs all started turning again. Squall lowered the locking cog to the floor as the chain into the ceiling turned. From the halls, distantly, he heard the heavy thud of something slamming against the ground.

“Alright. Now let's go,” he nodded, satisfied.

“Think you're so smart,” Irvine said snarkily as he led the way out. Rinoa was chuckling.

Somehow, as they had moved through the tomb, she had stopped walking beside Irvine and now, when they exited, she was beside Squall once more. She was smiling, holding her elbows behind her back, as she walked beside him. Like they were taking a stroll through a park instead of a tomb. And that smile was directed right at him.

He caught her eye and tried not to feel uncomfortable. It was a losing battle. He just wasn't used to nor welcome to having someone look at him that way.

“You should be keeping watch,” he said before turning away to look around.

“Squall, tell me something.”

“No.”

“When do you relax?”

“What?”

“When do you relax?” She repeated, emphasizing the words carefully. “You know, that thing you do when you're not constantly on guard and you enjoy yourself?”

“I know what relaxing means.”

“Oh, good. So when do you do it?”

“Usually not when I'm in an ancient tomb hunting down a GF and keeping my eyes out for blobras.”

“Don't be a smart ass,” she laughed. “Come on, you have to have some place that you relax. Like a library or a beach or something. I hear Balamb's beaches are beautiful.”

“I usually visit the beach to use the sand as resistance training or to fight water monsters.”

“Of course you do. I don't suppose you use libraries to fight book monsters?”

“Book monsters?” He gave her a dull look making her laugh again. “I use libraries for studying and research. As most other people do.”

“Squall, you can't be ON all the time. You have to take a break at some point. So? Talk to me.”

“You're supposed to be keeping watch.” He would really rather not have this conversation. With her or with anyone. What did it even matter anyway?

A flash of movement at the end of the hall caught his eye. His body tensed.

“How about a hobby? Everybody needs a hobby. Personally, I love reading. There, I just gave you something about me. Now it's your turn.”

“Rinoa, hush,” he ordered, his eyes moving around quickly.

Another flash of movement. To their side this time.

“No. See, that's your problem. You actively try to keep away from people. Well, Squall Leonhart, I'm not going to let you push me away. I'm going to-”

“Seriously, be quiet,” he repeated, his voice low but urgent. There! Again. Too fast to be just a single monster circling them. There had to be at least two or three.

“No way. I'm not dropping the subject until you give me something. So help me Squall, I am going to make you like me if I have to-AH!”

Squall grabbed her wrist and yanked her back so quickly that she didn't have time to react. All she knew was that she was suddenly pressed up against his chest and this conversation had gone way better than she had originally intended.

Then she felt the rush of air behind her as one of the monsters stalking them ran past. She heard the click of its claws on stone. Her eyes lifted from Squall's neck and looked over to see something dark and heavily armored running around the corner.

Irvine, who had fallen out of the way barely in time, jumped up to his feet again.

“What was that?” He asked, looking around.

“There's more than one,” Squall said, releasing a blushing Rinoa. “They've got us boxed in.”

Her heart was beating fast in her chest. She knew he was just doing his job, keeping her safe as best he could while training her. At the same time, it was hard to tell her rampaging emotions something so logical. All she could think was that he had grabbed her and, for however brief a moment it had been, he had embraced her.

Somehow, she couldn't see him doing the same to Irvine had the situations been reversed. Then again, he might have just let the monster hit Irvine. Maybe Irvine was a bad example.

“You alright?” Squall asked her, his sharp eyes not missing how flushed or out of breath she suddenly was. He hoped the monster hadn't hit her and he didn't notice.

“I'm okay,” she said, smiling quickly. “Thank you.”

He nodded once, accepting her gratitude as he drew his sword. “They're coming again. You still alive, Kinneas?”

“Of course I am, SeeD!” Irvine snapped, getting to his feet and pulling out his gun. “How about a little warning next time, eh?”

“I thought Galbadian students were always prepared?”

Irvine growled as Rinoa laughed. Damn. He was making her smile again. Why couldn't she just not get his dry sense of humor, or be annoyed at it, like everyone else?

Rinoa squeaked in surprise when Squall grabbed her for the second time in so many minutes. This time though, instead of pulling her in, he pushed her backwards. She nearly fell into the stream beside the walkway and only didn't because he had wrapped his arm around her to prevent just that from happening.

Oh, and another monster ran by. That was probably more important. For the life of her, probably literally, she just couldn't stop thinking about the way he kept holding her.

“Kinneas, shoot the next one that charges,” Squall ordered, stepping back away from Rinoa, struggling not to think of how soft and warm her body was.

She was a distraction and he was going to end up killed because of her. It was worth it if he could keep feeling her sweet, pliant body in his arms. Maybe he was indulging a little much as he saved her, but he was allowed to enjoy himself.

No matter what Shiva might say in discouragement about time and place.

“Demo ammo?” Irvine grinned.

“Demo ammo.”

Squall's eyes moved around quickly scanning with sight and sound to try to detect where the quickly running monsters might be coming from. They were circling them. Deliberately.

Irvine was in a similar position as he loaded his gun. He clicked the barrel back in place. Even Rinoa was trying to keep track of where the monsters were. Angelo, staying close to her, was low to the ground, growling at the amount of sensory information coming in.

Squall and Angelo noticed the monster charging first. He gave out a cry of warning, reaching behind himself to grab hold of Rinoa. Unnecessary – if pleasant – because the monster had targeting Irvine this time.

“Got you,” Irvine grinned.

The loud blast of the shotgun echoed painfully in the narrow corridor. However, the demolition ammo had the intended affect. The charging monster's momentum was negated with the force of the bullets crashing against its armored head. The force against its brain sent the thing to its knees and the four legged beast skidded to a stop at their feet.

Armored all along its head and body, wicked sharp claws gleamed at the end of its hands. Its head was tiny in relation to its body and its shell was so thick that the demo ammo had only dented it, getting stuck in some places.

“What is it?” Rinoa frowned at the beast. It was still breathing.

“An armadodo,” Irvine said, looking it over. “Don't have these beasties in Balamb, do you SeeD?”

“No, but I've fought them before on trips to Galbadia,” Squall said, lifting his blade. “That shell is almost impenetrable. But its underbelly is totally vulnerable.”

He slammed the tip of his Sheer Trigger down and through the downed monster's heart. As it died, roars of anger echoed through the tomb. Its pack lamenting his death.

“Ugh, Hyne, Squall. Why do you gotta play so perfect?” Irvine asked, making a disgusted face.

Squall frowned. And what was that supposed to mean?

Quick thumping of feet against stone alerted them a second before the next armadodo charged from the opposite end of the hall. Irvine didn't get his gun up in time. Squall flipped his blade and smacked against the rampaging monster's legs. As it flew past him, Squall kicked it in the air.

The armadodo landed belly up, struggling against the rigidity of its own shell to lift its body. Irvine took that opportunity to shoot it in the heart.

“See!” Irvine gestured to him. “That's what I mean! You look like an instructional video! I've seen Zell throwing punches and he doesn't look nearly so robotic as you!”

“Sorry for my efficient and well aimed blows,” Squall said dully.

Irvine growled. “That is not what I meant and you know it.”

Squall had no idea what he meant. He didn't even understand what had prompted this rather random and confusing conversation. He did his job expeditiously and without unnecessary drivel. How did that make him bad?

“Irvine, maybe now isn't the best time-” Rinoa started.

“Rinoa, sweetie, not now. If you have time to grill him about hobbies, I can ask what's wrong with him and why he can't act like a human!”

“Don't yell at her,” Squall said quite calmly.

Another armadodo started towards them. Squall lifted his blade and let out a shot that made the beast rear back in pain. As it was up, Rinoa shot off her weapon and sliced it clear through the neck. Its body joined its fallen brethren and they had to move around it to keep going forward.

“So she talks and you don't say a word, but you snap at me?” Irvine growled, reloading.

What was his problem? Squall had told Rinoa to be quiet as well. In fact, he had been ruder to her than he was being to Irvine now.

“You SeeDs are so damn arrogant,” Irvine shook his head. “I can't stand how superior you all think you are! That, right there! That look! You're looking down on me! Well, I'm not going to let it slide like she does! I'm not afraid of you!”

Squall lifted his gunblade, drawing back his arm. Irvine felt his heart stop as he took aim at him. Squall was going to kill him for that. And all he would need to do was kill the lone witness to get away with it.

Squall threw his sword and it sailed through the air. He wasn't going to kill him that easily! Irvine let out a shot, his eyes closed and his body tense. Waiting for death.

Rinoa's cry opened his eyes again.

The armadodo that had been charging at him was collapsed almost at his feet, Squall's blade still wiggling in its throat. Squall had dropped to his knee, blood from the gunshot wound that had largely missed him pouring down his arm and onto the ground. He reached up and grabbed his right shoulder as Rinoa dropped down beside him.

“Squall!” She started to reach for him then stopped. “Diablos, cure!”

Blue light arched from her hand to Squall's wound. Squall's face was drawn slightly in pain, but he hadn't even cried out when he had gotten hit.

Irvine looked between him and the armadodo, realization setting in. He had just shot an innocent man that had saved his life at the same moment.

“I'm fine,” Squall was telling Rinoa, trying to keep her from touching the blood soaked leather of the jacket. A benefit of black: blood didn't stain.

“No, you're not fine!” Rinoa said, her eyes swimming.

“It's a scratch,” Squall assured her, forcing himself to his feet. He released his shoulder, but his hand remained immobile. Like he was actively trying not to move it.

“Don't lose focus during a battle, Kinneas,” Squall said, stepping towards him. He reached out with his left hand and took hold of the blade. He jerked it out of the armadodo and the slick sound of the monster's blood nearly made Irvine sick. Because he couldn't help but think that it had come from Squall's shoulder instead. “That's how you die.”

“Squall!” Rinoa ran towards him as he started walking away. She didn't resist giving Irvine a dark, dirty look as she passed him though.

Angelo was no longer cowering, the armadodos had finished their assault or been killed off. There was no one else to stop them as they made their way back to the drawbridge. Irvine was suddenly quiet as he walked behind the two of them.

Rinoa was alternating between throwing Irvine dirty looks and trying to resist grabbing Squall's injured shoulder. The bleeding had stopped thanks to the cure spell, but the blood that had already spilled would occasionally drip down onto the stone.

But Squall hadn't said a word to him. He didn't even look mad. Irvine had never felt so guilty in all his life, and Squall didn't appeared bothered at all. That only made it worse.

The bright sunlight of the drawbridge only highlighted the damage and the guilt. Because now Irvine could see the bright blood from Squall's shoulder on his jacket and glove and it made him physically sick.

He had taken the shot on accident. Really, it had been more of a twitch of his fingers than any real decision to kill Squall. But regardless of how it had happened, Squall was now injured, carrying his sword in his non-dominant hand, and he had saved Irvine's life in return.

“Squall, are you sure about this?” Rinoa asked, running in front of him before he could finish crossing the bridge. “You shouldn't be fighting like that!”

“I'm fine.”

“Stop saying you're fine! You're not fine!” She stomped her foot in agitation.

“I told you both before, if we're doing this we're doing it. We're running out of time. So let's just finish up and get back to Deling City. I can rest there.”

“Squall...” Rinoa moaned. She didn't want to hear him say that he was going to work more. “You can't keep doing this to me! You're giving me gray hair.”

He actually looked up and inspected her hair. It was blowing gently in the breeze. The golden color of her highlights was shining in the sun. And he could still detect the flowery scent of whatever perfume or soap she used in the air.

But not a gray hair in sight.

“Your hair looks fine to me,” he said.

“That's not what I meant,” she grumbled, but she couldn't help but reach up and touch it gently. She knew for a fact it had to be messy and frizzy. It was nice hearing the compliment nonetheless. Even if he didn't quite mean it the way she took it.

“Maybe she's right, Squall,” Irvine said softly, stepping forward. “I don't need a GF that badly.”

What was he talking about? He had been all for it a moment ago. Honestly, Squall was starting to miss Zell at this point. At least he, as a fellow SeeD, knew better than to worry over something as minor as the scratch on his arm.

Even if the scratch was closer to a gouge. That was so big that it would likely scar even despite having two cure spells applied to it simultaneously almost immediately after sustaining it. The point was it wasn't bleeding and it wasn't life threatening. He still had one more hand.

Honestly, he was pretty sure he had received worse wounds training with Seifer.

“We're already here,” he said, indicating over Rinoa's head with his chin.

“Squall, please.” Rinoa put her hands together, almost begging him.

“Demo ammo isn't easy, even if it does just graze you,” Irvine agreed.

“Don't make me order you,” Rinoa insisted.

“Stop it,” he stepped back from her, his eyes shielding themselves against her concern. Like that might do more damage to him than the gunshot. “If either of you wants to prevent me from fighting, then I suggest you fight more yourselves. Rinoa, get your float spells ready. Irvine, ammunition. Let's finish this and _then_ I'll get medical attention.”

Deliberately, Squall stepped around Rinoa and continued forward. It was all she could do to keep up with him.

He was doing it again. That brash, cold voice of his invited no one to get closer. In looking at him out of the corner of her eye, Rinoa could see that it had worked on Irvine. He had a distant look in his own eyes, refusing to even look at Squall's back.

She didn't understand. Irvine had shot him! Even if it was on accident, he still took a bullet while saving his life. Shouldn't he be upset? Shouldn't he be snapping?

Quistis said that he only got truly mad at people he liked. So, by that math, he didn't like Irvine. And he had just pushed her away when she attempt to get closer to him. Squall wasn't reacting. Wasn't engaging. He was distancing himself.

This wasn't introversion. Rinoa knew what that looked like. Even unfriendly people would engage, especially when they were angry over something.

This was a deliberate attempt to separate himself from them. He was cutting himself off from them on purpose. He got angry at the people he liked not because he was comfortable enough around them to be angry, but simply because he did like them. And he didn't want to. So he pushed them away and made them not like him.

The realization came to her in the short time it took to cross the bridge. It hit her like a ton of bricks and the implication of it was startling.

Why was Squall so determined not to like people? Especially when he so clearly liked them? What was it in him that made him think pushing them away was the right thing to do?

Then the three of them stepped into the heart of the Tomb of the Unknown King. The sarcophagus holding said king sat in pride of place in the center of the room. There was no need for Irvine's light because the room was so bright from the sunlight outside.

And Minotaur was there, standing atop the sarcophagus. He was still as a statue until he saw them approaching. Then his body unfolded as he stood to his full height. He bared his teeth at them in anger, growling dangerously.

All the marks from their battle were healed now after his time away from them spent connected back to the earth that was his strength.

“ _DETERMINED HUMANS! YOU'RE GOING TO PAY! I HAVE MY BIG BROTHER WITH ME THIS TIME! BRO!!!_ ”

With a loud and disturbing rumbling, the ground started shaking under their feet. They could hear the water from the river outside splashing erratically with the movement. The three of them flailed, trying to keep their balance as the world upended around them.

The stone in front of the sarcophagus rippled and looked like it melted away as a blue fur covered hand reached up and through it. Rinoa gasped as yet another GF pulled himself from the depths of the earth he had been resting in. His horns were yellow, his claws were slightly longer, and he pulled his mace up with him. He was almost an exact duplicate of Minotaur-

-in miniature.

“Oh, my goodness!” Rinoa squealed, her eyes lighting up to see the smaller big brother. He was shorter than they were!

“ _what's up, bro?_ ” the tiny creature asked.

“Squall, look how cute he is!” Rinoa said delightedly, almost grabbing Squall's injured arm in her excitement over the itty-bitty GF.

“ _you think i'm cute, human?_ ” he asked, his little voice nearly making her squeal again. “ _then come over here and bend over. i'll show you how cute i am._ ”

Rinoa's happy face fell and she took a step back away from the crude creature. “I changed my mind. Can you just capture it already?”

“That was the plan,” Squall said, brandishing his weapon left handed.

Rinoa and the smaller GF moved at the same moment. She threw her hands out at Squall yelling, “Float!” as the tiny GF jumped clear in the air.

He came back down and the ground pitched violently. Rinoa fell with Irvine, but Squall remained floating in the air. He pushed down and jumped himself up to the ceiling.

The GF made to jump again and Rinoa threw another spell, at Irvine this time. He perched himself on the wall and Rinoa was tossed about when the GF came down again.

Squall launched himself from the ceiling. The GF lifted his mace and caught Squall's left handed slash against the body.

“ _a disadvantage of being weightless, little man, your attacks have no power._ ” The GF threw him back easily and Squall twisting in the air, landing above the door frame.

His attack, however weak it had been, had given Rinoa the time she needed to cast a final float spell on herself. She pushed up against the ground and launched herself to the ceiling. She flipped just in time to land on her butt against the stone.

“Two more, Rinoa,” Squall instructed.

“Diablos!” Rinoa threw out both hands simultaneously.

Once again, Minotaur reacted badly to being forced to fly. His elder brother though didn't look the slightest bit disturbed as he floated up from the ground. He continued giving the three of them dark looks and grinned.

“ _you've just made it easier for me to catch you. i won't allow anyone to destroy this tomb._ ”

“Why are you two so concerned with us trashing this tomb?” Irvine frowned.

“ _no matter who it is, we won't allow this place to become defiled._ ”

“ _GREEDY GRAVE ROBBERS WOULD NEVER UNDERSTAND!_ ” Minotaur added, brandishing his own mace angrily. “ _BRO, LET ME HAVE THE ONE IN BLACK!_ ”

“ _mess up again, and i'll gut you myself, bro,_ ” the older one growled, nodding his permission.

His eyes trained on Irvine, the older brother launched himself easily from the ground. He soared towards him with ease like the float spell didn't bother him. Irvine dove out of the way and the older brother hit the wall. Stone shattered and cracked under his power.

Squall, happy to oblige him, charged at Minotaur. The bigger brother swung his mace out. Squall dodged it midair, grabbed the staff, and let Minotaur swing him around until his boot planted into his face. Squall kicked off again and Minotaur flailed.

Rinoa looked between Irvine and Squall, torn for a moment. Help the injured SeeD, or help the not-as-skilled student?

Oh, forget it! Irvine had shot Squall! She hoped he got a little roughed up.

She turned and aimed her blaster. Unlike Squall's weapon, she didn't need to be able to put her weight behind the Valkyrie. It shot with the same power regardless of her.

Faster now, sharper and far more accurate, her blade sliced cleanly through the air. It slipped around Squall and cut through Minotaur's arm. He roared angrily, directing hateful eyes at her. Both of them were stuck, neither of them comfortable moving in the lack of gravity.

Rinoa caught the blaster and let out a breath. She did not like fighting.

A loud shotgun blast followed by the louder shattering of stone turned her attention from Squall and back towards Irvine in time to see the older brother's mace explode with a hail of demo ammo and stone. Irvine, who had been backed into a corner, grinned at the weapon's destruction.

“How good are you without your weapon, pipsqueak?” Irvine asked, smirking.

“ _till better than you, mortal,_ ” he returned. He lifted his fist and broke it down with a cry against the stone wall Irvine was perched upon.

The fracturing off the walls threw Irvine off of the wall and left him floating out in no man's land with no way to move in any direction.

The GF launched himself from the wall and tackled Irvine. The two of them flew across the burial chamber and slammed against the far wall. The younger brother had his hand around Irvine's neck, staring him down despite his tiny size.

Rinoa lifted her arm to help him, but needn't have bothered. Irvine cocked his gun at an odd angle and took a shot that did little more than graze the GF's side. It was enough, however, to get him to release his hold.

Irvine took in great gulps of air, sputtering a bit, his throat sore. The GF, thrown back from the force of the gunshot, growled as his blood peppered the ground below.

Irvine let out another shot, then another, that the GF swiftly avoided.

Rinoa turned back to where Squall was trading blows with Minotaur. The hollow clang of metal on stone echoed loudly between the two of them as Minotaur's mace and Squall's Sheer Trigger bounced off of one another.

But Squall was losing ground. Fighting left handed made him slower and weaker than usual. Minotaur had figured that out and was trying to press his advantage.

Rinoa aimed again. The blaster fired with a soft click. The Valkyrie was singing as it rushed through the air and dove towards Minotaur.

The tip of the blade embedded into Minotaur's right arm making his roar out in pain. Rinoa flicked the return switch and called the blade back. The force of it yanking out sent blood flying and Minotaur's arm dangled there, useless now.

Rinoa caught the Valkyrie again and beamed. There, that evened the odds a bit.

“ _BRO, THAT GIRL!_ ”

The elder brother looked away from Irvine and towards Rinoa. He traced the blood and blur fur on her weapon over to his brother's arm and he growled at her.

“ _okay, mortal. gonna need you to stop._ ”

The older brother jumped down towards the ground. His open palm slammed against the stone just a moment before float forced him back up. Just long enough for him to create another stone mace out of the rocks there.

He turned and flung the half formed thing up.

Rinoa screamed. She felt a swoop in her belly like the ground had dropped out suddenly from beneath her feet. Wind rushed by her face and her eyes snapped open to see the ground rushing towards her. The float spell was wearing off already?!

She stopped suddenly right above the ground and she heard the elder brother's mace explode against the ceiling where she had been. Gravel and dust floated down around her. She twisted her body around and the float spell kept her knees from hitting the ground.

She felt a rush of purely masculine smugness from Diablos as he made no hesitation to tell her that she could thank him for saving her hide. A float spell might keep her from hitting the ground, but he, as the master of gravity, could still manipulate her weight.

Rinoa laughed and pushed herself away from the floor. She shot back up towards the ceiling and the elder brother growled at her.

“Hey! I'm your opponent, tiny!” Irvine yelled, shooting at him to catch his attention.

Squall and Minotaur, both using their non-dominant hands, were back on even ground – metaphorically speaking. And when it came to fighting with the disadvantage, Squall was more experienced. Seifer often used to try debilitating him to make the fun last.

With a wide swing, Squall knocked the mace from Minotaur's hands. The beast watched it go with wide eyes and turned back in time to see the barrel of Squall's gunblade pointed at his chest. A single ammo piercing round threw him backwards. His body slammed against the wall and he stayed there, breathing hard and unable to move.

“ _SORRY, BRO,_ ” he growled. “ _YOU GOTTA STOP 'EM._ ”

The elder brother growled low and deep. “ _gonna kill you all for that._ ”

Squall turned, leaning his gunblade against his shoulder as he looked back at Irvine. Rinoa knew that look. She had seen it before aimed at her.

He was watching how Irvine fought. He wasn't going to help. And if he wasn't going to help, Rinoa wasn't going to help either.

Irvine was shooting one handed now, using his other to prepare ammo that he changed out quickly so there was only a minor break in between his firing.

The elder brother was jumping out of the way. One wall, then another. To the ceiling, down, then to the side. One jump ahead of the bullets at all times. Until he jumped in front of Rinoa. Then Irvine cursed, jerking up his hand and the shot he had automatically taken smashed a hole in the ceiling.

Rinoa jumped backwards, away from the GF. The GF simultaneously jumped forward, towards Irvine who was trying to reload again after his pattern had been so roughly broken.

The GF lowered his head. Irvine dropped his arms down. He caught the GF against his forearms but couldn't totally prevent his horns from opening twin puncture wounds on either side of his abdomen. The heat of his blood trailed down to the hem of his pants. Irvine grunted in pain as the GF pinned him against the ceiling, forcing him upwards and digging the horns in deeper. His gun slipped from his numb hands and slammed to the ground.

The two of them struggled against each other for a moment. Irvine planted his feet against the ceiling, trying to push himself down and force the GF off of him.

Squall looked down as the float spell wore off. His booted feet hit the ground. If the spell had worn off on him, then it was only a matter of time before...

He looked back up to where Irvine was pushing. It took a few moments, but the spell started wearing off on him as well. Irvine's eyes opened as he realized he was about to get slammed to the ground under his own weight plus the power of the GF's strength.

Instead of fighting further, he suddenly stopped struggling.

“What's he doing?” Rinoa frowned at his sudden stillness. The corner of Squall's mouth turned up slightly.

The spell faded and left Irvine suspended above the GF, who's spell had not yet faded. But the GF grunted because now Irvine's full weight was being laid against him. He growled and turned, throwing Irvine towards the ground.

Irvine twisted so he landed on his feet. He jumped forward, scooped his gun up. He turned and fired in one smooth, quick motion. The GF, unprepared for such a move, cried out as the shotgun shells peppered across his body.

Blood fell down against the stone and Irvine had to roll away to avoid it. He grunted in pain as doing so twisted the new holes in his stomach. He had no cure spells to take away the pain. Rinoa thought he deserved it for shooting Squall.

Squall still threw a cure spell at him. He was far more mature than she was was. She almost resented him for it even as she respected that he was being the bigger man in the situation.

As the magic of the spell settled into his blood, Irvine stood up straight and patted for his stomach as though to to make sure the wounds were still there. His hands came back bloody and he made a face at the sight of it on his fingers.

“Give up?” Irvine asked, grinning, lifting his gun to his shoulder, totally arrogant.

The GF was breathing hard against the ceiling, growling at them with one eye shut against the pain as he held his hand against the chest as though to stop the bleeding.

“ _i die before i allow grave robbers to desecrate this tomb._ ”

“Getting a little dramatic, aren't we?” Irvine laughed.

“ _you might as well kill me, because i won't stop fighting._ ”

“I would sooner destroy a pump action than a creature like you. Besides, I know what happens when GFs die. I still plan on making it out of this tomb.”

The GF's face moved up in a grin. “ _can't trick you, eh? i still won't allow you to destroy this sacred place. we are the guardians here, and we won't allow you to desecrate it._ ”

“I think you misunderstand,” Squall said, stepping forward. “We're not grave robbers.”

The GFs eyes widened, then narrowed in disbelief. “ _now lies? you take me for a fool._ ”

“The only thing we wanted from this tomb was the GF said to reside here,” Irvine promised. “I have no intention on harming the tomb itself.”

“Woh!” Rinoa said as she started coming back down to the earth. She landed daintily beside Squall and smiled up at the GF. “Did you know the king entombed here?”

“ _AYE,_ ” Minotaur growled from the wall. “ _HE WAS A DEAR FRIEND OF OURS MANY YEARS AGO. OUR FIRST AND ONLY MASTER. WHEN HE WAS LAID TO REST HERE, WE PROMISED TO PROTECT HIM IN DEATH AS WE FAILED TO DO IN LIFE._ ”

“Aw,” Rinoa sighed. “That's so sweet.”

“It's very honorable,” Squall nodded once.

Irvine groaned as he straightened his hat. “Aw, Hyne. I can't very well try to claim a GF that's already got such a good purpose in life.”

“ _what?_ ” The elder brother's eyes widened as he and his brother started floating back down. His hooves hit the ground as his brother crumpled against the wall. In connecting to the earth, they immediately started healing. Neither tried to attack though.

“ _you have defeated us. it's your right to claim us._ ”

“You won't be happy traveling with me. Not when you could be fulfilling this purpose,” Irvine winked at him. “It's fine. I'll take the glory of the victory, and you can remain here to protect your friend.”

The GF's face softened as he straightened, the wounds in his chest fading. “ _thank you, human. for understanding._ ”

“Hey, I get it. I know what it's like to want to protect something from your past. Sometimes, the past is all you have. So it's important to cherish it. Hey, SeeD, I thought we were on a time limit here? What are we still doing loafing around for?”

“Waiting on your lazy ass, Kinneas,” Squall returned, sheathing his blade. “Minotaur, you alright?”

“ _OF COURSE I AM, PUNY ONE! YOU ARE A STRONG OPPONENT. DO YOU WISH TO GO ANOTHER ROUND?_ ”

“I think I'll pass,” Squall said as Rinoa laughed.

“ _thank you,_ ” the older one said again, nodding his head to them. “ _the exit is very easy to find from here. you need only walk forward and you shall be free._ ”

“It was an honor, uh...You know. I don't even know your name,” Irvine grinned at them.

“ _i am called sacred. the honor is ours._ ”

“Sacred. Minotaur,” Irvine tipped his hat at the two of them in turn. “Shall we, guys?”

“Yeah. I want to get Squall back to the hotel so he can rest. And maybe a med clinic. Actually, let's just go to the med clinic first.”

“I told you, I'm fine.”

Rinoa started telling him again that he didn't know the meaning of the word as the three of them started towards the exit.

The sound of moving stone behind them had them all turning quickly. Squall was already reaching for his weapon, immediately thinking that the two brothers had betrayed them.

The movement of stone wasn't coming from either brother. Both of them looked just as surprised to hear it as the three of them.

The lid of the sarcophagus was being pulled back. A cloud of dust erupted from within.

The being of light and dust that rose from the coffin wearing ancient armor froze the room. Rinoa grabbed Squall's uninjured arm and hid behind him as his hand tightened on the hilt of his blade. He didn't know what he could do against something non-corporeal though.

“ _Master..._ ” the brothers breathed at the same time.

Squall looked over to them then over to the being rising from the coffin.

“Ah, thank goodness,” the being said, stretching. “Feels good to be free. You know, I've been thinking. Why do we have to entomb those traveling to the other world? It does make moving on quite difficult. I think I would have preferred being buried in the earth.”

His eyes moved over to the brothers and a soft smile came over his face.

“My friends, you've done more than enough to fulfill your vow to me. A vow that I maintain was unnecessary. You were not the cause of my death. Please, friends, leave this place. See the world again. Fight as mighty guardians as you once did with me.”

The sun shined through the room and a breeze flew in off of the water. And just like that, the being of the dust blew away into nothingness, like he was never there.

The younger brother was wiping quickly at his face. The older's eyes were downcast.

“Nope!” Rinoa declared, turning and walking out.

“Yep,” Squall agreed, walking after her. So not his area of expertise.

Irvine watched him go with a grin. “Nice to see there's one thing that guy can't do.”

He turned back to the brothers who remained staring at the sarcophagus.

“Sacred? Minotaur? Hey, I don't know if I can promise you the world, but I can promise that I'm probably going to be hanging around that guy for a while. I've got a past to chase, and a path to take. I don't know where it's going, but I know I don't have any choice but to walk down it. If you want to come with me, you and I can be friends. If you want to stay here and cherish your memories, then I respect that. It's up to you.”

***

“Ah, the sun!” Rinoa beamed, letting the light wash over her as she stepped out of the tomb. It felt good to breath fresh air again.

“Let's go. We're almost out of time and the drive back will take a little while,” Squall said, stepping past her.

“Seriously. When do you turn off? I want to know so I can capture the moment for posterity. And to prove that you're not an alien. Zone and Watts were taking bets.”

Squall didn't dignify that with an answer. He moved to the rented car and opened the front door. As he did so, Irvine was stepping from the tomb. There was a grin on his face.

“Hey, Squall. You gotta teach me how to use magic! Also, lend me some magic.”

“Get your own magic, Irvine,” Squall returned, sitting down into the car.

Rinoa smiled between them as she slid into the passenger seat.


	15. General Caraway

“Man, that curaga stuff is fantastic,” Rinoa said, running her hands over Squall's newly repaired arm and shoulder. He had half taken off of his jacket so she could examine him. She was pretending to inspect the damage. She was actually admiring the lines of his muscles.

His arms were, in fact, like spun steel. The new scar there was puckered and still slightly angry, but it was healed and the bullet wound was like a memory.

“Seriously, where can I get that magic?” She asked, continuing to touch him liberally. His skin was rough, but she liked the texture, His muscles were hard but his arm moved readily enough with only minimal encouragement from her.

Squall was mostly ignoring her. Or trying to. He was pretending to focus on cleaning his gunblade one handed while she indulged herself. However his eyes were nearly crossing at the feeling of her soft hands on him. It took all of his not inconsiderable willpower to not groan, drop his head back, and beg her to keep going.

It was clinical, he repeated to himself like a mantra. She was only doing it as a concerned colleague.

The others were talking around them. Selphie was jumping on the hotel bed, Zell was practice sparing with Irvine in the corner. Quistis was sitting back, doing her best not to not watch the way Squall was letting Rinoa touch him.

He was letting her touch him! He didn't even appear to notice. Were anyone else to touch his bare skin, he would have given them a dirty look at the very least. His skin would have been cold almost like death thanks to Shiva. They would not at all be welcome to continue doing so. Yet he was allowing her to do it like it was nothing.

Rinoa certainly noticed a chill to his skin, but it was more like he had been outside on a cool day than a freezing, icy death that would drive away others. He was looking away, letting her see his healed wound. Mostly because she wouldn't stop nagging him until he did. Only partially, and in complete denial, did he do it because he liked having her touch him.

“Curaga is hard magic to get a hold of,” Selphie said, bouncing up and down, nearly touching the ceiling, on the bed. “And use is controlled because it can have some side effects.”

“Like what?” Rinoa looked away from Squall's arm.

“Oh, nothing much. Necrotic skin, premature baldness, sterility, and moderate to severe brain damage.”

“What?!” Rinoa grabbed for Squall.

He rolled his eyes while Selphie laughed. “Don't listen to her. That's not why curaga is controlled.”

Rinoa let out a relieved breath. “Oh, man. I actually got scared there for a second. So? Why is it controlled? Is it addicting?”

“In a way.” Squall reached down and took hold of his jacket to pull it back up. “Curaga is incredibly powerful healing magic. It can pull you back from the brink of death if you're given it in time. And the euphoric sensation afterwards could be addicting. People would kill themselves to bring themselves back for the thrill. It's a thin line though and not everyone makes it.”

“Oh,” Rinoa frowned, sitting down beside Squall. “That's sad. You won't do that, right?”

“There's no thrill in death.”

“You don't act like you have much thrill in life either,” Rinoa giggled, but she was still concerned.

Whatever. Squall started loading his gun.

“We need to get ready. It's about time to meet at General Caraway's. He wanted us there before dark. Selphie?”

“Yes?”

“Continue your report.”

“'K!” On the next jump, Selphie fell backwards spread eagle so her body landed supine on the bed where she continued to bounce for a minute, grinning.

“So, like I was saying, not everyone is happy about the sorceress. But her approval rating is going up for some reason. It's kind of weird. I think they're just happy she's on their team. There's this sort of 'we're-better-than-everyone' kind of attitude here in Galbadia. So her working for them really kind of cements that belief. And the popularity is infectious.”

“It's like herd mentality,” Quistis chimed in. “The more people believe, the more people start believing. Almost like a disease of some sort.”

“She's throwing a parade and city wide party tonight,” Selphie said. “Which is what I think the general wants to use as cover for our attack. It will be the easiest time to have access to her.”

Squall nodded, accepting that. “Zell, you find any escape routes?”

“Yeah, I've got three of them. One leads through the sewers. That's my least favorite, but I gotta admit it's also the least likely to be checked. And it's accessible through any manhole.”

Squall nodded. “Then we're ready. Kinneas? Are you ready?”

“Tch!” Irvine grinned cockily giving him a look like the question was ridiculous.

Quistis led the way from the room, discussing with Zell how he had come to find the escape route through the sewer in the first place. Irvine followed a step behind Selphie, not very subtly checking out her backside as he did so.

Squall was right behind them, then stopped when he realized he had left Rinoa on the bed. She was sitting there, holding her weapon arm, a frown on her face.

“Rinoa?” He called out making her jump.

“Oh, sorry,” she forced a smile, standing quickly. “I'm coming.”

She didn't have to come. In fact, he was rather sure he would prefer it if she stayed here. She didn't need to get wrapped up in their missions.

She smiled at him though as she passed into the hotel hallway. She was coming. She just followed after them like it was the most natural thing.

Whatever. The assassination was being carried out from a distance anyway. He would be able to escape with her from the city immediately afterwards without anyone being the wiser. In fact, an obvious non combatant like her might make everything easier.

He said none of that. He kept to himself as the four of them hit the street. Rinoa stayed right beside him as he led the way through the city. Though she participated in the easy going conversation going on behind her, she didn't leave Squall's side.

What was she even doing there? Was he doing something to encourage this? It was nice to have her right there, her perfume barely tickling his nose as he watched the way her body moved with easy, light, and graceful steps. Which was exactly why she shouldn't be there. He needed to figure out what he was doing that was provoking her and stop.

Before he got used to this.

Rinoa's happy mood slowly faded the closer they got to General Caraway's mansion. By the time they were back in front of the money hungry guard, she had fallen completely silent and was standing half behind Squall like she was trying to hide.

“Oh, you're back,” the guard laughed at the sight of them. “I assume you got it?”

“154,” Squall said immediately. He didn't feel like playing games right now.

“154, that's correct,” the guard nodded. “I'm guessing the student didn't tell you that himself.”

“His gear did. We didn't find the student.”

“Can't say as I expected you to.” The guard shook his head. “Such a tragedy. Oh, well, you've fulfilled your end. You may pass. There will be a servant inside to show you where to go. The general will be with you shortly. Don't touch anything.”

Squall wasn't even listening as he and the others passed. His mind was faraway, thinking.

Both Balamb and Galbadia Garden were joining forces with the general of the Galbadian army. But why? He had worked out why General Caraway would want to fight against the sorceress that was soon to be his superior. He could even understand Galbadia Garden helping him. That Garden was closely tied to the Galbadian army after all.

No, what he didn't understand was why Balamb was agreeing to the team up. SeeDs were notorious for not liking to be forced to work with people. For people, sure, but not really with. It was a subtle but powerful distinction for them. They should have preferred to send in a sniper SeeD. And Quistis was the only one of the four SeeDs that had any real length of experience. A high profile case like this shouldn't have been given to any SeeDs below rank 20.

Whatever. There was really no point in Squall thinking about it. SeeDs aren't meant to question why, that's what they had always been told. Squall had his orders. He was only meant to follow them without clouding his duty with needless thoughts.

“ _I don't want you all to become machines..._ ”

Headmaster Cid's words came back to him suddenly. With a sudden ferocity. And all Squall could think about was the garden clones. Thoughtless. Mindless. Obedient. He suddenly felt a great deal more in common with them than he ever did before.

That was not at all a comfortable thought.

Squall found himself stopping in front of the mansion as it hit him.

“Um...”

Rinoa's shuffling footsteps behind him along with her soft, uncertain call, had him turning.

“Is my contract...still in effect?” She asked.

Of course it was. Timber wasn't liberated yet. What did she want now?

“Don't leave me in this house, okay?” She made a face, like her stomach hurt and the nausea was a few moments away from making her sick. “Want me to explain why?”

Her expression wasn't one like she wanted to share. More like she felt obligated to do so if she was giving him the order. Squall knew better than anyone the desire to keep some things to yourself, he often wished some people would extend him the same courtesy.

Besides, they didn't have time right now.

“You should know by now. Just tell us what to do and we'll do it.”

The relief that swept over her face was followed immediately by a bright, apologetic smile. She nodded, appreciating what he was doing by not asking. “Okay, then. Thanks.”

Squall turned to the door and knocked. It opened almost immediately by a servant who kept their face down. They nodded to him and gestured him to follow. Rinoa stayed a step behind Squall, almost holding onto his jacket.

Quistis was a step behind her, staring at the way she clung onto Squall.

Why wasn't he stopping her? He had never before allowed anyone to hang onto him the way he was allowing Rinoa. She was constantly beside him. He had permitted her to follow him to the Tomb of the Unknown King, he wasn't stopping her from coming here. Even with a contract binding them together, there was no reason for him to be this accommodating of her.

It was more than infuriating. It was slightly humiliating.

Quistis had always been there for him. She had never allowed herself to be weak so that she could stand beside him with pride. She had pushed herself to the absolute limits and broken records that most others never dreamed of. She knew she was beautiful, she knew she was smart, she knew she had fine tastes. She had a _fan club_ , for crying out loud!

But it was this girl? She couldn't fight without Squall's help. She had to be forced to come out from hiding behind his shadow. Sure, she was pretty, but she was also useless. And SeeDs were supposed to always appreciate function over form.

The unfairness of it burned Quistis as she followed the two of them through the mansion. The servant led them up to the second floor office, and the entire time Quistis had to watch as Rinoa crept closer and closer to Squall until she was practically hanging from his shoulders.

The general's office was rather large, made for accommodating his immediate subordinates. There was comfortable seating in front of a desk. In a small alcove against the near wall, a statue of what appeared to be an angel held out her empty hands with a quiet look on her face. Immediately adjacent to that, for a reason Squall couldn't imagine, there were shelves built into the wall containing martini glasses all lined up in a row. There wasn't even something to drink beside them. There was literally no purpose to that wall that he could find.

“The general will be with you shortly,” the maid said, bowing to them before leaving them alone in the room. She gave Rinoa a look before she left but no one else but her noticed.

Quistis moved past the two of them and sat herself down gently on a sofa.

“Swanky,” Zell admired as Selphie immediately went to the windows. “How much do you think a place like this goes for?”

“You can't afford it on a rank 7 salary,” Selphie told him, laughing. Zell growled at her angrily.

“Gonna have a place like this myself one day,” Irvine said, moving forward. He proceeded to make himself comfortable at the general's desk. He leaned back in his chair, setting his feet up on the desktop like he was right at home.

“Have you met the general before?” Quistis asked him.

“Nope,” he shrugged. “Never had a reason to. But he asked for the best sharpshooter at Galbadia Garden, so of course he got me.”

“How many missions have you been on?” Zell asked curiously.

“Tch,” Irvine rolled his eyes. “'Cause you've been on so many more than me? Isn't this your first time, Zell? I don't think you get to question me when you haven't popped your own cherry.”

Zell was growling, shaking his fist at him. “That's it! You're goin' down!”

“Enough!” Squall planted himself firmly between the two men, holding out his hand and catching Zell's shoulder before he could take more than a few, angry steps.

“Zell,” Quistis snapped at him, in full instructor mode. “You are a SeeD and you will conduct yourself with the proper attitude that title implies.”

“You can't be serious!” Zell looked flabbergasted. “This guy is the one instigatin' and _I'm_ the one gettin' chewed out?”

“I am not the boss of him,” Squall said softly, looking him directly in the eye. “I can't stop what he's doing. I am, however, the boss of you, and you _will_ stop what you're doing.”

“Squall, come on!” Zell jerked back. “This ain't even right!”

“It is what it is,” Squall said firmly. “Go over there.”

“But-”

“Now.” Squall didn't raise his voice, but he didn't have to. The command was firm without the need for volume and the look in his eyes was hard as steel.

Zell scoffed but turned to obey. He started shadow boxing to work off his angry energy.

Rinoa stared at him. He caught her eye and stared back for a moment.

He was a hard leader, but he was effective. Zell needed a firm hand to control his temper and Squall knew just how firm of a hand to apply to get him to move. And he hadn't needed to threaten him or hurt him. That was how a proper leader behaved.

Squall looked away and Rinoa let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding.

Squall was always just ON. That intense look in his stormy gray eyes made her quiver just a little bit inside. She couldn't help but wonder how his eyes would look in a darkened bedroom. That sculpted body held over hers, his bangs falling into his face, a light sheen of sweat covering him as he took her into those chiseled arms of his and-

Woh, girl! Slow down. You have absolutely nowhere to take this. There is a mission to be seen to and fantasizing about whether Squall would be a better gentle or rough lover helped no one.

She cleared her throat out and shook her head, catching everyone's attention.

Oops.

Think of something. Fast!

“Hmph!” Rinoa tossed back her hair in annoyance. “He always does this! So discourteous. Making people wait around. I'm gonna go complain. Everyone just wait here.”  
Then, with all the regality of an empress, she stepped from the room. It wasn't until she had taken a few steps into the hallway that she decided to just come out and admit it. They were going to find out sooner or later anyway, and she would rather it be on her terms than his.

She turned on her heel and walked into the room again, her back ramrod straight.

“By the way, this is my house. So don't worry about a thing and make yourself at home.”

She turned back and walked out with full confidence, leaving behind everyone with open mouths after dropping that bombshell. At least now she wouldn't have to field questions. For a little while.

She turned left, heading for that man's room where she imagined he would be working because he was always working in either his office or his bedroom. Rinoa had very few memories of him when he wasn't working.

She didn't even look right. So she completely missed the man standing there, staring after her. Waiting for her to leave that room and turn left just like he knew she would.

“This is her what?” Selphie asked from inside.

“What the hell's goin' on?” Zell shook his head, looking to Squall.

He resisted the urge to sigh. He was right. She just oozed difficulty. At least now he had an inkling about why she didn't want to be left here.

Damn.

Footsteps had him blinking and focusing again as a man walked inside, shutting the door firmly behind him.

General Caraway had been a handsome young man, and time had done little to take away from those good looks. The salt and pepper state of his originally raven black hair – that Rinoa had clearly inherited – made him look distinguished. The lines on his face made him look wise and strong. He carried himself with the air of a man who was well aware of his station and his power and was quite comfortable with both.

His eyes scanned over the gathered group before him, his expression carefully masking anything he might be feeling. His gaze fell on Squall and the two of them sized each other up with very similar looks on their faces.

Both men found the other to be lacking something, and possessing of something much greater in it's place. Squall found it to be a little too coincidental that he would come in only moments after Rinoa had stepped out.

“Where's Rinoa?” Squall asked, breaking the silence first.

Quistis threw him a look as her heart broke just slightly. She was his first priority here. Not recognizing the general's rank or right to command him or even introducing himself.

That hurt. So much more than she would have imagined.

General Caraway held his wrist behind his back, adopting the comfortable military position with ease and familiarity. His voice, when he spoke, was soft but strong. Understated, yet somehow with the ability to carry throughout the room.

“She has not received the type of training you all have, and she may become a burden. It's for the best that she stays out of this operation.”

That look in his eyes. It wasn't quite caring nor was it dismissive. Squall felt strangely like he knew exactly what the general was saying though.

In his own way, however misguided, he was being protective.

But Rinoa wouldn't stay out this because she was told. She was far too headstrong for that. Which meant that he must have taken steps to keep her out of it. In which case, Squall had the nasty feeling that he was going to need to bust her out of this mansion.

Oh, he seriously hoped not. He really hated breaking and entering. He would rather just have her here right now and not need worry about it later.

Before he could repeat his question, Selphie spoke up.

“So you're Rinoa's father?” She asked, tilting her head to look at him. Aside from hair color, Rinoa had inherited nothing from him. General Caraway's face was all hard angles with a strong chin and unforgiving eyes.

General Caraway looked at Selphie like she had spoke in an alien language.

“I can't remember the last time she called me that.”

“So, the father's a top military officer,” Zell frowned, “and the daughter is a member of an anti-government resistance faction? That's bad. _Really_ bad!”

General Caraway moved over to the window, not responding at first. Squall wondered if Zell's words had affected him. He continued to stand in rest position, his eyes guarded.

“Yes, indeed. It's a serious problem.” He turned back as Squall came in close and gave him a bone chilling glance that would have worked on a lesser man. “But it doesn't concern you. It's _our_ problem. Focus on your job. Rinoa is none of your concern.”

That wasn't true...

“Besides, we have far more important things to worry about,” the general continued, clearly forcing a subject change from the sensitive topic.

Garden's directive and Rinoa's orders had the same value to Squall, to the SeeDs. It didn't matter who they were or why. The fact remained that Squall was under contract to both of them. And, regardless of the amount paid or the reasons why, they were equal in his eyes. And as soon as his contract to Caraway was fulfilled, Rinoa would be the singular most important thing in Squall's life again. His entire purpose would be to serve her.

Such was the life of a SeeD.

“Once our mission is accomplished here, we're working for Rinoa, as per our contract,” Squall informed him in nearly the same voice he had been spoken to. “I don't know what your situation is, and I don't care either. However, please don't interfere when the time comes.”

General Caraway tilted his head slightly, like Squall was an interesting puzzle.

“And if I do?” he asked, quite calm.

The air around Squall chilled considerably as Shiva reacted to his words and the veiled threat behind them. Squall didn't care for them either. He was finding himself disliking this general. Not because he was threatening him. But because he was so damn familiar.

He reminded Squall of himself.

And damn if that wasn't a terrible thought.

“We're all SeeDs here,” Squall returned, his voice just as calm though considerably more icy than the general's had been. “We'll act accordingly.”

The threat, slightly less veiled than the general's brought the other's to their feet. He hadn't meant to invoke a response in them, he had slipped into the plural 'we' only to avoid saying 'I' and letting the general learn the implications of that singular change.

Not that he need have bothered. The possessive, frosty anger around Squall spoke for itself beyond the plural or singular noun usage.

Caraway and Squall were dead locked, staring at each other with eyes that were at once distant and threatening. Tensions rose in the room between the two men.

Quistis's eyes moved between them.

Now Squall was standing up to a high ranked client for her. This wasn't normal for him. This was definitely not something that Squall would do.

Unless he...

“Hey, hey, fellas.” The carefree, mocking voice from the general's desk had the others turning to see Irvine waving at them.

Squall and Caraway remained glaring.

“We're here to knock off the sorceress, right?” Irvine asked, grinning. “So let's get down to business.”

His words didn't have an immediate affect. Neither man was inclined to move and be the first to look away. The first to show weakness. The air temperature was getting ever lower around Squall and Caraway could feel his skin breaking out into goose flesh despite himself.

Such dark, lifeless eyes. General Caraway had looked into the eyes of many such men during his long term as a military men. Those were the eyes of men who had nothing to live for and therefore nothing to lose. There was no man more dangerous because there was no man more worthless. When you had nothing, you weren't scared of losing even your life.

How could his Rinoa have possibly found herself attached to this SeeD? A contract was well and good, but he had seen with his own eyes the way she had clung close to him on her way up here. She had felt uncomfortable in this house and her reaction had been to become closer to this man. She hated him for his distance, yet she prized it in this mercenary?

He would be damned if he was going to let this one have her.

But business came first.

“Okay,” he said, looking away. “Let me explain the plan. Follow me.”

He walked away from Squall, away from the air that was icing around him, and tried not to be disturbed by the way the air was _literally_ icing. He knew that power had to come from a GF, but it was no less disturbing to see.

Squall wanted to demand to know where Rinoa was again, but he decided to leave it at this for now. He could always come get her back later.

For now, he had a job to do.

Squall and the others followed General Caraway outside of his mansion.

The streets had been cleared out by Galbadian soldiers. The general populace forced to abandon the town in order to prepare for the night's festivities. The only reason they were allowed to walk about was because they were with the general. Meaning no one but the general's men would see them moving around tonight.

“I'm sure you know about the Galbadian government reaching an agreement with Sorceress Edea,” the general started immediately as they hit the streets.

So the sorceress's name was Edea.

Edea...

Why did that sound so familiar?

“President Deling has made her the official Galbadian ambassador to the world,” Caraway continued, his voice sad. “Which, I fear, is the beginning of the end for us. She has risen to a rank just beneath the president himself and I fear that Galbadia is completely at her mercy. This country is now merely a tool for her.

“Fear of the sorceress powers won't force the world to bow to Galbadia, as Deling thinks it will. No. The rest of the world will unite against us. And I fear it will be the Sorceress War all over again.” He sighed at the memories. “You all will be too young to remember that war. It was begun in very much the same way. A sorceress rose to power thanks to a foolish monarch's dreams of domination. And death will fall over the land just the same.

“It was over twenty years ago now that it began. I was a colonel then and I fought on the front lines. Esthar was the country that sorceress ruled and she brought untold destruction. Now, I fear, the same thing is happening to Galbadia. How foolish of you, Deling...”

Caraway trailed off as his memories took off with him. Memories of a war that left wives without husbands, children without parents. Entire cities burned to ashes. And a young colonel whose succession to power had been slicked by the blood of each superior he had been forced to watch die on that battlefield.

No. He was not going to let that happen again. He refused to allow his country, the precious Galbadia he had given up everything for, to follow that road to ruin. And he absolutely refused to allow his daughter, his only family, see a world stained by blood and violence.

He shook his head slightly, pulling himself from his reverie. The only way to prevent the past from repeating here in the future was to commence with this rather unpleasant task.

“There is going to be a ceremony tonight, to commemorate her ascension,” Caraway continued, speaking as though she had taken a crown of some sort. She might as well have.

The group hit the main streets of the city. Not even the buses were running right now. The general had effectively cleared out everything. Because the sorceress had ordered him to oversee them, nothing would go wrong with the festival preparations.

“The ceremony is being held at the Presidential Residence,” he told them pointing to the large, ornate building they were walking towards. The large, digital clock that looked out over the whole of Deling City emerged from that building.

“During the ceremony, you will split up into two teams and get into position. The first team, the gateway team, will enter into that structure there. The Arc of Triumph, built to honor those lost in the Sorceress War and the victory we eventually achieved. See those spikes there? That's the bottom of the portcullis. It has a twin on the other side. It's meant to be purely decorative, but it's still an iron gate and we're going to use that to our advantage. The gateway team is to standby in that structure.

“The second team, the sniper team, will be on standby in front of the Presidential Residence until the ceremony is over so they can move easily. Here, right here. This is where the sniper team will be waiting. Right where I'm standing.”

General Caraway turned to look at them at the position he was marking with his body. Far enough away from the gates to the Presidential Residence not to be suspicious but close enough that they could move in quickly when the time came.

Two teams. Sniper and gateway. Seemed easy enough so far. Squall did so enjoy a plan that was simple to execute. It made it less likely to go wrong.

“See the clock?” Caraway pointed, turning all their heads. “It's the crowning jewel of the Presidential Residence. Once the ceremony there ends, a parade for the sorceress will begin. They're going to be coming right through those gates and that's the only time they'll be opened. You _must_ lay low until then. The parade may be canceled if there is a commotion. We must avoid that at all costs. You won't get a second opportunity to enter the Residence.”

General Caraway stepped into their field of view, catching their attention again. “Once the gate opens, the sniper team will move out. With the parade drawing the crowd and guards' attention, it should be rather easy to sneak inside. You will head for the roof of the residence. See the podium? There's a path there that leads inside to where the sorceress is staying. You don't need to worry about that though. What you need is the hatch in the corridor. It's the service hatch leading to the clock tower. The carousel clock where the hologram machines are. You'll find the sniper rifle there. I've already hidden it, so you need not worry about that. Once you arrive, the sniper team will be on standby again until exactly 20:00.”

General Caraway stopped in front of the gates then ran. He was rather fast for a man his age. Agile as well. He jogged to the left, calling out to them as he did so.

“The parade will begin by the gate. The sorceress will be riding on a parade vehicle, in pride of place. After it leaves the gate, the vehicle will turn left. Like this. This way. The parade will circle once around the city along the outer road.”

He didn't run the entire length, he reached the end of the wide street and pointed around. Then he turned and ran back, passing the gates, and moving to the other side. He turned again and once more jogged, mimicking the parade.

“It will return on this side. Then it will turn left again, and head this way.”

Still demonstrating, he turned and began jogging up the streets, towards the Arc.

“Here's where the gateway team comes into play.”

Caraway slowed to a walk by the SeeDs, indicating with his finger that they should follow him. He was slightly winded from his jog, but he didn't appear to be overly tired. For his age, he was in great shape and the short run had barely been exercise.

“At exactly 20:00, the parade will pass under this gateway. It's being timed so that the parade will be passing as the carousel clock rises to give more of a theatrical experience. However, it is at this point that the gateway team will act. You will operate the portcullis console within to drop the gates at the same moment. The sorceress will be trapped inside and the carousel clock will be rising, bringing the sniper team up with it. Once you are at the zenith, there will be no obstruction between the sniper and the sorceress. Take the open shot...

“...bang,” he finished, turning to them.

The SeeDs and Irvine were looking at him with varying emotions on their face from Squall and Irvine's distance to Selphie and Zell's excitement. Quistis was in instructor/SeeD mode and looked like she was simply absorbing everything that was being said.

“That is all,” General Caraway nodded to them once. “Now all we can do is wait. You're free to go anywhere. Go check out the city if you wish. We have excellent dining opportunities. Likely you won't get to experience them again for some time after tonight. Just one thing: Stay out of trouble. We cannot afford any of you causing a scene and being detained.”

Who exactly did he think he was talking to? They were highly trained specialists literally designed for this kind of work. They weren't like his daughter. Headstrong and too inclined to speak their mind at the wrong time.

Well, Zell was, but Squall was holding him on a tight leash.

“We _are_ SeeDs,” Squall said, figuring that alone would explain it best.

General Caraway continued to look at him like he was a puzzle to be figured out. Squall did not at all like that look. He didn't want to be 'figured out'. He was starting to understand more and more why Rinoa had distanced herself from this man.

And was subsequently getting more and more confused about why she was so attached to _him_. He would never understand women.

“Report to my residence by no later than 19:00,” the general told them at last. “We'll hold a final meeting then. After that, we'll proceed with the operation.”

“And Rinoa?” Squall asked immediately before the general could do more than take a single step away.

“You're awfully concerned with her,” came the calm reply.

“It's my job to be. What about her?”

“What about her? I told you, she has nothing to do with this. I'm actually disappointed that you've brought her with you. Your headmaster shall be hearing of this.”

The threat fell on deaf ears. Squall didn't rightfully care. The worst that would happen for such an offense would be a demotion of rank. And, honestly, he was just following orders. His dedication to them might actually raise him in rank instead.

Squall watched him go, his arms crossed, as the others talked behind him about their mission. He didn't really care at this moment. He was wondering if he should go back and break Rinoa out of the mansion now or later.

The general wasn't wrong though. She had nothing to do with this. And she would be safer there. And Squall had promised to bring her somewhere safe.

But he meant Balamb Garden. He didn't mean to trap her in a house she clearly despised. He wanted her in his garden where an entire army of SeeDs could act as a barrier for her. No one could break into Balamb Garden without bringing their military. He could not make the same promise about a mansion protected by a single, greedy guard and a wall short enough to vault over.

He would allow her to stay for now. When the others were evacuating after the assassination, he would go back for her. He'd scale the outer walls and break through her window if he had to. Then he would steal her away to Balamb as he had intended in the first place.


	16. Assassinating the Sorceress

18:59 found the group of SeeDs walking through General Caraway's front hall again. Squall led the way up, not needing the maid this time to show him the way. His eyes scanned around for some sign of Rinoa, but wherever the general had hidden her wasn't immediately in sight. Not that he really expected it to be.

Caraway was already waiting for them in his office. He was staring at the wall of useless martini glasses as they filed in. He looked up as the last one stepped inside then immediately down to the watch strapped to his wrist.

18:59...19:00. Right on time. SeeDs really were quite good. He probably should have just hired them outright instead of contacting Martine to send him someone suited to the job.

“Time to form the teams,” he said without preamble, facing out into the room. “The sniper and the leader of this operation will form the sniper team. The leader's role is vital.”

Squall's eyebrow raised slightly. What was that supposed to mean?

“If the plan fails for some reason, or should the sniper miss-”

“Psh!” Irvine scoffed, waving the words away.

“-the leader must carry out a direct assault against the sorceress,” Caraway finished like he hadn't been interrupted. “This plan was devised carefully because we intend this to be a covert operation. However, our ultimate goal is to eliminate the sorceress. We must achieve this at any and all costs. Even if they uncover our identities. Even if we're captured afterwards. Failure is not an option. So, who's going to lead the operation.

Squall's eyes were on the ground. But he didn't need to be looking up to feel everyone cast their eyes to him in turn. He had really rather hoped Quistis might have stepped forward. Why was everyone insisting on making him leader? Did no one else even want to try to take the title? Zell always seemed so eager to be in charge of something.

...Whatever. It wasn't in Squall's nature to let others do the hard, dirty work anyway. He wouldn't throw others under the bus like that.

He looked up, resigned to his position. Again.

“I will,” he said.

Caraway wasn't surprised he stepped forward. He had rather been expecting the young man to speak up immediately though. That he had waited for the others to speak up instead of immediately taking on the mantle of leadership himself spoke volumes about his character.

Caraway still disliked him intensely but he nodded, accepting him.

“Fine. I'll leave everything up to you.”

“Irvine and I will make up the sniper team. So that makes the gateway team...”

He looked over to see Selphie, Quistis, and Zell already up and ready to work. Selphie almost looked overeager for the task.

“Whoo-hoo!” She yelled, jumping up and down happily.

“Roger,” Quistis said, nodding with her eyes glowing. Stop staring, Squall thought reflexively.

“Let's DO IT!” Zell yelled, his emotions running high again.

“So who's gonna be leader of the gateway team?” Selphie asked, deferring to him.

Squall didn't need to see Zell shadow boxing impressively out of the corner of his eye to know that he would dearly like that role. Though he never tried to take leadership from Squall – and why in Hyne's name _not_?! – he still wanted the responsibility Squall would grant to him.

Not going to happen. Sorry Zell.

“Instructor Trepe,” he said, looking to her. He corrected himself. She wasn't an instructor any longer, she was a SeeD as he was. “Quistis Trepe, you're in charge.”

“Okay,” she nodded, smiling. At least he had that much faith in her. “Leave it to me.”

“Okay,” General Caraway nodded, getting their attention again. “Let's begin. Follow me to your positions.

Squall and Irvine were right behind the general. When Quistis and Zell moved to follow though, Zell's sigh stalled them for a moment.

“I don't think he likes me,” he said, his shoulders slumping.

“Who?” Selphie asked.

“Squall. He doesn't like me. Does he?”

“Zell, is now really the time for this?” Quistis asked as gently as she was able.

He sighed. “No. I suppose not. Let's go.”

The three of them started towards the door to catch up with the others. Quistis arrived first but, as she was reaching out for the door knob, it burst open and Rinoa came exploding in. Quistis jumped back quickly to avoid a collision.

Rinoa was red in the face, panting slightly, but she was grinning. It was a look that Quistis saw often on underclassmen after defeating their first monster.

“Hi!” She beamed, waving to them. “Finally got out of there!”

The door to his room was never going to be able to be fixed, and the dagger style letter opener from the nightstand was as dull as a butter knife now, but she was free and that was the point.

“Did that man say something?” She pointed over her shoulder.

“No, not really,” Zell leaned on one foot, grinning at her.

Rinoa wasn't listening. Her eyes were looking around for a brooding face and stormy eyes that were no where to be seen.

“Where's Squall?” Darn it. She had really wanted to show him how she had hacked her way to freedom. She rather thought he would be proud.

That singular question hit Quistis hard. She was the first thing on Squall's mind, and he was the first thing on hers.

“I'm sorry, Rinoa,” Quistis said, not sounding sorry at all, “but we have to get going.”

“Hold on a sec,” Rinoa held out one hand to stop her, not catching Quistis's tone in her excitement. She reached under her duster into her back pocket and pulled out her prize for the night.

The bright gold shined under the room's lights, the blue gem in pride of place seemed to be glowing with it's own dark light. The wide bangle was made for a female's wrist but still seemed rather big in Rinoa's hand.

“Take a look at this!” Rinoa showed it off with a proud grin. “This is called an Odine Bangle. I found it in that man's room.”

“Odine?” Zell repeated, his eyes raising as he took a second look at the jewelry.

“Whatcha gonna do with it?” Selphie asked curiously, looking it over.

Rinoa tossed it between her hands as she stepped further into the room. “It's supposed to suppress a sorceress's powers, but it's effects are still largely unknown. So I don't think they're going to use it for this mission.”

“If it's Odine brand, it should be pretty effective,” Zell said, grinning. “They're number one when it comes to magical goods.”

“Right! Right?” Rinoa nodded, a bit breathless with happiness at her find.

Quistis's hands were clenched into shaking fists. Listen to the others. Talking to her like this was normal and acceptable. An Odine Bangle? If that could possibly be effective, they would have used it in the first place. And it was a sniper style assassination. They weren't supposed to be getting up close to the sorceress.

Quistis snapped.

“So what exactly do you plan to do with it?!” She demanded to know, turning with burning eyes to the annoying Rinoa. “Are you planning to have the sorceress put it on?! Who? When? How?”

As Quistis spoke, she stomped closer to Rinoa. Her foot came down to punctuate each harshly asked question. Her face was drawn in anger. She honestly could not stand that Squall was so seemingly interested in a creature like this.

Rinoa met Quistis's anger with a grin. She put her hands on her hips, grinning at her like she was asking silly questions.

“That's what we're going to discuss!”

“We don't have time for that!” Quistis stomped angrily. “Squall and Irvine are already standing by. We have our side of the operation to carry out, too. And you're not involved in either one. You understand, don't you. This isn't a father-daughter, quarrel. This isn't a game.”

At hearing that man being called her father, at being yelled at like she was a child, Rinoa turned away from Quistis. She put her nose in the air, refusing to yell back at her. She wasn't going to dignify that with a response.

Quistis wasn't waiting for one though. She was already leaving the room. Selphie and Zell looked between the two of them awkwardly. Eventually though, duty and SeeD training won out and they walked out after Quistis, sending apologetic looks over their shoulders.

The door shut behind them and Rinoa looked forward again, hurt flashing across her face. They hadn't even tried to listen to her. They had dismissed her outright.

“Who said this was a game?” She asked no one, turning from the door. Turning from them.

“I understand what's going on.” She crouched down, curling in on herself.

“It's not like I don't have a plan...”

Why did everyone treat her like a child? Why did no one ever believe in her?

Why was it that Squall was the only one that had ever invited her in? The one person who pushed everyone away was also the only person who didn't treat her like a precious princess. Something to be treasured but never utilized.

She bet he wouldn't have rejected her outright like that. Even if he had said no, he wouldn't have been cruel about it. He would have been logical and calm.

Rinoa's put her forehead to her knees as tears came into her eyes.

***

Squall and Irvine were waiting with the general to cross the street when Quistis and the others came out of the mansion. He didn't know what took them so long. He didn't care to ask. He was already thinking ahead to what his role in this night would be.

The buses weren't running still, but the streets were packed with people eager to see the coming parade and their new ambassador. It was a city wide party, and the jubilant feeling in the atmosphere washed over them without touching them.

“I'll make the first charge if we make the full-on attack,” Squall told Irvine quietly as they crossed the street behind the general. “I'll try to buy some time for you and the others to escape.” There was no point in all of them getting captured.

“That won't be necessary, you martyr,” Irvine rolled his eyes. “I'll get the job done.”

Galbadian soldiers were policing the rowdy crowds, trying to keep everyone off the street and out of trouble. Squall moved through them easily, keeping the general in sight, as they moved towards a small, rather sparsely populated bridge. It wasn't on the parade route, so people weren't congregating there. However, it did lead towards the center of the city and it was far easier to walk there than to try to fight through the crowds.

“So, like,” Irvine spoke up curiously, “is it true that SeeDs aren't supposed to question their mission? Like, at all? Not even to save their own lives? Why?”

There were times when Squall would like to know that himself. Like...now, for example. This whole mission made so little sense to him. At the same time...

“What do you care?” He returned shortly.

“I mean, if you knew that your enemies were pure evil, you'd get more fired up to fight them, right? You have to have your own opinion. So if you really believed in a cause, you'd fight harder for it, right? That's just how humans work.”

An enemy that was pure evil? What a fanciful notion. Right and wrong weren't what separated people, what made them enemies. It was simply a difference of opinion. It was their different standpoints, their perspectives, that separated people. Both sides blame the other for what was wrong, both sides believes that they're right and had the one true answer. There was no good or evil, light or dark. There were just two sides holding different views.

Squall said none of that. He kept to himself. Irvine gave him a look, still fully expecting a response that wasn't coming. Squall wasn't in a sharing kind of mood. He just wanted to get this over with, get Rinoa back, then get out of here.

“I think I would be more motivated to know that my enemy was evil,” Irvine said, mostly to himself since Squall wasn't participating in the conversation. “It would make it easier anyway.”

Still no response. Irvine fell silent as they all made their way onto the densely populated city streets. It seemed like the entire population of Galbadia had come to see the sorceress. Had come to celebrate her rise to power and therefore Galbadia's rise _in_ power.

General Caraway moved to the entrance of the Arc and used a pin code to open the electronic lock. A code that Selphie looked at and quickly memorized by habit alone. One never knew.

Caraway held open the door and looked to Quistis.

“The gateway team will wait inside. Up a ladder you'll find the control panel. Remember, the sorceress will pass through at exactly 20:00. In that instant, lower the gates using the console and trap her inside the gateway. There will be a narrow window up there so you can watch to be sure that you're hitting it at the right time. Do not fail.”

Quistis nodded to him once before walking through. Selphie and Zell went in after her. Caraway let the door shut and walked away. Squall and Irvine followed dutifully.

At almost exactly the same spot he had indicated earlier – there was a couple in the way now – General Caraway turned to the two of them.

“You two will wait here,” he ordered.

“General, why has the sorceress decided to have such an extravagant parade?” Squall asked, curious despite himself.

“She wants to establish her place in Galbadia Garden, since she has chosen it to serve as her base of operations. This parade is her way of cementing her power in Galbadia as a whole. Proving that she's important, basically. The people appreciate and need such displays. You will understand as you age. The flashier, more elaborate someone is, the more likely they are to be listened to. And the more likely they are to be heard, the more likely they are to be obeyed. It's just a power play.”

Well, that at least explained why Galbadia Garden wanted her out.

Music began playing loudly over the crowd and General Caraway looked to the gates. Just beyond them, he could see the parade getting into place. The seat reserved for the sorceress remained empty yet, but she would be coming soon.

“It's starting,” he said. “I'm returning to my residence. I can't be seen here. Good luck.”

Squall nodded, accepting the sentiment as he looked to the gates. His gunblade was stored away in his inventory because he couldn't have weapons on the street right now. His fingers were itching to grab hold of it again though. He felt naked without his weapon.

Standby again.

How soul crushingly boring.

***

Guilt was sitting hot and uncomfortable in Quistis's belly when she stepped out of the Arc of Triumph and back out onto the streets.

What was wrong with her? Snapping like that? That wasn't like her at all. She was a mature, rational adult. She should have responded in that situation like one, not like a child having their favorite toy snatched away form them.

“Maybe I was too hard on her...” she said as Zell and Selphie stepped out after her.

“Too hard?” Zell frowned.

Yeah, she had definitely been too hard on her. It wasn't like Quistis had any sort of claim on Squall. At best, they were friends. Most likely, they were colleagues. Just because she wanted more didn't mean she had the right to take it out on Rinoa when she didn't get what she wanted.

If anything, Quistis should be happy that Squall was opening up to anyone. He had never before shown interest in another person. That he was so obviously becoming attached to this one was only a good thing for him. She should be encouraging it, not acting petty and jealous that things hadn't turned out like she had wanted.

“I'm going to go apologize,” she decided firmly. And she was going to do what was best for Squall. She was going to step back and let this, whatever it was, flourish.

“You mean...Rinoa?” Zell asked softly. He didn't sound like he was opposing the decision. He hadn't wanted to say anything, but he kind of agreed.

“But...but...” Selphie looked between them. “We can't just leave our post!”

“We still have time until 20:00,” Quistis said, looking at the large clock. She wasn't going for a tear filled, heart felt, soul bearing speech. She just wanted to say she was sorry and close this chapter of her life. “You two wait here.”

Quistis turned and began walking back towards General Caraway's mansion.

“We can't just...” Zell looked around as Selphie jogged after Quistis. “Hey, wait up!”

***

Heavy footsteps told Rinoa that she was no longer alone. She lifted her head and looked over her shoulder to see the face that she had been avoiding for the better part of a year step inside.

Her doting father – she shivered just calling him that – was staring at her in a very distant way. It was hard to believe that man had any feelings at all for her. Far too often, she felt like a duty to him. Just something that he was required to do. Like training soldiers. Or cleaning a latrine.

Rinoa deliberately turned away and put her face back on her knees. She raised her hand and waved him away without giving him a single word. If he was going to treat her like nothing, then she was going to do the same in turn.

“It'll be chaos out there soon,” he said quite calmly like he might be referring to a storm. “You'll be safe here.”

Rinoa waved him off a second time. She didn't care. She didn't want to talk to him. She was leaving this city the second Squall finished with this mission. Then she was going to get a tan on a fabulous white sand Balamb beach while flashing her string bikini covered boobs at Squall and see how long it took to make that distant facade crack. Daddy's little girl was going to become a mercenary's woman and it was going to feel that much better for knowing it was killing him.

Caraway didn't attempt to reach out for his daughter again. How he wished she would look at him like she used to. When she used to depend on him. Back in the days when she had been so small and would climb in his lap and point at the stars and smile.

Those days weren't coming back and he didn't know how to bring them back. If they even could be brought back. So he turned and walked back through the door.

Rinoa heard it shut behind him and she let out a deep breath and stood up. She immediately felt weary and heavy. Like she had just gotten over a flu.

Then a mechanical beeping from the door made her jump. It was the same beeping that had gone off right before the door to his room sealed her shut inside of it earlier. And there was no handy dagger letter opener this time.

“Oh, no! He's gonna lock me in!”

She turned without thinking and ran for the door. The one person frame had never looked so large and imposing as it did in that moment. She felt her heart pounding in her chest as indecision fell over her and her footsteps slowed.

Without thinking, she reached up and grabbed the silver ring she had dangling from a thin chain around her neck. Her mother's wedding ring. A symbol of happier times.

She could see Squall in her mind's eye. He was standing right outside the door looking at her. He was waiting to see what she would do. He wouldn't pull her through the door, nor would he force her to remain inside. He would let her make her own decision. He would allow her to find the strength to stand by her own principles.

“I...” She let out a breath as her eyes closed and focused on that strength. She had fought monsters she didn't believe she could defeat. She had tagged along with a group of SeeDs and stood, maybe not their equal, but at least with them. And she had Squall to show her how to be strong.

“I can do it...” She nodded to herself.

Rinoa sprinted out the door and ran off down the hallway to the left. She was going to go to her room – her old room – and climb out through the window. Through that way, she could take the servant's entrance into the Presidential Residence bypassing the parade entirely. She could gain access to the sorceress before she ever stepped foot outside. No guards. No witnesses.

As she turned the corner, from the opposite direction, Quistis came from downstairs. She was walking determinedly towards the office, Zell and Selphie one step behind her.

Words were coming out of her mouth before she even stepped through the doorway.

“Rinoa, I'm sorry I-” Her words cut off when she didn't see the raven haired girl within.

One loud beep preceded to the slamming of the office door. The three SeeDs jumped and turned.

“Did...” Quistis looked to the two of them. “Did we get locked in?”

Selphie looked confused before realization came over her face. “That Caraway guy?!”

Zell groaned loudly. “We're smack dab in the middle of a family quarrel here!”

Quistis felt her stomach drop. They were locked in here, far away from their post. They couldn't do their part of the job. And if they couldn't do their part, Squall and Irvine couldn't do theirs. The entire mission was going to fail.

“This is bad,” she murmured. Then a new, disturbing thought came over her. “Oh, no. Rinoa...”

“What about Rinoa?” Zell asked as Selphie moved to begin jerking against the doorknob. It remained steadfastly locked.

Quistis bit her lip, really rather hoping that her dreadful feeling was wrong. “Rinoa's...probably on her way to see the sorceress as we speak. She only wanted to help us and I...I know what kind of person she is...”

***

The servant's entrance to the Presidential Residence was mostly hidden. Rinoa only knew about it because she had always been able to see it from her bedroom window. The staff was too busy worrying about the ceremony to even care about a frail appearing girl like her.

She walked in like she was supposed to be there and made her away around towards the front of the palace. The sorceress would be in the guest rooms on the top floor. Rinoa had been there before with her family when she was young. There was no way she would be able to get away with walking around inside as she was. Which meant she had to come in from the outside.

The method for her entrance revealed itself as she came around towards the front gates.

A large black vehicle designed for moving storage boxes. Some of the cargo, bearing the presidential seal, was already unloaded. However, there was still some boxes piled into the back of the truck. It reached up high enough to be just above level with the second story outer walkway. That place wasn't guarded at the moment. She could leap across then climb over that glass roof there, cross the outer podium, then straight to the guest rooms.

She ran over to the lowest crate and took a breath as she put her hands on the top.

Her eyes closed as she tried to bring Seifer to mind. Confident, powerful, brave Seifer. He had always made her feel like she could do anything. That confidence of his was infectious. She pulled out that old feeling of boundless confidence and used it to power her limbs as she jumped up and climbed aboard the lowest box.

“I'm not a SeeD, but...” she said to herself, to Quistis, to that man. To everyone that had ever told her that she couldn't do something. That it was too dangerous.

She ran across the crates and jumped a small gap to the truck bed. She turned to the next lowest crate and put her hands down atop that.

Boundless confidence. Unwavering certainty. Unquestionable strength. Use those things that Seifer taught you to move forward. Prove to them all that you weren't weak. What was it he use to say? Move yourself one step closer to your dream with each victory. And each time she climbed further up this path she had won another victory against all those naysayers.

“I _can_ do this,” she said determinedly, moving up.

She turned to the next two crates. The crates that put her above the second story. She put her foot against the lowest one and used it to vault herself over the next one.

“This isn't some kind of game...”

Let nothing get in your way, Seifer would say. She was going to do this in his memory! She was going to take that confidence he had bestowed upon her and prove the world wrong! This sorceress had snuffed out a life that had burned with such promise.

Rinoa took a step back then took two running steps forward. She launched herself from the highest crate and across a heart-stoppingly large gap. Her feet lost purchase as she landed, but she was regaining her balance before she could properly fall.

Seifer would have been great, Rinoa was sure. He always had such grand dreams. He had spoken like nothing was impossible and made others around him feel it too. The sorceress had destroyed that. Had destroyed something wonderful. But he lived on in the people he touched. His memory gave him longevity beyond the grave.

Rinoa was his living legacy!

She ran around the balcony towards a ladder used by cleaning staff to access the glass roof. She climbed up quickly. The glass roof looked down into the formal events hall. The very place the sorceress's ceremony would have taken place. It was all cleared out now as everyone prepared for the speech and subsequent parade.

Rinoa vaulted herself up onto that and ran across the glass.

There. She could see the guest quarters! The most obvious route would be across the podium, but Rinoa knew for a fact that there was a small window that could lead inside. It was supposed to remain locked, but staff never locked it because they liked to come out here to smoke in secret.

There! That would bring her in the back way. Make it less obvious she had broken in.

She was just another well wisher coming to admire the sorceress.

Rinoa was fully prepared for servants to be around. There always was.

Expect tonight. The upper floors where the guest rooms were was completely deserted as she climbed down in through the window. The halls were darkened. Silent. Eerie.

A strange fear came into Rinoa's gut as she looked around. The President's Residence had always felt more like a public space than a home, but just at the moment it was completely lifeless.

Her footsteps were absorbed by the fabulously soft carpet. She moved down the hall slowly, trying to force Seifer's confidence back over her. She would take down the sorceress in his memory. Then, having done what she could to avenge him, she could move on properly.

The room the sorceress was inhabiting was clearly marked. Not only because it was the most extravagant of the rooms, but because there was a literal plaque on the door now.

Sorceress Edea.

So that was her name. Rinoa paused outside of that door and took a deep breath. She reached into her back pocket and took hold of the Odine Bangle. She closed her hand around it and tried to draw strength from its presence.

For Seifer. She would avenge him.

Wrapping his confidence around her like a cloak, Rinoa opened the door without knocking. She tried to fix her face into one of respect and girlish innocence. She knew how to look helpless because she had spent so long being exactly that.

The guest rooms had changed greatly since Rinoa had been here last. The sorceress had obviously put her own, strange touches on it. There were considerably more sheer curtains hanging from the ceiling than last time. And a distinct lack of bed. Or dresser. Or any furniture really.

Except for a single, elegant chair that more resembled a throne in the center of the room.

Rinoa's heart was in her throat.

The sorceress was seated in that chair. Unmoving. Almost unnaturally still. Garbed all in back wearing a strange headpiece over hair she kept tightly bound and out of sight. Rinoa's footsteps echoed loudly against the marble floor. She knew the sorceress had to know she was there.

Boundless confidence.

She took in a deep breath.

“Um...Excuse me,” she started, her voice weak and thready. She surreptitiously cleared her throat and tried to inject more strength into it.

“I'm the...daughter of, um...the Galbadian military's, uh...General Caraway.” Ew. That was awkward to admit after so long of refusing to even think his name. It was a good cover though. She was rather proud of how quickly it had come to her.

“I..thought I'd...come pay my respects...to you.” Yeah, that sounded legit. Keep it going! “You know...'cause of my...father and all...”

Good. Now bring it home! “So, I, um...brought you a small gift. In your honor...Please...”

The sorceress hadn't moved. She gave no indication that she even heard Rinoa speaking.

Her hands behind her back, the bangle shining in the low light, Rinoa started forward. Her mother's ring bounced against her chest. Seifer's confidence burned in her chest.

This was going to work! She was doing this!

Rinoa was almost even with the sorceress's shoulder. She could see the very subtle movement of her chest as she drew in slow breaths. Her wrist was _right there_! Rinoa could probably snap the bangle onto her right now. Then she would be nothing more than an ordinary human! And Rinoa was trained by a SeeD in fighting. She wouldn't stand a chance.

For you, Seifer, she thought, her eyes locked on that wrist.

The sudden coursing of what felt like white hot lightning through her veins made Rinoa cry out. She was lifted clear off of her feet and thrown backwards. The lightning left her body just in time to slam against the marble floor.

That hadn't felt like a thunder spell. That hadn't felt like any magic she had felt before.

No! B-Boundless confidence...

Rinoa felt only fear as she lifted herself up. Her fingers were clenching the bangle so tight her knuckles had turned white. Her heart was going so fast it had drowned out all other sounds in her ears. She lifted herself and looked back at the sorceress.

She still hadn't moved. Like Rinoa was less than a fly...

At first, she didn't even notice the way the Odine Bangle was vibrating. She was so filled with terror that the initial movements went completely unnoticed.

Until her entire arm started shaking with it. Her eyes, wide with fear, snapped down to the hand that was moving against her will. It was lifting from the ground. No, the bangle was lifting from the ground and pulling her arm with it.

She grabbed for her wrist, trying to put it back down. Her fingers struggled against the bangle as she tried to release it.

She couldn't. It might as well have been attached to her now.

Rinoa cried out again as the bangle suddenly shot into the air. Her shoulder almost felt like it was being jerked out of place as her fingers refused to listen to her commands. She heard Diablos cry out in worry as he tried to alleviate her weight to put less pressure on her arm.

His panic was doing nothing to ease hers. Her eyes were filling with tears as she looked up at the bangle.

The choking, crushing pressure settled down over her like an ocean. She found it suddenly impossible to breath as her whole body locked up. Something was being forced at her. An invisible wave of impenetrable magic.

The Odine Bangle was vibrating furiously now. Her hand was going numb from the force of it. She couldn't breath, she couldn't think, she felt Diablos's voice fading from her mind. Not like he was being forced out. He was just being silenced.

And that only served to scare her further. Her partner that she had initially not even wanted was slipping away and she couldn't imagine anything more lonely.

The vibrating got worse. The pressure continued to build. Rinoa felt like if something didn't break soon her body was going to implode under that force.

Then something did break. The Odine Bangle. The gold metal and blue gemstone shattered in her hand and she could feel something in her mind snapping with it.

Gravity was much lighter than it should be when she suddenly dropped to the ground. A lingering after affect of Diablos's magic. She couldn't hear him, but his power still remained. So as her body crumbled awkwardly, like a puppet with its strings cut, she wasn't injured.

The sorceress finally moved.

Something withdrew into her head. Her hair? Threads? They hadn't been there a second ago. Had they been what had held Rinoa up? Simply invisible?

The elaborate headpiece covering her hair jingled with tiny bells as a mask covering her eyes retracted back. Yellow eyes, golden like a cats, looked out disinterestedly into the world. Sorceress Edea, despite that, was a very beautiful kind of woman.

With unconcerned slowness, the woman lifted herself to her feet. The black silk of her gown hugged every curve of her well shaped body. The claws extending from her gloves were rigid like steal. The happy bells on her headpiece were somehow eerie for being so cheerful.

Rinoa's body moved.

Her mind first blanked in panic, then screamed in terror as her body reacted beyond her control. She pushed herself to her feet as the sorceress rose.

No! What was going on?! Stop it!

There was a voice in her head whispering things she couldn't understand. A dark, bone chilling voice that terrified her. It was like she knew the voice, though she couldn't say that she had ever truly heard it before. It almost sounded too high. Too melodic.

The sorceress's eyes locked on the door before her. The one that led to the podium outside. To the microphone and her waiting audience.

It was time.

She threw out her arms, summoning the last piece of her costume. The golden, gleaming ornament on her back trailed a pair of sheer, white veils. It extended out from her head making her appear much larger than she was.

Behind her, Rinoa was swaying slightly in place. Her face blank, her body out of her control.

Come child, the sorceress said silently, the show must begin.

She walked forward confidently. The bells in her hair chimed brightly, the veils trailed behind her elegantly, Rinoa followed hypnotically.

Sorceress Edea held out her hand and passed through the solid wood doors like water.

As she stepped out into the hall that led to the podium and microphones set up for her use, she could hear the cheers of the crowd washing over her. President Deling, the greedy old fool, was already there waiting for her. He held out his arm, his smile bright, as he indicated that she should take her place. He had already introduced her and everything.

Greed and victory danced in his eyes. The temptation of every promise that she had made was like a beacon on his face. His desire for more was an empty void that could never be filled. It had been all too easy to put him under her control. She hadn't even needed magic.

It was time to begin part two.

Down in the crowd, Irvine let out a breath as the cheers grew louder. The golden accessory that the sorceress wore came into view first.

“Here she comes,” he said in an aside to Squall.

Sorceress Edea reached the podium and stopped. Behind her, her puppet continued forward and moved slightly to the side so she was even with Deling, on the opposite side of the balcony.

“Rinoa?” The president frowned at her even as he clapped for Edea. He hadn't seen the girl since she ran away from home last summer. What was she doing here?

What was wrong with her?

The position that Rinoa stopped in, still swaying slightly, was completely visible to the crowd.

Irvine noticed her first. He grabbed Squall's shoulder and pointed. “H-Hey! That girl! Isn't that...”

Squall turned his eyes up and frowned. It was hard to make out individual faces from this distance, but that blue duster was unmistakable.

“Rinoa...?” He felt his heart clench painfully in his chest before falling into a black hole in his stomach at the sight of her.

What was she doing up there?!

Fear filled his veins for a split second. Then training took over and that fear was cast down into the same void his heart had fallen.

SeeDs were calm and logical. Panicking would help no one. She was still alive. As long as she was alive there was still a chance to save her. He had to remain calm.

An icy chill came over Squall's body as he let that calm come over his mind. Like a shield against fear and doubt, it settled over him.

Above them, Edea tilted her head curiously and looked down at the gathered people. So many of them, all screaming and waving banners and hands and whatever else they could find. It was almost funny, the dichotomy of it all.

Now then, for the finishing touches.

“...Lowlifes.” Edea's voice was low, calm, almost hypnotic. The tone barely wavered as it was picked up by the microphones and cast over the adoring crowd.

“Shameless filthy wretches.” The words had no heat, no venom, no anything. The cheers died down slightly as her words washed over them all.

“How you celebrate my ascension with such joy. Hailing the very one you have condemned for generations. Have you no shame? What happened to the evil, ruthless, sorceress from your fantasies? The cold-blooded tyrant that slaughtered countless men and destroyed many nations?”

Edea held out her hands as though she were really asking and confused. “Where is she now?”

Her hands came down as Deling frowned at her.

“She stands before your very eyes to become your new ruler.” Edea started laughing. Deep and low, chuckling that lacked mirth or joy.

President Deling, startled by her words, stepped forward. What was going on? This wasn't what they had agreed on.

“A new era has just begun,” Edea promised them darkly.

“E-Edea,” Deling tried to say so the mics wouldn't pick up his voice? “Are you alright? Ede-UGH!”

The slow moving sorceress who spoke so gently struck like a viper. The claws at the ends of her hand speared easily through Deling's sternum and pierced his heart. Like he was light as air, Edea lifted him up and over her head. Poison flowed down her arm and into his veins. Destroying the cells there beyond repair so no cure spell, no matter the strength, could revive him.

“This is your new reality,” Edea told the crowd as loud cried came from the people. The soldiers, all under her command now, didn't react at all. “No one can help you. Sit back and enjoy the show.”

The crowd rushed towards the gates. In anger at seeing their president killed, in joy at seeing one tryant overthrown. She couldn't know. She didn't care. Deling was dead and his reign of terror was ended before it could properly begin.

Edea turned, throwing out her arm. Deling's body slipped from her grasp and flew. It landed in an undignified slump on the balcony. The poison began steaming up from the holes in his chest, polluting the air as it destroyed his body.

“Rest assured, you fools,” Edea told the audience as the gun wielding soldiers started trying to instigate order once again. “Your time will come. This is only the beginning. Let's start a _new_ reign of terror. I will let you live a fantasy beyond your imagination.”

Edea turned from the podium and walked slowly back towards the guest room. She had a parade to throw.

Her puppet remained behind, still swaying gently in place.

Edea was in no rush as she walked back down the hall. Her measured footsteps were unhurried and calm as she continued away from the man she had just killed and the country that she had just thrown into disarray.

Things were only going to get better from here.

She stopped in the hallway and gathered her magic into her palms.

There was one thing left to do to cinch the evening. One more task that had to be completed.

“Let us end this ceremony with a sacrifice,” she said, throwing up her hands and casting out the magic.

***

The Arc of Triumph, built to honor the dead warriors who had defended Galbadia before Vinzer Deling had taken over was a beautiful work of architectural art. The gargoyles that rested against its stone body were so realistically carved that it seemed like the sculptor might actually have petrified all the monsters before setting them against the stone.

Edea's magic converged on two of them. Hanging off against the side, their sightless eyes forever gazing out on Deling City.

They blinked as life flooded into their veins. Mighty heads turned around as stone scales flashed to life and color. Heavy feet moved against the stone walls. A long tail flicked around as purpose flooded their now living bodies.

Attack.

Muscles bunched and tightened as they launched themselves from the side of the building. The crowd, already in a state of panic thanks to Edea, was even more frightened by the sight of two unfamiliar monsters suddenly sprinting through their ranks.

Squall and Irvine both heard the new cries of fear at the same moment. They turned just in time for their eyes to track to arc of the monsters' jumps.

On the balcony, Rinoa blinked. Something felt like it had been cut free. The voice in her head silenced as she stumbled slightly when her body was suddenly put back under her control.

Just in time for her to focus on the monsters that were bearing down on her.

“Hey! Hey, hey!” Below, Irvine was shaking Squall as he pointed to the monsters that were now in a frenzy. Rinoa had dropped out of sight. “She's in trouble, big time! We've got to help Rinoa!”

Squall jerked out from under his grasp. “The parade hasn't started yet. The gate's not open.”

Cold, calculating, calm. There was just no way to get inside right now. Moving and panicking would accomplish nothing and might even make things worse. At least, with the crowd worked up as it was, they didn't need to worry about making a scene.

“You gotta be kidding!” Irvine hissed through his teeth, looking back up to where he could see the tail end of the monsters fading into the Residence. Rinoa was still no where to be seen. Irvine knew that Squall was right. It didn't make waiting any easier.

***

Quistis made a sound of distress as the loud cries of the crowd could be heard echoing even all the way here. The clock tower was ticking past 19:30.

“Oh, no! It's starting! We need to get out of here, quick!”

She turned back to the room, her heart in her throat.

Selphie was tugging relentless on the door. She had one foot up against the frame, throwing her entire body into the action. Zell was digging through the desk, looking for a key or a control panel or _something_ that could get them out.

Quistis bit her lips as she moved past the couch. Her eyes were moving over the angel statue in the corner. Her hands held out like she was offering something.

Come on, _think_! There had be something! Caraway was a top army general. This was his office. She found it hard to believe that he would have a mechanism to lock himself inside without some way of getting out again!

She walked past the statue and found herself looking at multiple, miniature reflections of herself in the glasses on the shelves in the wall.

What were they even for? How stupid to have a shelf of glasses that couldn't be used. He didn't even have something around to-

Quistis's thoughts trailed off as the light from the ceiling glinted off of something that wasn't glass on the shelf. Behind the stem off a glass?

Quistis reached out and took the glass in hand.

No. _In_ the stem of the glass. Quistis lifted the clear vessel up close to eyes.

Someone had planted some kind of microchip into the glass! It was tiny, she might not have seen it at all were it not for the shining light. But it was definitely a microchip that had been embedded in the stem.

Quistis lowered the glass, confused.

But, why? Was it a memory card? If so, why put it in such a strange location?

Actually, in looking at it, it wasn't dissimilar to the chips that SeeDs would hide about their person to act as IDs since it was foolish to carry around papers identifying who they were on missions. Squall kept his in the lion necklace around his neck. Quistis kept hers right under her belt at the spot where it latched together.

It was a rather simple piece of technology. Used most often to gain access to areas that only SeeDs were permitted such as the reserved Balamb Hotel room, their private train car, and-

-the emergency exits hidden around the garden! Those were designed only the be opened by Balamb garden faculty or SeeDs with approved chips.

This tiny microchip didn't open the door, did it?

Quistis looked over to where Selphie was pulling against the knob. There was no scanner for the microchip there. So if it didn't open the door, what did it open?

Quistis cast her eyes around quickly. The windows were too high to jump from for a normal man like General Caraway. The desk was completely unlocked as Zell proved by yanking everything – including the drawers themselves – out of it. There was nothing in the room that could be secured. Everything was open and purposeful and...

Quistis looked over to the angel statue. Quite a strange piece of artwork for a military man to have decorating his work office. Holding out her hands. Not like she was offering something, but like she was waiting for something to be offered.

Wondering if she could be right, Quistis leaned over the statue. Her eyes narrowed at the space between her outstretched hand as she moved her head around slowly.

“Watcha looking at, instructor?” Zell asked. She could hear him moving up behind her.

Quistis didn't say anything for a moment. She was focused on finding-

There!

The glint of metal. Buried in the statue's palms behind her fingers. So well hidden that Quistis wouldn't possibly have seen it if she hadn't been looking.

“What's up?” Selphie asked, seeing Zell converge on Quistis. She let go of the door and shook hands that had gone numb with effort.

Quistis continued ignoring them as she reached forward with the martini glass. Oh, she hoped that she was right...

The stem of the glass slid in past the statue's fingers and settled into her palms. Quistis heard a very soft but familiar beep as the microchip was scanned.

The statue's arms lowered, the hinge motion acting as an unlocking mechanism. With it free to do so now, the statue slid back and to the side and revealed a long, narrow, empty corridor bathed in darkness.

“No way!” Zell gasped, looking down.

“Pretty sneak-y!” Selphie admired with a laugh.

Quistis nodded once, satisfied as relief flooded her veins. “Let's go.”

“But we don't even know where it leads!” Selphie pointed out.

Zell shrugged.” No use stayin' here!”

Quistis agreed silently as she started jogging down the hidden passage.

Was it an escape route to the streets? Or...

“Ew, what's that smell?” Selphie asked as Quistis found herself at the top of a set of concrete stairs leading down. There was light here, soft but at least it was light.

She descended quickly, turning as the stairs did, until the path ended at a ladder. The distinct smell of sewage waste was stronger now, coming up from below.

“Oh, Hyne!” Zell threw back his head. “I so didn't want to use the sewers!”

Quistis said nothing as she grabbed the ladder. Sure, their profession wasn't always the most elegant one, but she would be damned if she allowed this mission to fail by her own folly. She was getting back to the Arc if she had to _crawl_ through the sewers!

The ladder down was short, but the distance really made a difference in smell. They tried to ignore the liquid that ran by them as they moved away from the ladder.

“Zell, did you actually get a map of the sewer?” Quistis asked as she jogged down the small side path designed for sewer workers to traverse.

“Well, I saw one. But I didn't actually think we'd need to use it!”

“Can we hurry?” Selphie asked, her voice extra nasal from holding her nose closed. “I would rather not stay down here longer than we have to.”

Quistis agreed. They ran along the sewer streets, trying to find a way out. A ladder up to the streets anywhere at this point would be just fine.

They did pass manholes, but there was now way to get up to them. Zell frowned at one such opening as they passed under it. He could hear music and laughter from above. Were they passing under the Presidential Residence even now?

“It's starting,” he said as they jogged forward.

Almost directly above them, Squall and Irvine shared a look as a troupe of dancers wearing strange and flamboyant costumes emerged from the crowd surrounding the gates. Everyone was losing their minds, in joy or fear it was hard to tell. The Galbadian military, well trained only to obey orders, were keeping the people out of the street with violence if necessary.

The gates swung open as the dancers started forward. Music was blasting over the gathered crowd. The large float/throne that came moving out from the Presidential Residence had columns tipped with fire, a glowing ring above not unlike the one at Balamb in miniature, and the guest of honor herself sitting back with absolute ease as she gazed out on the people before her.

Squall frowned as the full front of the float came into view as it began turning left.

Irvine didn't look. He didn't care beyond a cursory glance. “Now's our chance!”

He took off running but Squall remained in place. Staring at the float. Admittedly, he couldn't get all that good of a look because of the fireworks and the crowd and the general pomp of the entire event so he could be wrong.

But was that...?

“Squall!” Irvine snapped, grabbing his attention. “What are you waiting for?! Rinoa might die!”

Right. He had far more important things to worry about right now.

Squall turned and sprinted after Irvine. With all the commotion caused by the sorceress herself, no one paid the pair of running teens any mind. They were hardly the only ones moving. They weren't even trying to follow the parade, they were moving anti-parallel to it.

They were also getting closer, for however brief a moment. Squall didn't stop moving, but he could start to see clearer now as they drew even with the float. The dancers kept moving, fireworks continued to blast into the sky.

But as he passed by, Squall couldn't mistake that slightly blue shine from Hyperion's blade. Or the silver of that familiar trench coat with the cross emblazoned on the back. And especially not that arrogant look that surpassed any that had graced that smug face before.

Seifer lowered his Hyperion like he was waving to the crowd. Their cheers and adulation and condemnation washed over him like milk and honey. He actually straightened his hair. Such a vein, preening bird.

Squall paid him little mind as he crossed the float.

Rinoa was up there and he had his orders. Save her life in compliance with the first contract. Then set up Irvine in the clock tower in compliance with the second. Short, easy steps that required no thought or emotion to weigh him down.

Irvine passed through the gates just a moment before Squall. They were running at a crouch so as not to draw attention to themselves. A position they straightened from the moment they were out of the public eye. The gates swung shut behind them automatically.

“There!” Squall pointed, spotting a transport truck half unloaded with cargo.

Irvine, still just a step ahead of him, reached the lowest crate first. Squall stood back for a moment, allowing him to climb up ahead of him. He was behind him by barely a second. They could reach the second floor balcony from here.

It was a short climb. Irvine moved a little slow for Squall's liking, but it was still quick. No sooner than Squall's boot his the ground on the second story walkway than he was turning and making his way to a service ladder he had spotted from below.

His body was moving too fast for Irvine to keep up with now as he swung himself around and up. By the time Squall was climbing onto the glass roof, Irvine was just cresting the ladder.

He made his way across the roof quickly towards the balcony that connect to the inner rooms. He ran past Deling's lifeless body without a glance towards him. Irvine was breathing hard, trying to catch up but Squall was too fast and determined.

The doors to the Sorceress's room had been knocked open, by a fleeing Rinoa or a chasing monster he had no way of knowing. She hadn't made it beyond that room though.

The sight of her small body crumpled on the floor hit Squall like a knife to the chest. The Valkyrie was off of her arm, embedded into the far wall. The monsters were converging on her slowly, drooling in anticipation of their meal.

Rinoa was conscious though. She was breathing quickly. The sound of her sobbing could barely be heard over the monsters low rumbles. Her body was shaking almost imperceptibly and she was keeping her head deliberately down so as not to see what was coming at her.

“Rinoa!” Squall called out for her. A desperation like he had never known before was clenching on his heart like a vise.

His call didn't lift her head. However, it did turn the monsters onto him.

Good enough.

“Blizzara!” Squall cried immediately, throwing out his hand. The spear of ice didn't hit either monster, but it did erect a cage of glittering spires around Rinoa extending all the way to the ceiling. He wouldn't be able to cast another spell so long as that one continued to persist. However, the monsters wouldn't be able to reach her there.

She would be safe for a moment.

Squall threw himself backwards just in time to avoid the pouncing claws of one of the iguana like creatures as it descended on him.

Irvine reached into his trench coat and pulled out his easily accessible weapon. He was already letting off a volley of shots as Squall maneuvered out of the way.

However, he only got the attention of one monster. He turned to Irvine quite happily as the other continued to chase down the unarmed Squall.

Damn! He needed time to pull his weapon out of his INVENTORY! This was why he didn't like walking about unarmed!

“Woh!” Irvine barely avoided getting skewered his monster's claws. “Alright! Come on, bros. Let's try out my new magic. Fire!”

Minotaur and Sacred occupied two spots in Irvine's brain. The younger brother above his left ear, the elder above his right. However, they reacted in sync to his command.

The blast of fire out of Irvine's glove left him grinning. The fireball raced towards the monster who hissed at it's approach. But it didn't try to move.

The red shield, invisible until the instant the fire spell hit it, seemed to bounce the fireball off of it's surface like a rubber ball. Irvine's eyes widened as he cried out. The reflected fire spell slammed against him sending him falling backwards. The acrid scent of singed hair and skin filled his nostrils as pain erupted in his arms and face. The burn wasn't bad, but it was painful.

“Cure!” he commanded. The brothers released the spell, taking away the pain. Irvine rolled away and came up on his feet, swatting at his face to remove the soot and ash. “Squall! This one has got reflect magic on him!”

Squall cursed as he ran through the sheer curtains around the room. The fabric was making it hard for the monster chasing him to jump and target effectively. Well, he supposed then it was a good thing that he was using his magic to shield Rinoa at the moment.

His gunblade was still safely tucked away though. He needed just a moment, a few short seconds, to pull it out. Squall wasn't a bare fists type of fighter. His knowledge in that fighting style was bare minimum at best. Certainly not good enough to take on these two monsters.

Where did these monsters even get a spell like reflect anyway? They didn't look like the sort of monster that could cast magic, and if they could why had they not done so already? Squall could detect no hints of magic usage in this room apart from his own.

Unless the magic wasn't coming from them.

As he ran, Squall reached into his pocket and pulled out the Odine Capsule he used to hold Shiva when she wasn't in his head. Drawing magic from monsters was an inefficient, but effective, method of stocking up on spells. Most monsters had _some_ inherent magic regardless of whether or not they could actually cast the spells.

There was only one way to find out if the reflect spell was their own making or not.

Squall turned and dropped so suddenly that the monster wasn't prepared for it. His next leapt took him right over Squall's head. As the monster was coming in to last, Squall was back up on his feet and charging at the monster instead.

He launched himself in the air. One boot hit the monster's flank and he propelled himself forward from there. He landed just behind the monster's neck like he might be riding it. The enormous reptile roared out in anger as it tossed his head from side to side to dislodge the attacker.

Squall's thighs tightened as he clutched one of the spiky scales sticking up from it's neck in order to hang on. He pressed the release button of the capsule and slammed it down against the monsters rough hide.

The pull of the capsule affected both of them equally. However, Shiva was inside of Squall preventing his magic from being stolen. The monster bucked wildly a few times but he couldn't stop the drawing of power into the capsule.

Squall blinked as he saw something red and shimmering out of the corner of his vision dissolve from around the monster.

He pulled back the capsule and tried to put it into his pocket. The monster bucked again and the tiny, marble sized machine flew from his grasp. He heard it clicking against the ground but couldn't follow where it landed as he gripped the monster tighter to avoid being thrown.

Well, he wasn't likely to get a better time.

With one hand holding him onto the monster, Squall reached into his jacket with the other. The quick release on the inventory was programmed to restore whatever item was most recently placed inside. If Squall was ever in a position to need it, he made sure that his gunblade was always the last thing put in for quick retrieval.

The heavy, familiar grip on the Sheer Trigger hit his palm as he pulled the gunblade out, the monster started jumping around wildly in it's effort to dislodge him.

It was too late now.

Squall turned the blade and slammed it down. He cut through the hard scales, through the spinal cord of the monster. Its life ended, the magic reversed, and the monster turned to stone that cracked and shattered as its own momentum sent it falling.

Squall jumped from its back at the last moment. He hit the ground as rock and stone showered around him. Much more comfortable with his blade in hand, Squall looked to Irvine.

The demolition ammo proved incredibly effective against the monster. Already, it was bleeding from a large hole in it's side. It was still chasing Irvine down though as he reloaded.

He hit the wall. Turned and cocked his shotgun. A loud bang. The reptile exploded in a burst of stone ad dust that fell over Irvine like a shower. Breathing hard, Irvine stared ahead in disbelief. His life had been normal at one point, he thought.

Squall ignored him and moved quickly over to where Rinoa was. As he got in closer, he started dissolving the ice he had wrapped around her.

The sudden quiet, more than anything, was what drew Rinoa from her scared thoughts. Why was it suddenly so silent? Had she finally died?

The cold, for most people, was not a comforting sensation. They preferred warm embraces and fiery passions. But the cold, to Rinoa, reminded her of one person.

Her eyes opened on a sparkling cage that was melting away from her. Black leather boots stepped into her field of vision. Then he was kneeling down in front of her.

Rinoa lifted her face up to him. Tear stains marked her cheeks. Fear clouded her eyes. She felt so ashamed looking at him in that moment.

Squall's eyes moved down her body and back up again. Though she was afraid, he saw no signs of pain or limited movement from her. He detected neither the scent nor sight of blood. Fear would fade, given time, injuries needed to be seen to immediately.

He saw none and his eyes moved back to hers.

So calm. So detached. On anyone else, Rinoa would have been mad to have such a gaze given to her after the biggest fright of her life.

But this was Squall. Calm and detached was how he did things. She could know that things weren't bad because he wasn't reacting to it. The chill of the air around him wrapped around her. Shiva's protective hand reaching out. It was more steadying than a thousand hugs and reassuring, meaningless words that everyone else gave out.

“I was scared...” she whispered to him, hating to admit it. It felt like a weakness. In the face of his calm, such an emotion was useless.

He nodded, accepting her admission without comment. Then he stood. Fear would fade, and they had a job to finish here. The sooner they finished, the sooner he could get her out of here. She was safe, that was the most important thing.

Squall didn't get more than a step away from her. Rinoa moved so quickly that it surprised herself. She threw her torso up and grabbed hold of Squall's hand as a sob tore through her throat. He turned back to see her on her knees, fresh tears falling down her cheeks.

“...really scared,” she repeated, a simple declaration of her own state.

Damn, he really wished she wouldn't look at him like that. He felt so helpless to see those large brown eyes staring at him, so large and terrified.

“Its over now,” he assured her quietly.

“I was scared,” she repeated, shaking his arm like he didn't understand. “I was really, really scared.”

“You're used to battles, aren't you?” he asked, reminding her gently of all the fights she had been in on her way here. He had actually been rather proud of her progress.

Rinoa was shaking her head, her body slumping. One hand refused to let go of Squall's though. She couldn't bear to be separated from him right now.

“I couldn't...I just couldn't...I couldn't fight alone...” Her eyes moved over to where her Valkyrie had been embedded into the wall.

She had run. She had fired without looking over her shoulder. All of Squall's careful instruction had come to nothing when forced to fight on her own.

She wasn't ready for all of this. He should never have brought her here. He should have ignored the order to pretend she was a SeeD and say her order to keep her safe superseded it. He could only blame himself for wanting her near. He should have put her on the first train to Balamb. Then he wouldn't have to see that broken look on her face.

“We better get going,” he said softly, pulling on her gently.

Rinoa released him, and he thought for a moment that was that. He had only taken two steps. That was the amount of time Rinoa needed to jump to her feet and run at him. He was pushed forward slightly when she grabbed onto his arm, holding it close to her body. Her eyes were screwed tight shut as she prevented him from leaving her side.

She was traumatized. She hadn't been mentally prepared for real battles. Squall blamed himself.

“I haven't forgotten your order,” he said softly, reminding her that he was supposed to keep her safe.

She remained unmoving, clenching his arm. The strength of his muscles, the scent of his jacket, the cold air around him, it all came together in the most soothing balm she could imagine. She didn't want to let that go yet.

Squall let out a long breath. Damn. He couldn't do this anymore. He couldn't keep pushing her away anymore. It just hurt too damn much. That look on her face, knowing what happened to her the moment he left her alone, was too heavy a burden to bear on his soul.

In that case, there was only one way to go. The complete opposite direction.

“Just stay close to me,” he told her gently.

The kindness in his voice surprised Rinoa into opening her eyes. She looked up at him and, for the first time since walking into this room, she felt her heart beginning to calm down.

His stormy gray eyes had never looked so clear as they did in this moment. Staring directly at her as he always did. But there was something in their depths that she had never imagined coming from Squall before. A sort of tenderness.

It hit her so hard in the heart that it stole her breath for a moment. Her fingers tingled, slightly numb, as her iron grip on his jacket relaxed. She nodded, her tears coming under control as a strange sense of comfort and security settled over her.  
For how could she not feel safe knowing he was looking after her?

Squall nodded, and the storm clouds moved back over his eyes. But she had seen the tenderness and that was all she needed. She could feel strong again as she followed after him.

Irvine stepped forward, smiling to see she was okay and holding out her Valkyrie.

“Thank you,” she said as Squall reached out and took it for her.

She raised her arm and hit the magnetic return so it could attach to her once again. Then she folded it up and lowered her arm. Just a little bit better. Her eyes, still downcast, caught the glint of metal sparkling at Squall's feet.

Frowning, she bent down and picked up the fallen capsule.

“What's this?” she asked, standing.

“Don't know, yet,” Squall admitted. “Open it and find out.”

Rinoa pressed the release on the capsule and the GF within gladly merged in with her arm. She felt Diablos perk up curiously as this foreigner made its way up into her head.

“Carbuncle?” Rinoa said aloud, looking at Squall.

He shrugged. “I got him from that monster. You can keep him.”

She nodded and reached up to touch her head. She could feel Diablos and Carbuncle feeling each other out cautiously. She wasn't sure that they liked one another. Carbuncle was such a sweet, warm, airy sort of feeling and Diablos was, well, not.

“Let's go,” Squall said, indicating with his head down the hallway. “The hatch to the clock tower should be back that way.”

He led the way down the hall, Rinoa right next to him, towards the hatch. It was too easy to miss as it blended almost seamlessly with the rest of the floor. It was narrow, not really made for hulking masses to move through it. Squall lifted the hatch and went down first himself. Because she couldn't stand to be apart from him, not yet at least, Rinoa hastened down immediately afterwards.

Inside the clock tower, everything was so much more quiet. The noise from outside was deadened by the heavy layers of sleeping machinery. It was darker in here, colder. Rinoa felt even better in this room for that alone.

Irvine was climbing down into the room as Squall moved over to the other side of the narrow metal walkway. He kneeled down as Irvine hit the ground. With the hatch closed shut behind him, it was almost like they were in another world.

Rinoa turned back to Squall to see him standing with the high powered, specialized sniper rifle that Caraway had hidden here days ago. The metal was cold and heavy but looked quite comfortable in Squall's hands as he turned to Irvine.

He held it out, his face impassive.

“Irvine Kinneas, it's in your hands now,” he said, his voice soft, echoing slightly around the room.

Irvine reached up with one hand and took the gun. The look on his face in that moment wasn't one of arrogance or pride. Rinoa expected some sort of assurance that he could handle it. At least some sort of snarky comment.

She didn't at all expect him to grasp the sniper rifle in a non show off-y way, nod once slowly and seriously, before turning and taking soft, deliberate footsteps away from them.

Squall frowned at his retreating back. Why'd he get all quiet?

Irvine moved over to the front of carousel clock. He leaned back against one of the hologram machines before slowly lowering himself down to the ground. The gun was nestled between his legs, his hat and hair falling down to conceal his eyes.

Ah. Of course. He must be concentrating, Squall nodded, satisfied. It was good to know that Irvine took his job seriously. Squall didn't mind him being insufferable the rest of the time so long as he did what he was supposed to when he had to do it.

Squall looked around, up at the ceiling that would fall away when they were due to rise. It was so quiet in here. The only thing he could make out was Rinoa's gentle footsteps as she moved over to one of the near hologram machines.

Squall watched as she sat on the rim of the lens. She kept her eyes down, sort of lost in her own thoughts. Squall moved down as well and sat on a hologram machine himself, sort of across from hers so he could keep her, Irvine, and the hatch entrance in his sight.

What was going on with the parade? How close were they to being finished? He couldn't see the digital clock from in here, but it must be getting close to time.

And now that things were finally calm for a moment, no matter how short that moment was, he could finally think back to the part of the parade he had seen. More specifically, the dead man he had seen riding the float beside the sorceress who had 'kidnapped' him.

His eyes looked over to where Rinoa was staring down at her feet. Seifer had been special to her. She deserved to know.

“Rinoa.”

She looked up, her face blank.

“Seifer's alive. He was in the parade with the sorceress.”

Squall was ready for happy tears. For some sort of jubilant reaction. From the same Rinoa that had thrown her arms around him just the second time she had seen him, he imagined hearing someone thought lost was back from the grave would be a great thing.

Her face didn't change expression at all. She didn't react for a long moment. And when she finally did speak, she didn't ask the question he was expecting.

“So what does that mean?”

“Who knows?” Squall shrugged crossing his arms.

He certainly hadn't looked unhappy about where he was. In fact, Squall didn't think he had ever seen Seifer look so smug and self important in all his life. And Squall had seen Seifer at both his very best and his very worst.

If Seifer was alive, it was his duty to contact the garden and let them know. More than that, as a SeeD candidate, he was required to return to garden.

But if he had decided to stand beside the sorceress instead...? If he had finally given up on a SeeD dream that he had been promised he would never attain...?

If Squall was forced to face the sorceress directly, would he have to go through Seifer?

He had no feelings about that either way. However, once again, Rinoa had been close to him. Squall looked over to see her slowly kicking her straightened legs out in the air. He felt he owed it to her to at least warn her.

“I may end up killing Seifer.” The words were both easier to say and harder to utter than he would have guessed. It wasn't like he was unused to fighting Seifer. At the same time, killing a person that had always been such a big part of his life was rather a daunting thought.

Rinoa said nothing. Her legs dropped with her head. Her hair fell over her eyes. Again, not the reaction he would have expected from her.

Slowly, Rinoa brought her head back up. Her face was totally neutral. Squall wasn't sure that he liked that look upon her normally bright face.

“You're both...prepared, right?” She finally asked, her tone completely indifferent. She let out a short sigh. “That's the kind of world you live in. Both of you. You've had a lot of emotional training. But...of course...I'd rather it not happen...”

He found that he would rather the same thing. But he was a SeeD. He didn't get to choose who his enemies were. And if he found himself facing someone he knew personally, then that was just a fight he had to face like any other.

Anyway, it was out of his control.

“It's all up to Irvine.” Squall looked over to where the sniper was sitting. He hadn't moved since he had gone to sit over there.

What was he doing?

Squall stood up and walked over to where Irvine was, something nagging at him about the way that the sharpshooter was acting.

He crouched down beside Irvine and that nagging feeling became a dreadful certainty as he saw that Irvine was twitching uncontrollably.

Was he freaking out!?

“Don't tell me you're getting the jitters...” Squall said, his voice low with disbelief.

Irvine leaned back, his face drawn with horror. “I...I can't do it...”

Squall groaned as his face fell into his hand. This right here was why SeeDs didn't like working with non-SeeDs.

***

Quistis jumped from the peak of the waterwheel that was just about her size and landed on the tall walkway into the next portion of the sewer. The waterwheels that helped moved sewage had the secondary advantage of helping to generate electricity throughout the city. It was a great way to generate power. But the waterwheels were still covered in filth.

Quistis made a face as she wiped her gloves off against the sewer walls. Selphie, who rode the wheels without touching them with her bare hands, landed next. Zell, who wished his nose would hurry up and get accustomed to this horrible smell, landed third.

“How much further?” Selphie asked, groaning.

“I think...” Quistis narrowed her eyes at the end of the hall. “Yes! I think there's a ladder there that we can take up! Come on! We're running out of time!”

With the end finally in sight, Quistis sprinted eagerly down the sewer tunnel. Zell and Selphie were right on her back as they crossed the bridge in front of the biggest waterwheel yet. The ladder that led upwards was in good working condition. It didn't start to fall the second that Quistis put her weight against it.

Glad this nightmare was finally coming to an end, she hurried up the ladder. She didn't know where she expected to come out. She had hoped, of course, that it was somewhere close to the Arc. She didn't dare to begin to hope that it would be _in_ the Arc.

The small, lower room that led only up and down was familiar to her from this afternoon.

“No way...” Zell breathed as he came up.

“Let's go!” Quistis put more speed in her limbs as she continued on to the top floor.

The portcullis control panel was a simple switch on the top floor. Quistis ran to it eagerly. Zell and Selphie converged on the narrow window that looked out over the streets.

The parade was coming down the road now. Zell could see the clock tower from here. Just as General Caraway had told them, it was all timed perfected.

“Just made it...” Zell said, his body going cold as he realized how close they had cut it.

19:59:58...19:59:59...20:00:00.

Inside the clock tower, Squall looked up and around as all the machinery whirred to life. The holograms of dancing, performing jesters burst to life as the carousel was raised up.

Damn! What a time for Irvine to admit that he couldn't control his own nerves!

The parade was making it's way under the Arc. It was time!

“Instructor!” Zell turned to Quistis at the control panel. “Now! Hit the switch!”

Breathing hard, Quistis flipped the large lever down. The light changed from blue to red and she looked around as she heard something give.

The metal gates of the portcullis were loud as they came zooming down from above. The sorceress jumped to her feet as first the ones behind her, then the one in front, crashed against the ground. The force of the sudden drop broke the stone under the arc and fracture off tips of the portcullis. But she was successfully trapped.

“Irvine Kinneas!” Squall snapped.

“I-I can't!” Irvine shook his head. “I'm sorry, I can't do it. I always choke like this when it comes to hitting human targets. I try to act all cool, joke around, but I just can't handle the pressure.” There was no way he could hit _her_...

“Forget it. Just shoot.” Squall was merciless. They didn't have time for this.

“My bullet...The sorceress...” Irvine was turning forward, which Squall considered a step in the right direction, but he didn't bring up the rifle. “I'll go down in history. I'd change the history of Galbadia. Of the world! It's all too much...”  
He was only working himself up further. “Enough! Just shoot!”

“I can't, dammit!”

Okay, this wasn't helping. Squall needed to talk him through this slowly. As much as he hated to admit it, he needed Irvine in this moment. He needed him to shoot.

“Irvine, calm down,” Squall said firmly, injecting some calm into his own voice. “Everyone is waiting on you. I don't care if you miss. Whatever happens, happens. Just leave the rest to us. Just...think of it as a signal. A sign for us to make our move.”

“A signal...” Irvine repeated, latching onto the inoffensive words.

Yes. Squall got him. He nodded his head once.

“Please.”

Irvine let out a shaky breath as he finally lifted his gun. His line was perfect. Squall could tell the rifle fit comfortably in his hand. He might have not taken down a human target up to this point, but his training was still flawless.

The sights were set. Irvine could see right through to the sorceress like she was directly in front of his face. She was looking around, trying to see what had happened.

“Just a sign...” Irvine repeated to himself. Squall's ever calm, unconquerable presence beside him steadied his hand as his heart beat slowed for just a second.

A second was all he needed.

BANG!

The sorceress moved so fast that they didn't actually see her do so. Her hand was up almost at the exact same time that Irvine pulled the trigger. The bronze bullet slammed against a iridescent blue barrier, a powerful sorceress style protection spell right over her face.

Irvine fell back on his butt, his breathing and heart rate elevated again. He looked to Squall, shame at his own actions darkening his face.

“...I'm sorry.”

Squall shook his head. “No, it's okay. Your aim was perfect. Just leave the rest up to me. I'm goin' in for the sorceress.”

Rinoa stepped forward as Squall stood up. He couldn't very well take her with him right now.

“You should get going. Get out of here,” he said then looked to Irvine. “Take care of her.”

With only that, Squall ran and leapt from the top of the carousel. He heard Rinoa say something behind him, but he was focused right now.

He landed down on the path leading to the balcony and podium. He preferred it this way anyway.

Pulling his Sheer Trigger from his sheath, Squall let out a cry as he ran and leapt from the top of the Presidential Residence.

The crowd was losing its mind. The death of their president. And now the attempted assassination of the sorceress that had killed him. The Galbadian soldiers were having a great deal of difficulty maintaining their increasingly fragile control over the people.

Squall's landing brought him directly on top of one such soldier in riot gear. It was only the full body shield that he carried that prevented Squall's gunblade from slicing clean through him. As it was, he probably wouldn't survive the blow he received to the head when Squall put him down.

Squall didn't bother to give him a second glance. He was sprinting.

There! A blue car with an open roof and a running engine. It's occupant, whoever they were, had long been evicted from the vehicle, probably by force.

Squall commandeered the vehicle for himself. He vaulted into the front seat, landing awkwardly because of his sheath. He wasn't going to be inside long though.

The streets had already been cleared by the parade. Squall faced minimal resistance from people. He didn't care if he hit them either. He backed up quickly, turning as he did so, then slammed his foot on the gas.

The Arc was waiting for him. He was aimed directly for the back of the float.

At the last second, he jerked the car wheel to the side, then applied the breaks. The car's momentum slid it all the way up against the grill of the portcullis. Squall then used the force of the blow to launch himself out of the car.

His body slipped easily through the iron bars. These gates weren't actually meant to keep anyone out, they were mostly just decoration.

From within though, there was nothing to stop Squall from climbing up the back of the float.

The sorceress could hear him climbing and she grinned. Seifer heard the blow from the car and felt the excitement heating up his blood.

It was all very calm somehow as Squall reached the top. Neither the sorceress nor Seifer made a move to stop him as he came around to the front of the float. The area here was rather narrow for fighting, but it would have to do.

Seifer grinned at him, like there was nothing better than for Squall to be there in that moment.

Squall stopped walking, his hand resting on the hilt of his Sheer Trigger. Hyperion was already out, ready for combat. Seifer was grinning at him. That hungry look that had made Squall so uncomfortable back in Dollet was on his face again.

“Well,” Seifer said, shrugging as if to say 'what-are-you-gonna-do?'. “So this is how it turned out.”

Squall let his eyes move down to the sorceress then up to Seifer again. “You've become the sorceress's lap dog.”

“I prefer to be called her knight,” Seifer said proudly, sticking out his chest. “This has always been my dream.”

Squall scoffed. “Serving on your knees? That's your romantic dream?”

Seifer's face turned ugly in scorn. “And what are you?”

Squall wasn't given a change to answer. Seifer struck out. Squall ripped the Sheer Trigger from his sheath and caught Seifer's blade against his own.

For as long as anyone could remember, Squall and Seifer had been fighting. Illegally and inelegantly as underclassmen, then latter dangerously and efficiently as SeeD candidates. They had trained each other for lack of a teacher. There was not a single move that one had the other didn't know and couldn't successfully counter.

They were both fast. They were both strong. They were both skilled. Two gunblade masters clashing before a mighty sorceress. A mercenary against a knight. It was the sort of thing Squall would probably find in one of Seifer's bad movies.

But the steel here was real. The fight was deadly.

Sheer Trigger had only been upgraded as a gun. The blade was the same. It was heavier now though and Seifer hadn't been neglectful of his training since last they fought. A prolonged training session that seemed like a thousand years ago now.

The clash of steel on steel echoed loudly under the Arc of Triumph. Sparks flew from their blades as parries and thrusts were countered and blocked.

Seifer kicked out with his foot towards Squall's groin. A dirty trick he had used many times before that Squall no longer fell for. Squall attempted to slice the tip of his blade across Seifer's arm to prevent him from holding his weapon. A move that Seifer had taught him and also didn't work.

Locked in a death battle that neither had ever truly won.

But Seifer had been reveling in his glory at becoming a knight. Squall had upgraded his weapon and been getting down and dirty fighting new and difficult monsters.

The armor piercing rounds in Squall's gunblade deal more damage than Seifer was expecting. The explosion of ice shards sent Seifer falling backwards. Squall was over him in a moment, hacking downward and forcing Seifer backwards.

His advantage didn't last.

Seifer kicked out and slammed his foot against the side of Squall's knee. The involuntary buckling reaction was outside of Squall's control. He fell and rolled immediately.

Hyperion slammed into the ground where his body had been. Squall felt the air coming off of it as it cut a line through the back of his jacket.

Both men were back on their feet, coming at each other.

Seifer swiped out wide, forcing Squall back. Then Seifer turned and sliced through one of the burning pedestals at the corner of the float. A cloud of ash and soot exploded from the fire.

“Aero!” Seifer laughed.

Squall's eyes slammed shut as the dust fell over his head. He started coughing. Reflex and instinct brought up his blade to catch Seifer's next attack because he certainly couldn't see it coming.

“Squall, you're mine!” Seifer laughed maniacally coming at him fast now.

Squall couldn't see. His defense was now significantly lacking. Blows started getting through. Never hitting anything vital. Seifer liked to play with his food before he ate it.

Pain blossomed then was quickly staunched in his arm. His leg. Across his chest.

“Did you mourn me, Squall?” Seifer asked, laughing as he cut away at Squall's body. “Did you think I was dead after attacking the president? Tell me truthfully. I would never die so easily! Not until I had fulfilled my dream!”

Squall blinked. The ash in his eyes burned and colored everything gray, but he could see. He caught Seifer's next attack. Deflected it. Then kicked out.

His boot landed hard against Seifer's chest. The blonde man fell backwards.

Squall turned in place, letting out series of quick shots from his gunblade. The magic within carefully controlled by Shiva as the ring of absorbed heat appeared again. Seifer stood up as Squall leveled the gunblade at his chest.

Fated Circle.

The blast of heat energy slammed into Seifer. He fell back, smoking. His skin, now raw and red, looked inflamed as Squall fell back a couple steps. He stole the quick second he had to quickly wipe some of the soot from his eyes.

When he opened them again, slightly clearer now, Seifer was getting back up. He didn't look at all put out about being put down. In fact, he was grinning.

“Ugh, not bad,” he admitted, rotating his shoulder. “You've been practicing. That one is new.”

“You haven't. You're still using the same tired old moves,” Squall said calmly.

The insult was a high one for Seifer. He growled as he pulled the Hyperion back. The twisting, almost hypnotic movement just proved Squall's point.

He lifted Sheer Trigger and didn't move as Seifer put his magic into his blade.

A non-elemental, pure magic energy attack that could slice down a fully grown tree. Just as showy as the man who crafted its deadliness.

No Mercy.

The spinning shadow that came off of Seifer's blade looked insubstantial. It was deceptive, just as sharp as the Hyperion it was launched from. Squall didn't move as Seifer threw it his way. It was designed to come in low and slice up through the center of the body.

At he last second Squall twisted out of the way. No Mercy harmlessly flew him by.  
“Same old moves,” Squall mocked, charging.

Squall's blade slammed against Seifer's. His body body moved almost too fast as Squall threw himself into the speed attack Renzokuken. Seifer was just as fast as Squall was. He could parry each blow as it came at him.

What Seifer lacked, however, was Squall's strength. The force of his stronger blade, the demands the weight of it put on his body, made Squall stronger. So while Seifer was deflecting the blows, he was still absorbing the bone breaking energy of them into the palms of his hands.

He cried out in pain. Squall kicked out and slammed his boot into Seifer's face. He turned. The butt of his gunblade crashed against Seifer's temple. The blonde man had a look of surprise on his face as he crumpled down against the ground.

Breathing hard, Squall took two steps back from him. Seifer's eyes rolled back into his head as he lost consciousness, but he remained breathing. It was, Squall decided, the best outcome he could ask for for his old sparing partner.

Still, he didn't remember it being that easy to bring Seifer down. It used to be that Squall could lay into him like that for hours and still not take him out.

“You're losing it, Seifer,” he said sadly.

His eyes moved past his prone body and to Sorceress Edea who remained reclining in her throne with absolute ease. She was looking at him through distant, golden eyes.

“A SeeD,” she guessed easily. Then her lips curled in a sneer of disgust. “Planted in a run-down garden.”

Unafraid, refusing to feel anything, Squall bared his gunblade at her. Slowly, as though she had an eternity to do so, Edea unfolded herself from her chair. She moved slowly down off of her platform, keeping Squall in her line of sight.

Her eyes focusing past his body told Squall that something was coming up behind him. He turned quickly, ready to take out whatever it was.

Rinoa and Irvine pulled themselves up onto the float.

“I thought I told you to get outta here,” Squall snapped at the pair of them.

“I have to redeem myself,” Irvine told him seriously. He had his familiar shotgun back in hand as he stepped to Squall's side. All he could think about was that maybe Squall wouldn't be here, forced to fight, if he had just nutted up and shot sooner.

Rinoa's eyes focused on the downed Seifer for only a moment before she looked back at Squall. Her shoulders were set, her eyes determined.

“I can fight. If I'm with you. That's why I'm here. I won't leave you alone!”

She didn't mean it the way Squall took it. He knew she didn't mean it that way. It still felt like a punch to the gut to hear her declare that so openly.

He turned away from her deliberately and back to the sorceress. Beside him, Irvine and Rinoa both cocked their weapons, prepared to fire.

Edea watched the exchange with bored eyes. “...the accursed SeeD,” they could hear her whispering to herself from across the float.

The first spell she threw looked like a cross between thunder and blind. It exploded against Squall's gunblade and the energy of it burned along his skin under his leather jacket.

Damn! Don't lose focus! She was just like any other magic heavy enemy. Meaning she was probably good only at magic. That thin, skin tight dress would offer no defensive abilities. He just had to get in close to her and he could bring her down!

“Surround her!” Squall ordered the other two. “And don't let her magic hit you!”

Rinoa shot her Valkyrie first. A gust of wind from Edea blew it off course.

Irvine took a shot from his Ulysses. The spreading shotgun pellets were caught against her protection shield.

Squall charged forward, intending to get in so close her protection spell would be useless.

Edea threw her magic at him again. Squall barely avoided getting speared by the ice from a blizzara spell that burst from the earth. Shiva cried out a warning and he slashed out his blade. The icicles that were coming towards him shattered against the metal.

So she wanted to play with ice, huh?

Squall jumped backwards, landing in a low crouch. When he looked up again, his eyes were flashing ice blue. True, icy power surrounded him.

He would show her ice.

“Diamond Dust!”

The corridor of ice descended on Edea and she was caught completely in it. Squall squeezed his fist and the tunnel shattered. Ice shards ripped in and outside of her body.

Her golden eyes opened. She looked almost completely unaffected.

“Thundara!” She yelled bringing down her hand.

The electric spell burst through Irvine's body. He cried out as he seized uncontrollably. His finger tightened on the trigger of his gun and a hole appeared in the float at his feet.

Squall lifted his blade and let out a quick shot. It was caught easily against her protection barrier.

Damn! It was like she was untouchable! But her magic was destroying them!

“Ruby Light!”

The cry from Rinoa caught Squall's attention. Her eyes were glowing red. They looked up, following something that Squall couldn't see. The thunadara spell faded and, a moment later, a bright red light expanded in front of Squall.

What was that?

Rinoa grinned as her eyes faded back to brown.

“Thunadara!” Edea cast again.

Squall flinched. The spell bounced off of the red barrier in front of him. The same red barrier that the monsters had been using before. The GF's power was to summon reflect spells!

Edea gasped as they reflected thundara crashed against her instead. She cried out, not from pain but from anger to have her own spell thrown at her.

This was Squall's chance! He sprinted forward, bringing up his blade as he did so. Edea's eyes opened as he broke through her barrier. His gunblade swung down-

-and caught against the metal claws extending from her fingers. She growled at him angrily, her bright eyes flashing.

“Dispel!” she said to him.

Squall blinked to see the ruby barrier protecting him fade out of the corner of his vision.

He tried to jump back. Edea's other hand slammed against his chest.

“Fira!”

Squall cried out in pain. She had pushed directly past Shiva's protective layer of cold air. The fire blossomed out against his chest and sent him flying backwards.

“Squall!” Rinoa cried out as he hit the ground. “Cure!”

Squall lifted himself up, grimacing against the pain of burned flesh. It had been a long time – since he had first received Shiva, actually – that Squall had felt the pain of a burn.

Exposed nerve endings screamed at him as Rinoa's cure spell took affect. Shiva was roaring in pain in his head. She couldn't handle the heat of a burn. Squall apologized to her and begged her to bear with it for a little longer.

Shiva told him to kill that bitch that dared to burn the goddess of ice.

Edea snarled at him. He had gotten in far too close. She wore no armor. If he had managed to cut through her now, everything would have been ruined.

“Impudent SeeDs!” she snarled at them.

Squall sprinted towards her again.

The burst of cold, sparkling air that came off of Edea's body was only soothing to him. Rinoa and Irvine cried out because it was too cold for their unprotected bodies.

Edea raised her hand slowly as the ice wrapped itself around her, then formed into a set of three long spears above her head.

Her face completely blank, Edea launched the ice attack.

Squall was immune to cold thanks to Shiva. Subzero temperatures meant nothing to him.

However, being impaled was something he was unable to brush off. The ice spears flew through the air too fast to attempt to block. One just barely grazed the edge of Rinoa's reflect spell. Irvine was already diving out of the way and off of the float.

There was nothing to protect Squall as the sharp spear slammed into his chest. Pain unlike anything he had experienced before erupted as the spear stuck there, just beyond his right shoulder. Missing his heart, but cutting through his lung.

Squall coughed and he felt the coppery taste of his own blood hit his tongue.

Rinoa's eyes landed on him before widening in horror. Her scream ripped through the air so loudly that it could be heard over the crowd.

Damn. Was this where he died?

Squall's body was completely out of control. He felt like everything had gone into slow motion as he fell backwards. Instead of the float, his body hit nothing but air.

Rinoa was running for him, dropping to her knees at the end of the float and reaching out for him desperately. The last thing he could see was her pretty face collapsed into heartbreak as he fell into the darkness.

END DISC 1


	17. Laguna Part 3

Yup, it was officially official. The crib was broken.

Laguna scratched the back of his head as he looked over the splintered wood on the crib. He had been trying for the better part of two hours now to fix the wood that he had helped break when playing with the owner of said crib. Of course, crib owner wasn't required to fix it. That fell to him. He didn't mind, he was just unhappy that he couldn't actually do it.

Hm, maybe if he just carved a new post out of wood he could...

Laguna frowned as his head lifted up. That feeling...? It couldn't be-

“Uncle Laguna!”

He jumped in surprise to hear a tiny, sweet voice like the bells of the angels calling out for him. He turned to see a tiny, pixie faced girl run into the room. Her blue dress fluttered about her legs and she was beaming at him happily. Her brown hair was frizzy and messy, probably because she had been running around and playing all morning. Her bright eyes flashed in delight at seeing him. Like he was the best thing she had ever seen.

Not for the first time, Laguna felt an immediate, swooping happiness at seeing her. At hearing her call him uncle. That look when she saw him. She was the most perfect little girl. Laguna honestly didn't think he could love her more if she were his own.

“There's someone here to see yoo!” The tiny pixie told him, pointing backwards.

“Huh? Me?” Laguna pointed to himself. Who would be coming to see him? Everyone hated him around here. Maybe they were coming to complain about him. Wouldn't be the first time.

Hm...He really hoped it wasn't the old flower ship lady. He didn't want to have to listen to her yelling at him for an imagined offense again today. He had to fix this crib!

“What's this person look like?” Laguna asked cautiously, hoping his sweet little pixie didn't notice the way he asked it.

“He was wearin' funny clothes,” she said, twirling her skirt so that the fabric brushed against her legs and tickled her. “He's tawking to Raine to right now.”

Laguna frowned. “Raine? Is he at the pub?”

“Yup!” The pixie bounced happily. “That's why I came over to get yoo, Uncle Laguna. Am I good girl?”

“No, you're not!” Laguna snapped at her, surprising her into a frown. Laguna kneeled down, looking over her with worrying eyes. “I've told you, it's dangerous to be out there by yourself. What if a monster comes and attacks you?”

She looked a little guilty, but she was still twisting so cutely. “It's only next door. It's okay.”

“It's still dangerous!” Laguna didn't let his voice soften for her. He really needed her to understand how a monster only needed those few feet to attack.

Just the thought of losing her made Laguna feel lost. It made his heart ache. He honestly didn't think he could survive it if something happened to his pixie.

He shook his head. “And since you're such a cute little girl, the monsters will especially be after you! They'll catch you and then they'll suck all your blood out! If anything like that should happen, Uncle Laguna's gonna cry...”

He felt breathless just thinking about it. It was such a horrid thought that he didn't want to bring it into his head for fear of making it come true.

“I'll be okay,” she promised, reaching up to rub his hair as he did to her at times. “If that happens, I'll just call yoo, Uncle Laguna. You'll come rescue me, right?”

Laughing, she turned on her heel and ran out.

“H-Hey! Ellone!” Laguna jumped to his feet, suddenly terrified that she was going to put that to the test and run outside again. “Wait!”

He ran down after her and was relieved to find her standing patiently in the kitchen. She was still twisting her dress near the front door. Laguna let out a breath as he slowed to a walk.

Of course he would come to save her. Of course. But he would rather not put her into a situation that she would need saving from in the first place.

“I waited for yoo,” Little Ellone declared as he reached the bottom of the stairs. “Am I good girl?”

Laguna nodded, smiling at her. “Yes, you are. A very good girl.”

Winking at her, Laguna walked over to the picture sitting on the low side table. The couple smiling out from the photo were young and happy. They had contributed almost equally to Ellone's looks. Laguna felt like he should thank them every day for the perfect gift they had given the world. The gift they had given him.

If nothing else, he could swear to watch their daughter since they no longer could.

“Dear Ellone's mother and father,” he said to their photo. “Ellone has been a very good girl today.”

Ellone laughed happily at the glowing report. She enjoyed it when he would give updates to her parents on her, even on days when she hadn't been such a good girl. She was a little too young as yet to completely understand the concept of death, but his phrasing it as a letter made it feel like, to her, they were still looking out for her. Like they could hear her and were watching out for her. She was young but her memories of them were so crisp and clear.

Ellone could see her parents at night when she slept, after all. She could watch them play with her, hear them talk to her. She could be close to her parents then. And during the day, she would play with Uncle Laguna and Aunt Raine.

Laguna turned from the photo and smiled at her. He rubbed his hand through her hair as he passed by and stepped outside. As he did so, he picked up the loaded machine gun by the door. It was a slightly older model, but it fired bullets just fine. And that was all he needed to protect his pixie girl and...

Well, it was all he needed anyway.

His eyes were sharp as he scanned over the town square. The gun was up and at the ready, waiting for a monster to come down. It wouldn't be the first time one of them had camped out on a roof and waited for someone to leave the safety of their house.

He reached the door to the pub right next door without incidence. He turned back and gestured to Ellone to move her forward.

“Ellone! Now's your chance!”  
“Cha-nce!” Ellone chanted as she sprinted forward. She knew this drill. Once Laguna cleared the way, it was her job to run as fast as she could. Laguna tried to make a game of it by counting to see how long it took her so she could beat her best time.

Today though, in her excitement at the guest in the bar, Ellone ran right past him and inside without asking what her time was. Laguna followed her, shutting the door firmly behind him so no monster could get inside.

And he walked right into the middle of Raine's lecture.

“You are absolutely forbidden to go outside without Laguna or myself,” she was saying, her hands on her hips. “You know that very well and you deliberately disobeyed that rule by leaving the bar while I was speaking to our guest. Do you understand, Ellone?”

“Yes, Aunty Raine,” Ellone said, kicking at the floor.

“Good,” Raine nodded once, satisfied. “Now go to your room and play.”

Laguna grinned, leaning against the nearest table as he looked at Raine.

So fierce. So strong willed. So independent.

Raine was such a beautiful woman. With a strong chin, sharply intelligent gray eyes, and the longest, softest brown hair he had ever seen, she was easily the toughest woman he had ever met. And he had known military women.

She ran a bar in a small town. She would sometimes have to deal with drunk patrons, but very rarely did things get out of control. The one time Laguna had seen that happen, Raine had put the fight down so quickly, he hadn't even had a chance to move.

As though to help offset her sharp nature, she always wore soft clothes. Thick, comfortable sweaters that looked like clouds and hid a body that Laguna knew was tight and toned. Soft clothes, however, did nothing to hide her almost unfriendly nature.

Almost.

Raine was, honestly, the nicest, most wonderful person he had ever met hidden behind a mask of sarcasm and stern words.

Her eyes lifted and those sharp eyes struck him next. They had always been able to see through him so easily. Like he was clear as water to her.

She let out a breath and turned away to return behind the bar. Doing so hid the way her heart sped up slightly at the sight of that goofball stepping into her bar.

No one ever understood why she tolerated him. Why a no nonsense woman like herself could stand to have such a silly, grown man hanging around her all the time.  
What they didn't understand was that Laguna was able to accomplish something no one else had ever managed to do on a regular basis.

He could make her laugh. His attitude, his outlook, his boundless energy. There was just something about him that made her smile. And that, to her, was far more valuable than any trait that anyone else could ascribe to a person.

Instead of running of upstairs to play, Ellone turned back to Laguna as he stepped up behind her. She was grinning despite her lecture and she whispered to him conspiratorially.

“I got in twouble.”

Laguna leaned down and whispered right back. “That's 'cause you broke your promise. Too ba-a-ad...”

“Laguna!” Raine snapped as she came around behind the bar. She sent him a glare that had melted greater men than him. “Use proper English when speaking to Ellone.”

Laguna smiled at that glare as Ellone snickered at him. He looked back down at the little pixie and winked at her.

“I got'n trouble.”

“To-o-o-o ba-a-ad!” she mocked right back at him, giving as good as she got.

The two of them started laughing together. They were often partners in crime underneath Raine's watchful gaze. She rolled her eyes at them as she started preparing the bar for the night.

The two of them would often conspire together. They would get into trouble and get themselves out then try to keep Raine from knowing. At least, Ellone did. There was nothing Laguna didn't tell her where it concerned the little girl. Though he was her best friend and he would help hide trouble from Raine with her, he always deferred to Raine later.

As much as a goofball as he was, Raine could admit that he was a fine guardian. He was the good cop, and she was the bad. And though their charge would divulge every secret to him, he in turn would collaborate with Raine when the little girl was asleep.

From his spot beside the door, just out of Laguna's line of sight, Kiros walked forward and towards the bar. He had one eyebrow cocked curiously at the way his old battle brother was reacting with the tiny girl. Honestly, he wasn't surprised Laguna got on well with children, what with him being a giant man-child himself.

“It's been a while, Laguna,” Kiros said, drawing his friend's attention.

The smile that lit up Laguna's face brought his eyes alive and reminded Kiros why he had made it his personal mission to seek him out. No one felt emotions like Laguna. And no one made Kiros feel like he was welcome somewhere like Laguna. The happiness that burned in his face was so genuine that Kiros almost felt like he was coming back from the grave.

“Kiros!” Laguna jumped up. Then, seeming to remember something, he kneeled right back down and whispered to Ellone, who was staring at Kiros now. “He's Uncle Laguna's friend. He dresses funny, but he's not a bad guy.”

Ellone smiled. “Hewo, Kiros!”

“Evening, Miss Ellone,” he nodded to her formally making her snicker at him.

Laguna ruffled her hair as he stood and came around closer to the bar. Kiros had stopped in front of Raine who was cleaning some glasses.

“You seem well,” Kiros said, looking around at the bar. At Raine. At Ellone. If he hadn't known better, he would have sworn by the way he reacted that Laguna was that girl's father. The love in his eyes when he looked at her was certainly indicative of it.

“Yeah, you too,” Laguna nodded, looking him over. He shook his head in disbelief at seeing him again all the way out here. “How long has it been? You know, since our grand escape from Centra?”

“Grand escape?” Kiros repeated, one eyebrow going up as he grinned wryly. “That was...Well, one would usually call that being 'chased out'.”

“I thought so,” Raine chimed in, grinning smugly. “Laguna just can't tell a story without over dramatizing it.”

“It's called theatrical license,” Laguna said haughtily making her smile. Which in turn made him smile and he felt like he had accomplished something with that alone.

Kiros looked thoughtful. “Well, I would say about a year now. I can't believe it's been that long.”

Laguna nodded, letting out a breath as he thought back. “I was bed-ridden for over six months. It seemed like every bone in my body was in pieces. I didn't realize rocks would be so hard.”

“How did you get out here?” Kiros asked. “This place isn't exactly easy to find. I thought when Ward and I couldn't find you that you had drowned at sea.”

Laguna shrugged. “Luck? I guess. Some townspeople found me washed up on the beach. I think I just kind of floated here on the currents. Don't really remember it.”

“That's because you weren't conscious for most of it,” Raine interjected. “He was severely dehydrated and starving by the time we found him. I'm honestly not sure how we were able to save his life. I think he cleared out the entire town's stockpile of cure spells and potions. I only just got some stock back. It's hard to order anything to get delivered out here since the trains don't come past the mountains.”

“You used your entire stock?” Kiros asked.

She nodded. “I was the one who nursed him back to health.” Laguna nodded eagerly, leaning against the bar and beaming at her.

Kiros's expression softened towards her as well. “Thank you for taking such good care of Laguna. I know he's not exactly an easy patient.”

“Hey!” Laguna frowned.

“He wasn't too bad,” Raine shrugged. “He's very susceptible to potions. I barely gave him any and he would just pass right out. Or I could let him sip some wine. Which I did whenever he was getting too mouthy.”

“Hey!” Laguna crossed his arms, pouting. Raine chuckled and he felt fulfilled again. He smiled back at her because he just couldn't resist when she smiled first.

“I was able to recover in about a month or so,” Kiros told them. “I had strained and injured a bunch of muscles. One of them I actually ripped apart. The doctor's say it was a miracle I was able to get Ward and myself onto a boat and sailing back towards Galbadia. Ever since then...Well, I've been searching for you.”

Laguna looked surprised. “Why?”

“After leaving the army...” Kiros trailed off.

It was hard to put into words the gut wrenching emotion of not knowing. Not knowing if Laguna, one of his best friends, had lived or died. Wondering if his body was at the bottom of the sea. Wondering if he had somehow made it out alive. Always wondering. Laguna was his shield brother. And damn if Kiros didn't love him like a real brother.

“Well, just killing time I guess,” he finally said for lack of anything better. He sent Laguna a grin that didn't really reach his eyes. “Life's pretty boring without you as entertainment, my man.”

Laguna scoffed. “That's a harsh thing to say. I'll have you know I've been living a quiet, productive life here in this town.”

“I think I know what you mean though,” Raine said over the glass she was cleaning. Kiros nodded and Laguna glared between them without any real heat in his gaze.

“How did you even find me out here?” he asked.

Kiros shrugged. “Heard some rumors in Timber about you.”

“Timber?” Laguna looked surprised.

“That's where the supplies for this town come from,” Raine told him. “One of the caravan workers told you about him, I bet?”

Kiros nodded. “You're smart. They all knew the story of the miracle dead man who washed up on your shores. Many of them were using the story to sell their potions. I didn't know if it was you or if it was even true, but I figured it was worth a trip over the mountains to look.”

“Wow, cool,” Laguna grinned. “I'm famous. Want an autogliph, Raine?”

“It's auto _graph_ ,” she corrected without looking up.

Laguna shrugged. “How about you, Kiros?”

“I don't want an autograph or an autogliph.”

“No,” Laguna laughed. “I mean, how are things with you? What's going on? What's Ward up to?”

“Ward and I were both honorably discharged from the army for our injuries. Well, I was offered the choice. Ward was not. They sort of forced him to retire. Luckily, he found a steady job and he's working pretty hard.”

“What's he doing?”

“He's a janitor down at the D-District Prison.”

“Wow...” Laguna whistled. “Can't picture him moppin' floors, but I'm glad he's doing well. Why did the army force him to retire?”

“He never got his voice back,” Kiros said sadly. “The damage was too extensive and I wasn't able to get him to a doctor in time. You can basically tell what he wants from his facial expressions though. He's got a very expressive face.”

Laguna nodded, smiling. Honestly, he was just glad that Ward was alive.

“Ward is the big one with blonde hair, right?” Raine asked, trying to keep track of all the characters that Laguna had told her about over the last year.

“You know of us?” Kiros asked.

Raine nodded. “He talks a lot.”

“I do not.”

“Yes, you do,” Kiros agreed.

“Even in your sleep,” Raine nodded sagely.

“What?” Laguna looked offended. “I do not.”

“You do, too,” Raine said.

“I do not!”

“You do, too,” Raine and Kiros said.

Laguna scoffed, crossing his arms. “Let's just change the subject.”

Kiros was chuckling at him. Raine was smiling. Laguna let out a breath, leaning against the bar.

“So, what else do you want to know?” Kiros asked.

Laguna didn't respond immediately. He stared down at the wood of the bar for a long moment, almost memorizing the whirls under the finish.

He had to know.

“How's Julia doing? Do you know?”

“Julia...” Kiros murmured her name, looking to Raine. Wondering.

Raine was looking at Laguna, almost surprised. “Julia? You never told me about a Julia.”

“We weren't exactly...close,” Laguna tried to shrug nonchalantly. Raine's sharp eyes couldn't miss the lie on him. “Anyway, she's probably busy singing these days.”

“Wait, you don't mean Julia Heartily, do you?” Raine looked honestly surprised this time. “The singer? The famous one from Deling City?”

“That's right,” Kiros nodded once. “Laguna really admired her and always used to frequent the lounge that she performed in.”

“Julia used to sing in a lounge?”

“No, she didn't sing. She just played played the piano. Beautifully, of course. She wanted to get into singing back then though. She wrote her debut song in that lounge.”

“Yeah, Eyes On Me. That's what it was called, right?” Raine smiled. She knew that song.

“H-How does that one go?” Laguna asked, still looking down.  
Raine frowned at him. “You don't know?”

“You never let me hear it!”

“I didn't think you listened to music. You're always much more inclined to talk and I can't listen to music and you at the same time,” Raine smiled. “I do love that song though. It's about being in love. It's such a beautiful tune.”

Kiros glanced over to Laguna then away again. “Heard she recently got married.”

“Yeah, I heard that, too” Raine nodded quickly. “To some army general, right? General Cara...Caraway, or something like that.”

“I'm not too sure,” Kiros shrugged. He didn't keep up with those kinds of things.

Raine sighed almost dreamily. As dreamily as a woman like Raine ever got. “I read in a magazine that her true love went off to war and never came back. General Caraway comforted her while she was feeling down. That's how they got to know each other.”

“So...She didn't wait for the soldier to come back?” Kiros asked because he was sure that Laguna would be dying to himself.

Raine frowned at the way he said it. It was an innocuous question, but the tone was like-

“So what?” Laguna cut them off, standing up straight and putting a smile on his face. “Who cares? As long as she's happy, right? That's all that matters! Ain't that right, Elle?”

He turned over to where the little pixie was trying to climb up onto one of the bar stools

“Right!” She said happily, putting her fist in her the air. “Just like Uncle Laguna and Aunty Raine are-”

“Ahhh!” Laguna yelled loudly, cutting her off and turning away quickly. Kiros raised an eyebrow and looked to Raine who was suddenly very busy cleaning an already clean glass.

“Okay, enough talk about this!” Laguna cleared his throat pointedly. “So Kiros, eh, uh...”

( _...Where am I?_ )

Laguna trailed off, shaking his head as that damn buzzing in his head got louder.

“Are you alright?” Raine asked.

“Yeah,” he chuckled, looking to Kiros. “I think the faeries are flying around today.”

“The faeries?” Kiros blinked. It took him a minute to recall what Laguna had been talking about. It had been a long year.

But the buzzing in his brain that had started up just before Laguna came downstairs was annoying him just as much. And he nodded.

“Yeah, I guess so...”

Raine looked between them, confused, as Laguna beamed.

“Then work today should be a cinch!”

“What work?” Kiros asked curiously.

“So, what's your plan, Kiros?” Laguna asked him. “You're gonna stick around here for a bit, right?”

Slightly confused about the sudden change of topic, Kiros looked to Raine. She was obviously the one in control around here. It would be up to her.

“Would that be okay?”

“You work for what you eat. If that's fine with you, you're more than welcome,” Raine said without looking up from what she was doing.

Kiros nodded, accepting that as fair.

“Alright!” Laguna cried happily. It would be nice to have someone besides Raine and Ellone around that didn't look physically disgusted at the sight of him. “Then let's get goin'. Elle, I've got work to do now, so you stay here with Raine, okay?”

“'Kay!” Ellone smiled at him from the chair she had climbed into. “I'll be good.”

“Back soon, Raine!” Laguna saluted to her as he made his way to the door.

“Uh, Laguna?” Kiros stayed a step behind him, not unwilling to follow. If he didn't like being dragged around by him, he wouldn't have spent the better part of a year praying he was alive.

“Weapons at the ready, Kiros!” Laguna instructed, picking up his gun again. He no longer had the strap that used to connect it to his body, so he wielded it mostly with one hand. He notched it against his shoulder and took on a commanding air mostly for Ellone's sake. “We have our dinner to earn! Now step lively, soldier! Left! Left! Left, right, left!”

Ellone's laughter followed them out of the pub and onto the abandoned streets. Streets that had actually scared Kiros by how deserted they were when he had made his way to the pub initially. He knew there were people here. It was the middle of the day. Where was everyone?

“Laguna,” Kiros tried again as his friend started looking around. “I have a simple question. What exactly is it that you do here?”

He simply could not imagine any job that a small town like this would have that Laguna would be suited for. Or that would require an old machine gun.

“See, it's like this,” Laguna turned to him, a slight frown on his face. “All the working men in this town were drafted by the Galbadian military and sent off to war. The only ones still left around are old people, children, chocobos, dogs, and cats. And, I'm sure you've already noticed, but the monsters have made their way into town now that everyone who could defend against them are gone.”

Kiros nodded. That would explain why no one was out on the streets.

“This here town took real good care of me,” Laguna continued, looking out over the long main street that extended slightly down a slopping hill. “So, basically, I want to return the kindness.”

Laguna turned back and snapped into a military rest position. “You're lookin' at the official Monster Hunter of Winhill! And, as of today, you'll be my esteemed assistant.”  
“Is that just a nice way of saying 'sidekick'?” Kiros asked, grinning despite himself.

Laguna ignored him. “Our job, in a nutshell, is to patrol the town up to the town entrance. If we see anyone in need along the way, we help them. If we spot monsters, we slay them. It's as simple as that! Oh, and then Raine makes the _best_ food for dinner. Watch, you'll see. And with the faeries blessing us today, it'll be even easier than usual.”

Kiros chuckled. “Well then, I'm looking forward to the battles.”

If Kiros hadn't heard the rumors of the miracle man in Winhill whose timeline fit Laguna's disappearance and who sounded a great deal like him, Kiros might never have come all the way out here to check. Not just because it was such a remote village. It was just so small. This tiny kind of place that was barely on any map was just too little to hold the big personality that was his shield brother. He almost couldn't believe he actually found him here.

And it became quickly apparent to Kiros that absolutely no one here besides those two back in the pub liked Laguna. Like, at all.

He stopped at every house he came to. He asked if anyone needed help. Those who didn't immediately slam the door in his face would ask why he was still there and demand he leave. No one looked happy at seeing him. Everyone was cold to him.

Laguna smiled and laughed. He didn't seem to care. Kiros knew he had to notice, but he just let it all wash over him like it meant nothing.

All the while, he and Kiros were fighting. Two monster types had set their eyes on this place as their new home. Caterchipillars and bite bugs weren't so difficult of enemies to fight. Honestly, they were more common pests than anything.

Unless you were very old, very young, or infirm. Then those monsters were deadly dangerous. The bite bugs were venomous. The caterchipillars weaved a web that could ensnare the unwary. And they were all over the place.

By the time the two of them reached the town entrance, Kiros was picking bite bug wings out of caterchipillar guts that had caked onto his katar with a look of disgust.

“Oh, what a charmed life we lead,” he said, flicking the monster bits away.

Laguna laughed. And he could because his weapon didn't require close combat. The worst he had was a rip in his pants where a bit bug almost got him and some caterchipillar webbing stuck to the bottom of one of his boots.

“Alright, then!” Laguna turned from the town entrance, rotating his shoulder. “Our first joint patrol is complete. We are now to report to the commander and assistant commander.”

“Commander?” Kiros repeated. “You mean that woman at the pub?”

“Her name's Rain. Raine, okay?” Laguna snapped, surprising Kiros. “She saved my life and she deserves some respect. And the assistant commander is Ellone, of course.”

“How long were you in the military again?”

“They are our superior officers and we report our final monster tally to them at the end of the day. Raine uses the numbers to help teach Ellone math. She's really good, too. Super smart. She's up to adding to the teens already.”

“Pub owner, healer, private tutor, guardian. Is there anything the woman can't do?” Kiros asked, his voice not holding near enough appreciation for Laguna's liking.

“She's only kinda, pretty fantastic,” Laguna said, starting back. “And you forgot to add bomb cook to that list. And great listener. And super smart.”

“She seems like a nice person,” Kiros agreed lamely. Not that Laguna was listening anymore. “A bit easily taken in by a hotshot though.”

“Hm...Huh? Hey, who you calling a hotshot?” Laguna put his hands to his hips.

Before Kiros could answer, Laguna detected the gossamer glint of bite bug wings flying around the door of the town inn. He pointed.

“Alright, they're getting bold again. We're gonna have to step up our patrol a notch. We need to better figure out how to best utilize the new strengths coming to our ranks. That would be you, by the way.”

“Why are you talking like that?”

“Assistant Kiros, let us come up with a plan after we get back to the base!”

“You mean the pub?”

“Die, filthy bug!” Laguna ran forward, shooting.

Kiros couldn't help but notice that Laguna's aim had improved significantly since the last time he had seen him fight. He hit the bite bug and nothing else but the bite bug. Not even the building behind the bug saw a hint of damage. He wondered how much of that was just experience and how much was fear of angering a group of people that already hated him.

On the way back, Kiros had the unfortunate pleasure of meeting the old flower shop lady. She made Laguna fetch wood for her. Demanded it of him, really. Then waved him away with a lip curled in disgust without so much as a thank you. In fact, she lectured him on the abysmal state of his pants and the hole he had earned only a little bit ago protecting her and her town.

Laguna still didn't seem bothered.

The bitter old woman slammed the door shut behind them and Kiros frowned from her to Laguna who looked like he was glowing.

“Hey, Laguna...”

“Hm?” Laguna smiled over at him as they continued down the road.

“Are you doing this patrol thing everyday?”

Laguna started, sending him a glare.

“'Thing'?! What're you callin' ' _thing_ '?!”

“Are you actually offended?”

“Hey, this 'thing' has saved everyone's lives here at least once.”

“And they seem so appreciative.”

“That includes Raine and Ellone,” Laguna said pointedly, sending him a look confirming that he wasn't oblivious to how everyone else was treating him.

“Weren't you aiming to become a world traveling journalist?” Kiros asked just as pointedly. “You've heard of Timber Maniacs, right? The magazine? I had a talk with the chief editor while I was there. He said he's interested in any article related to world travel.”

“That's great!” Laguna proclaimed, beaming.

“We should go talk to him,” Kiros said, casting his eyes over to the mountains.

“Y-Yeah...”

Kiros frowned. His friend sounded much less excited than he would have guessed. Laguna wasn't a bad writer and this was his chance to fulfill his dream. A dream that he had been chasing since he started his required time in the G-Army.

Laguna didn't say a word about it, didn't even seem all that enthusiastic about Kiros's news, as they started back towards the town center.

He finally stopped, prompting Kiros to stop as well, and turned back. He didn't quite look Kiros in the eyes as he dithered for a moment.

“Um, it'd be okay if we stayed here for a bit longer, right?”

“You need time to gather more material?” Kiros asked, looking around. Aside from the monsters, human and beast, the village seemed quite lovely. “This seems like a really nice town. You're gonna wrist about this place first, aren't you?”

“No way,” Laguna said, his eyes widening as though the suggestion were crazy. “Can't make this town famous. Too much publicity and you get all those tourists and stuff. People only read about foreign places because they want to go there, right? These people don't like foreigners. Raine's the only nice one. People would be too interested in her. Wouldn't be safe.”

“You're afraid someone might come and take Raine away?” Kiros asked, his voice even. “Laguna, you've changed, man.”

His face flushing, Laguna looked away quickly and pointed at nothing at the top of the hill that was main street. “Hey! I see a monster!”

“Eh-Laguna!”

Kiros raced after him. Laguna remained firmly ahead of him until they reached the pub. The monsters were rather more sparse in the town square. Kiros wondered if that was because that was where Laguna lived and was therefore more better protected.

Kiros shut the door behind him firmly in the pub and Laguna set his gun down on one of the tables. He could still reach it easily, but Raine didn't like weapons in the bedroom. It was her opinion that those should be a place of comfort, not combat.

“They're probably upstairs,” Laguna said, indicating up the narrow staircase with his head.

He could make out their voices as he came up. The door to the upper room was silent on its hinges as it swung open.

He recognized girl talk almost immediately and he stopped on the stairs.

“What?” Kiros asked, whispering.

“Girl talk,” Laguna said just as quickly, nodding to go back down the stairs.

Kiros remained firmly in place, tossing back his braids.

“Come on,” he insisted.

“Something inside me tells me to listen,” Kiros said, fully prepared to blame it on the faeries.

Laguna was about to press the issue. Until he heard his name called out.

“Aunt Raine,” Ellone said, kicking her feet against the sofa she was sitting on. “Aren't yoo gonna marry Uncle Laguna?”

Laguna froze in place and turned back. He couldn't see over the floor from his position on the stairs, but he couldn't help himself from wanting to peek.

What would she say?

“A guy like that?” Raine scoffed, fixing up the bookshelf on one side of her room. “He was carried here crying like a baby, and I was the one who had to take care of him.”

Turning, she started walking over to where Ellone was sitting. “His crude way of speaking is so immature.. I don't know if his aspirations as a journalist are ever going to come true. Every time I try to have a serious conversation, he avoids it. I can't stand his snoring and he talks in his sleep.”

With each item on the list, Laguna flinched. Kiros's eyebrow raised at him and couldn't find a single untruth about what Raine was saying.

It all flew right over Ellone's head as she smiled at the wall.

“But he's really nice! I really, really like him. Aunt Raine, Uncle Laguna, and Elle should all be together forever.”

Raine sighed as she looked out her window. From here, she could see into Ellone's bedroom right next door. The broken crib Laguna had been working on all morning was in plain sight. And she could still remember that look on his face when he promised that he was going to fix it. Even when she told him that it was fine and they could just do away with Ellone's crib, he still insisted.

“But, you know,” she said sadly, touching the glass gently. “I think what he really wants to do is to travel all over the world. I don't think he has it in him to live in a quiet country town like this one. Some people are just like that.”

She growled, clenching her fingers into fists and turning from the window angrily. “It makes me so mad!”

Ellone frowned at her, blinking. She was a little too young to understand. “Yoo don't like him?”

Raine stepped in front of the couch, her eyes downcast. “I feel the same as you, Ellone. I-Oh?!”

Laguna stood up straight as he realized that he had been spotted. Walking closer had revealed the top of his scalp to Raine.

His heart racing, he quickly ran up the stairs and stopped just on the landing. Raine was looking at him a bit suspiciously, like she knew he had been eavesdropping. Laguna forced a smile around his fast breathing, trying not to show Ellone how Raine's words had affected him.

“I came back in a hurry,” he told her, trying to cover for his breathlessness. Trying to tell her just how eager he was to stay here with her.

Swallowing, he moved to the front of the room as Ellone jumped from the couch. Kiros came up the stairs just behind him, looking at them, his emotions concealed.

“Here's my report on today's patrol and monster extermination!” Laguan said grandly, adopting a parade rest position in front of Ellone, standing rather close to Raine. “Including buchubuchus and bunbuns that Assistant Commander Ellone oh-so-hates...”

His face softened as he looked over to Raine. His playful nature faded a bit. “I've exterminated 14 monsters.” He killed them for her. For her safety. Please, know that.

“Alright,” Raine nodded, beaming at him. “Thank you. Shall we eat lunch before you get started with the next patrol?”

“I'd never say no to your food,” Laguna smiled. “And Kiros hasn't tried your cooking yet. He hasn't lived.”

Raine chuckled gently. “I'll call you when it's ready, so you can rest up next door. You seem pretty tired. You should take a quick nap.”

Laguna nodded at the command and turned to leave. He cast one last look over his shoulder at Raine and didn't know if he was pleased or uneasy that Raine was still watching him.

Next door, upstairs in the small room that Ellone and Laguna would sleep in a lot, Laguna hesitated by the bed. He and Ellone often held slumber parties here. When Laguna wasn't sleeping in the spare bed in Raine's pub. He honestly didn't know where he preferred to lay his head at night.

“Shall we rest up a bit?” Laguna asked, indicating to the small bed. It wasn't made for a man his size. It was in fact made for Ellone when she stopped using the crib. But his tiny pixie liked to cuddle, especially when she had nightmares of the last day she had seen her parents outside of the vivid dreams she liked to tell him about.

The tone of his voice was strange and Kiros frowned at him. “Hm? What's the matter?”

Laguna didn't say anything for a long moment. He stared down at the bed that was already messed up from him and Ellone being spread eagle on it last night. The look on his face was desperate, almost sad in a way that hurt Kiros just from seeing it.

“I get scared sometimes,” he finally said, his voice soft. “Scared of waking up somewhere else. Scared of not seeing Ellone.”

“...Scared of not seeing Raine?”

Laguna let out a shuddering breath. “What's happened to me? I feel...What is this I'm feeling?”

His eyes shut as his head fell backward, his breathing fast again as he prayed to anyone who might be listening. The faeries. The gods. Hyne himself.

“Oh, please, let it be this room when I wake up! Please let me be in this puny bed when I wake up!”

Kiros stared at him in disbelief for a moment.

What had Raine done to him? Was this the same man Kiros had lost just one year ago?

His leg hadn't cramped once around Raine. She wasn't Julia. She wasn't an untouchable princess of music up upon a pedestal that Laguna could see and not touch. The girl next door was an earthy, real kind of woman that he could actually stand beside. A woman that didn't scare him despite the ferocity of her attitude.

She had done something to his excited shield brother that had always been so eager to escape.

“Laguna,” Kiros whispered in disbelief, “you've changed...”

( _...Where am I?_ )


	18. D-District Prison

Zell groaned as the last vestiges of the dream world released its hold on him. He slowly came to the realization that his face was pressed against a hot metal ground. The smell of oil and iron filled his nostrils and his face narrowed in disgust.

What just happened? The last thing he remembered was being thrown into the back of a Galbadian law enforcement transport vehicle.

Shaking his head to remove the dream from his mind, Zell pushed himself up and sat back on his bottom. He rubbed his head, frowning because he was pretty sure there was a bruise on his scalp where there hadn't been one before.

“Welcome back, Zell,” Quistis said, catching his gaze. She was sitting down not very far from him, her legs turned sideways beside herself like she might be relaxing on some comfortable cushions instead of on hard, hot metal ground. “The 'dream world' again?”

“Uh-huh,” Zell nodded, looking around quickly. Selphie was to his immediate right, perched delicately on the ground with sad eyes. On his left, Rinoa had drawn her knees up to her chest. Her arms were wrapped around her legs and she was looking at him curiously.

“How's Laguna doin'?” Selphie asked.

“Dunno,” Zell shrugged. “I didn't see him.”

“What happened this time?” Quistis asked.

“Well, it's not like I know everything about Ward, but...Well, you know Laguna and company went to that place in Centra and got into a real fix, right? Since then, Ward's been all alone. He's working in some sort of prison-like place. And he's bored outta his mind! All he wants is to be fightin' alongside Laguna again.” It was probably the most boring dream Zell had ever experienced.

“So what is this we're experiencing with these dreams?” Quistis asked. It wasn't like they didn't have time to discuss it now.

“How the hell should I know?!” Zell grumbled sitting back.

Rinoa looked up as the three of them started talking about the dreams. They didn't really have any theories, they didn't understand it at all. Rinoa rested her head down on her knees and watched them talking.

It was a rather dark, hopeless sort of situation they found themselves in.

But she had never felt such pride in herself before.

She was _in prison_! With her friends! She hadn't allowed herself to stand back and let others endanger themselves. She hadn't run when it would have been easier. She had stood up for what she believed in and, yeah, it got her thrown in prison. But she was here because of her own actions. She was here because she refused to stay on her pedestal.

That felt pretty darn good even in this Hyne damned heat.

The biggest detraction – aside from the whole incarceration thing – was that Squall wasn't among their number.

Rinoa really didn't want to think that he was dead. Surely they wouldn't have wasted the effort hauling his body all the way out here if he was dead. Right? He had definitely been with them on the transport out here. But Rinoa hadn't seen him since she and the others had been hauled up from the cargo bay and unceremoniously thrown into this room.

How had everything gone so wrong so fast?

The moment was burned into her brain. It kept playing on repeat. Seeing Squall get speared. Seeing him fall from the float. Watching as his body hit the ground and the ice exploded and his blood began seeping out around him.

He hadn't moved. Why hadn't he moved? He couldn't be dead, so why wasn't he moving?

Rinoa had looked over to tell Irvine to help him, but he was already gone. She hadn't seen him. Not even when the Galbadian soldiers were closing in on them. They had captured her, refused to let her get near Squall as they cuffed her hands behind her back.

She had been screaming. Begging him to wake up. She could still feel the tears burning on her cheeks as she watched his lifeless body rock in the back of the transport car.

But he couldn't be dead. There was no way that Shiva would let him die.

So she was proud she was here. Proud she hadn't let herself be coddled and protected. But she had no intention whatsoever to stay. They needed to get out so she could find Squall. Because there was absolutely no way that guy would die so easily.

“Um,” Rinoa spoke up, interrupting their hypothesizing. “Did you just say that Ward was working in some sort of prison?”

“Yeah, so?” Zell shrugged.

“And wasn't he from Galbadia?”

“Sure, he's a soldier there. Or, he was. I'm not entirely sure how the dream timeline thing works.”

“And, correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't you supposed to be Ward in that dream world?”

“Just now I was. I don't think there's like a set character list.”

“So, does this room look familiar?”

Zell frowned at her. What kind of stupid question was-

Hey! Whoa! Wait a sec!

Zell had been staring at these blank metals walls for so long in the dream, that he somehow hadn't been at all surprised to see them upon waking again. The dream had just bled into boring reality. But, in looking around at Rinoa's question, it clicked.

“I know this place!” He announced happily, jumping to his feet and surprising Quistis and Selphie with the sudden action. “Everyone, listen up! This is the prison that Ward works at! He's a janitor here! There's _so_ many rooms just like this one! It's got to be the same place!”

Rinoa nodded like she had expected it. Her voice was rather dull and resigned and she pointed around at the sparsely decorated metal room. “There's a prison for political activists and dissenters in Galbadia. A place Deling designed to discourage those kinds of people from opposing him. This must be it. The place where Ward works. Right here, where we are. I'm sure of it!”

Quistis nodded, frowning. “It's no surprise we're in jail. We _did_ attempt to assassinate the sorceress.”

“We went up against the president,” Rinoa corrected. That was what Edea was now. She had taken over after killing Deling. “We'll all be sentenced to death.”

“You don't think she'd be like Deling, do you?” Quistis frowned.

“I think she might be worse. Now that Galbadia's in her hands...What's going to happen to us?” She wasn't even just referring to the population of this single cell.

“Things don't look so good,” Selphie agreed sadly. Her normally jubilant energy was gone here.

What was going to happen to them? Where had Irvine gone? Guess he didn't feel any qualms about ditching his SeeD buddies and high tailing it out of town.

And where was Squall? Had the sorceress really...

***

It was Shiva yelling in his ear that awoke Squall. She was angry at being so hot, angry at being so trapped, and, more than anything, worried about him. Because he had lost consciousness. She had literally lost track of his consciousness. Something that didn't happen even in normal sleep. Only in those strange trips to the dream world.

Squall had never woke so tired before. The worst work out of his life still didn't leave him quite so sore and weak the next morning as he felt right now.

For a moment that was embarrassingly long, Squall didn't recognize the sensation he was feeling. It had been so long since he had felt hot that he honestly didn't remember what it was like anymore. The sticky sweat covering his body under his leather clothing was uncomfortable not just for Shiva but for him as well.

She agreed emphatically but regretfully. There was an anti-magic barrier here. She couldn't be drawn out of his head, nor could she do anything to ease the heat.

Groaning, Squall forced himself up. The uncomfortable metal cot underneath him was curved as though that might provide some modicum of comfort. His head swam, like he had lost too much blood recently.

Oh. Right. Because he had.

Where was he? Squall moved his legs over the side of the bed and that action alone had him breathing hard. There was a toilet in the corner of the tiny room with no water in it. There were no windows and no obvious doors.

So it was prison then. Of course...He had challenged Edea...

The ease at which she defeated him was actually kind of annoying. Had he really been such an easy opponent to fight? Even against a sorceress, he would have expected better from himself. At least to land a single hit on her!

But her ice...

Squall reached up and touched his chest. He felt nothing. He grabbed the edge of the 'V' of his shirt and pulled it to the side.

No wound. No scar. The skin there actually looked more healthy than it had before. He could even see an old scar that he knew had once extended up much further suddenly cut off right at the edge of where the new scar should be.

How...?

Squall groaned as he sat back, leaning his head against the hot metal wall.

Right. The Galbadian soldiers. They had descended like parasites the moment Squall had fallen. He remembered one snatching Rinoa away. He had tried to get up. To go after her. His body had been completely unresponsive to his calls.

And he was there. Seifer. Leering down at Squall's broken body. The man who had once captured a president for her hadn't even looked askance at Rinoa as she was dragged away. Squall could still hear her screams in his ears. Still feel that helplessness of being unable to move.

“Damn you, Seifer!”

Hatred like he had never felt before flooded his veins. Squall had never really gotten along with him, but this was the first moment that he could say that he genuinely despised him.

The sudden shifting of Squall's cell threw his weak body to the floor. Squall grunted in pain as he hit the ground.

The cell was...moving?

He could hear machinery whirring all around him as his cell was moved. Then it jerked to a stop. His stomach dropped out from under him like Squall was traveling up an elevator.

His cell was mobile? Where exactly was he?

***

“What? What was that loud noise?” Selphie asked, looking around. It sounded like the groan of really big machines passing by their door.

“Oh, it's just the sound of your friend. Being tortured.”

The four of them looked over as the door of their cell slid open. The man standing in the frame was grinning at them smugly.

Zell immediately disliked him. He had resting dick face.

He sauntered inside, smacking his black baton against the palm of his hand. His eyes roamed over all of them eagerly. It was a disturbing, almost sexual glance. He lingered just a bit long on Selphie, the sweetest, youngest looking of them all.

Zell and Quistis maneuvered their bodies in front of her slightly.

Rinoa spoke up first.

“Torture? What are you talking about? Who's being tortured?” Surely he couldn't mean...

“Don't worry, pretty thing,” the warden winked at her, making her draw back. “We aren't going to kill him. Not immediately anyway. Not until he begs.”

“What?!” Zell jumped to his feet, fear and anger powering his limbs. “Whaddaya mean!?”

“Shut up!” The officer stepped forward, fully confident as two more officers, both carrying guns, stepped in behind him.

Zell could do nothing as he put the end of that black baton right against his neck. He could feel his own pulse beating against the hard metal of the pitch black blunt weapon.

“Don't screw around with me,” RDF told him, his face set in an ugly sneer. “You understand who's in charge here?”

Zell snarled right back and RDF's face narrowed.

“I'm asking you a question!”

Then, without giving him time to answer, the guard reared back and slammed the the end of the baton against Zell's temple.

Crying out, Zell fell hard against the metal floor. His ears were ringing as Ifrit called out in anger. He could do nothing here though. There was anti-magic barrier cast over them. The GF was completely helpless to even supplement Zell's defense as RDF reared back before slamming his foot directly into Zell's gut.

His own training had him absorbing the blows. But he was still getting kicked in the gut without any armor, magical or otherwise, to protect him. They kept coming and Zell grunted against the pain while Ifrit roared in his head.

“Stop it! Leave him alone!” Rinoa yelled, her voice breaking in sympathy pain.

“Oh, right,” RDF laughed as Zell crumpled to the ground. He crouched down and grabbed a fist full of Zell's hair and lifted him up. “Hey, man, is there someone called Rinoa with you?”

“I'm Rinoa,” she said immediately to protect Zell from further hits.

RDF sent his leering grin at her as his hand loosened. Zell's face slammed back down.

“Alright then. Come on over here,” he said disturbingly, standing back up.

Rinoa made an uncomfortable face as she hesitated.

“Whaddaya doing to Rinoa, you bastard?!” Zell spit through his teeth, trying to lift himself again.

RDF turned with a snarl and kicked out again. His boot landed against the side of Zell's face. A large black mark decorated his cheek right over his tattoo as Zell rolled away. Quistis was there immediately, grabbing hold on him.

RDF took another step towards him.

“Stop!” Rinoa jumped to her feet, breathing hard. “Just stop. I'll go.”

“Rinoa...” Quistis said softly. The warning in her voice was obvious.

Rinoa straightened her back. “I'll be fine,” she said, almost sounding convinced herself.

The SeeDs couldn't help but feel a bit of pride as Rinoa stepped forward with all the grace of a grand empress and looked down her nose at the guards holding guns on her.

“Let's go,” she told them regally before stepping ahead of them and walking from the cell herself. Like she was the one in charge.

“Damn,” Zell groaned painfully. “Squall is going to kill me for letting her go.”

“We didn't really have much of a choice,” Selphie said sadly, touching his arm gently.

***

Squall fell back down just when he had managed to get up on his knees when his mobile cell jerked to a sudden stop. He groaned as the entire wall opposite the bed unfolded open. At least that explained where the entrance was.

A pair of black boots stepped into his view.

“Squall, you're pitiful,” Seifer scoffed down at the sight of him in a heap at his feet.

Squall let out a short grunt of pain when Seifer grabbed him by the hair and forced him up to his feet again. Then Squall was at eye level and stormy gray eyes met icy blue.

The last time they had met, Squall had quite thoroughly defeated him. Remembering it, Squall couldn't help but flash him a grin. Seifer hadn't exactly forgotten either.

Seifer tsked his tongue as rage flashed over his face.

Squall bit back a cry of pain as Seifer threw him away. His back slammed into the metal wall of the cell before he fell down against the equally hard metal cot.

Somehow, it still felt like a victory.

Seifer snapped his fingers, summoning others other.

“Take him away!”

Squall's eyes were losing focus as a pair of fiery red moombas padded into the room. The creatures, about half the size of a man, looked like a bipedal lion. They were so strong for their size and it only took one to lift Squall from the cot.

Their paws, tipped with obsidian claws, were so gentle...

Squall lost consciousness for a moment. He didn't know how long it was but when he opened his eyes again, he found himself looking down at Seifer. His wrists were crying out in pain from the chain links digging into them with the entire weight of his own body.

His boots scrambled for a second until he found a tiny ledge to rest the very backs of his heels against and try to take off his weight.

Chained to the wall like this...

“I'm sure you can imagine what happens now,” Seifer grinned at him, bouncing his Hyperion against his shoulder.

Squall couldn't help himself. He pulled against the chains binding him. Predictably, they remained secure. He was well and truly tied in place. Fixed in a position that offered absolutely no comfort for his already tired body. His feet couldn't take his full weight on the narrow ledge he had to stand on but if he didn't at least try, he would be strangling his wrists against the metal chains.

The machine he was lashed too was hot even through his leather clothes. He could hear it humming menacingly right in his ears.

Sorry, Shiva, he said to her. This was going to hurt her as much as him.

He could feel his guardian companion as if she was hunkering down. Sort of like she was preparing for what they both knew was about to happen.

“What do you want?” Squall asked at last, resigned to this.

“Tell me what SeeD is,” Seifer demanded, pointing the tip of Hyperion at Squall's Adam's apple. “Edea demands to know.”

Huh?

“SeeD...” Squall repeated. A code name for Balamb Garden's elite mercenary forces. SeeD: combat specialists. Literally something so common knowledge that it didn't even need to be taught. That was something that Squall had known, that Seifer had known, probably as long they had attended their garden.

“Don't you already know?” Squall asked, genuinely confused.

“I'm not a SeeD,” Seifer said, like the thought was insulting, as he brought Hyperion back. “There must be some kind of secret you're given when you've become a SeeD. Tell me.”

“There's nothing,” Squall said quite honestly. Then he gave Seifer a dry look . “And even if there were, do you really think I'd tell you?”

Seifer grinned at the defiance. “You're on my 'tough-nut-to-crack' list, Squall. I really didn't think you'd talk that easily. This is just a formality.”

“Geez, I'm honored,” Squall said, totally deadpan.

“So,” Seifer winked, “here's a little something to help crack ya.”

Sefier snapped at the officer standing by over that the control panel. Squall didn't even have a chance to prepare himself before he flipped the switch.

White hot electricity ran through Squall's body. Enough to hurt, but not enough to kill. Every muscle seized at the same moment as Squall's eyes rolled back into his head. He couldn't stop the scream of agony that was ripped from his throat.

The current stopped as suddenly as it started. Squall slumped forward, his body twitching as he struggled to pull in a breath of air. Gray danced at the edge of his vision. In his head, Shiva was whimpered from the shared sensation.

Seifer was picking at something on the hilt of Hyperion now, almost like he was bored.

“Even if you don't talk, others will,” Seifer said calmly. “The instructor, the little messenger girl, or that chicken-wuss! He wouldn't last three seconds.”

Seifer was laughing as Squall lifted his head. He couldn't help but notice that one name was left from that list.

“They're...all here...?” he breathed, his voice raw.

“Oh, you bet,” Seifer nodded like they were having a friendly conversation. “But, since I like you so much, I thought you should go first.”

“Will the honors never stop?” Squall murmured as he tried to push himself back up. His wrists were starting to bleed now from his weight forcing the links into his skin.

“I was so hoping you'd be there, Squall,” Seifer breathed, running his gloved finger along the edge of Hyperion. His eyes focused past the blade onto the panting Squall. “So? How'd I look in my moment of glory? My childhood dream, finally fulfilled. I've become the Sorceress's Knight.”

Sorceress's knight? Seriously? His 'romantic' dream? What romance was there in hot metal walls and an electric torture device? He was no knight. He was just...

“...a torturer...” Squall fell forward again.

“What did you say?!” Seifer snarled, stepping forward.

Squall remained motionless. Seifer tsked as he stepped back again. “Passed out cold, eh?”

He grinned at the sight of his old sparring buddy. How perfect that he, of all people, got the play the role of Seifer's antagonist. Like it was written in the stars.

“This is the scene where you swear your undying hatred for me,” Seifer told him gleefully. “The tale of the evil mercenary versus the virtuous sorceress's knight! The fun's just started, Squall. Don't disappoint me now.”

He snapped his fingers and the officer flipped the switch again.

Squall was rudely forced back to consciousness, screaming in agony.

***

Selphie's face was screwed up in concentration as she reached deep into her mind. It was like trying to reach for Siren through a wall of sand.

“Cure!” she threw out her hands.

Leaning against the wall, Zell groaned in pain as the spell fizzled to nothingness.

“It's no use,” Quistis told her, reaching up to stroke the back of her head. Almost like she could pet the mournfully singing Quetzalcoatl. “There's an anti-magic field here. The GF can't do anything for us while we're in here.”

Selphie frowned sadly at Zell.

“Hey, I'm fine,” he told her, trying to give her a thumbs up through a smiling grimace of pain. “This is nothing. If Squall can walk off broken ribs, so can I.”

The beeping of the lock on their door had them looking up. Apprehension filled their hearts.

Then the door slid open and one of the bipedal, fiery red prison workers came in.

“It's a moomba!” Selphie gasped in surprise.

“A what?” Zell frowned.

“A moomba. They're pretty common up north. What on earth is one doing this far south?”

Working, apparently. The beast was carrying a metal tray with gray mush that was probably supposed to be food set upon it. More importantly, it as also carrying water. Zell couldn't remember his mouth ever feeling so dry in his life.

The thing was so focused on not spilling the water that he tripped over his own feet.

Selphie cried out in dismay as the precious water – and the mush – spilled all over the metal floor as the poor thing face planted. The tray skittered away, spreading the mess further.

“What was that noise?” someone yelled from outside.

The SeeDs looked up as RDF came back in. He growled in annoyance at the moomba that was pushing itself back up on it's feet.

“You _again_?!” he yelled at the voiceless creature. “Worthless beast!”

The moomba squeaked in pain when the officer slammed his foot against him. His furry body fell backwards, sliding nearly into Selphie's lap.

Zell growled angrily. Once again, his tempter overrode his own pain senses. He was back up on his feet, stomping down in his anger and glaring at RDF.

“Yo! Who do you think you are!?”

“Yeah, you big meanie!” Selphie yelled at him, standing as well. “Stop that!”

Quistis remained silent, but she also stood. Making it quite clear what she believed.

RDF brought back his baton and swung it froward. Zell was ready for him this time. GF or no, he was still a SeeD. He caught RDF's wrist easily. The man struggled against his pull and Zell stood there, still as a statue and completely unaffected.

RDF only ripped his hand away because Zell allowed it. From the anger on his face, they knew that he knew it, too. He glared around at all of them, his baton suddenly feeling quite inadequate. SeeDs could still be dangerous even disarmed.

“Y-You'll regret that,” he promised menacingly as he backed up out of the cell.

The door slid shut behind him and a beep confirmed that it had locked. The fury moomba was left inside, standing up and shaking its head.

“He's so mean,” Selphie pouted before crouching down. She reached out and ran her hand through the moomba's soft, fiery mane and it started purring.

“Are you okay?” she asked, sweetly. “This doesn't really work so well, but...Cure!”

The moomba shook its head as the magic settled over him. He ran his paws over his face for a second and Selphie couldn't tell if he was still in pain or celebrating.

He sneezed and Selphie laughed.

***

“Well now, Squall. I'll ask again. What is SeeD? And why do they oppose the sorceress?”

Seifer's voice was garbled now. Like he was speaking at Squall through water. His head was spinning as he struggled to sit himself up. All of his muscles were aching and sore from the constant electric shocks that pulled them painfully tight. Squall was pretty sure that some of his bones had started cracking from the force of his own muscles being forced to constrict.

Breathing was getting harder now. He barely had a voice from the screaming. Shiva was trying her best to send her soothing coolness over his body. To release a cure spell. But there was an anti-magic field here and her attempts were doing little to nothing.

SeeDs...Oppose the sorceress...? Was that what they were doing? Squall just thought he was going on another mission. They opposed the sorceress because they were paid too. Right?

Before Squall had a chance to say anything – he had devolved already to merely repeating his name, ID number, and garden of origin like the seminar had taught him – Seifer's interrogation was interrupted by an officer coming into the room.

He saluted Seifer and Squall felt grateful for the respite. No matter how temporary.

“Sir Seifer,” he said formally.

Sir? Really? How far was he going to take the knight thing?

Squall was grateful for the mocking thought. At least it meant he hadn't lost his mind yet.

“The missiles targeted for the garden are ready to launch,” he reported.

“Excellent,” Seifer beamed and waved him off.

Missiles? What...?

Seifer grinned back at Squall and answered the question he must have seen on his face. “Balamb Garden is to be destroyed on charges of training SeeDs to oppose the sorceress.”

What?! Icy panic flooded Squall's veins in direct contrast to the heat around him.

“It's a pity, really,” Seifer sighed, like maybe Hyperion had been scratched. “I grew up there, too, you know. But, orders are orders. You know something about that, don't you mercenary? Edea wants it destroyed, along with Trabia Garden. You know, just to be safe.”

“N-No...” Squall sputtered. His lips were numb from the torture. It was hard to do more than breath the simple word.

“After the gardens are gone, the SeeD hunt will begin,” Seifer continued. His voice relished the thought as he brought up Hyperion and pointed it at an imaginary opponent. “I'll be Edea's bloodhound and hunt down every one of your kind. It'll be fun, Squall. You can't die on me yet.” He laughed.

“Unfortunately, as much as I'd love to keep doing this, I have gardens to destroy now. Do hurry and talk quickly, Squall. You wouldn't want the others to take your place here, would you? Oh, by the way. That guy there? He's the one going to be questioning you. I bet you don't remember because of the sedative, but after you were healed, you woke up for a moment. Punched a guard so hard you broke his nose and made him lose a few teeth. That was his brother. So, you two have some stuff to work out. I think I'll just be in the way.” He snapped, his joking tone fading. “Continue with the interrogation.”

With that terse order, Seifer left the room. His place was taken by the angry warden who was glaring daggers at Squall. No wonder he had volunteered for torture duty.

“Ready to talk?” he asked, looking dearly like he hoped the answer was 'no'.

“...I...don't understand...the question...” Squall said honestly. He had no idea what kind of 'secret' they were hoping to get out of him. SeeD didn't oppose the sorceress. They were mercenaries! They were _hired_ to kill her! They had no personal grudge.

“Don't mess with me!” The guard snarled. “Edea says you know something! Now spit it out! Talk! What is SeeD all about?!”

Squall had just enough time to mentally prepare himself as the warden ran back over to the lever. The slightly squeaky sound of it was imprinted in Squall's memory as he flipped it down. He was going to hear that sound in his nightmares for years.

The electricity was no less painful for being familiar. His voice box burned as he screamed again. Shiva was no longer able to take the pain and she was starting to scream in his head. The dual cries were giving Squall a massive migraine on top of everything. He could see halos around lights, each sound was magnified to a painful degree.

That damn seminar was no where near enough preparation for this.

But, really, would anything have been?

The lever came up again and Squall's body crumpled. The chains were digging into the meat of his wrists. His blood, having dried quickly in this heat, was flaking against his skin .

“So?” the officer asked, a grin in his voice as his fingers danced on the lever. He dearly wanted to yank it down again to hear the bastard mercenary scream.

Squall didn't know anything! Why? Why did they keep asking...He didn't know anything...

In his life, Squall had never wished for death as he did in that moment. The pain, the sensory overload, the exhaustion, everything. It was piling on too heavy. He couldn't take this. His mind was going to snap, Shiva was going to break. What the hell could he possibly do but die? At least, in death, he wouldn't feel the pain anymore.

“ _I won't leave you alone!_ ”

Rinoa...

Squall's eyes opened again as everything suddenly came into sharp focus. What had happened to Rinoa? He still didn't know. Seifer hadn't mentioned her. How could he possibly let himself die when he didn't know if she was safe? He had promised her that. He had promised that he was going to stay beside her.

If he left her alone now, how could he face the afterlife?

He mumbled something under his breath. His tongue felt so damn thick and dry that it was hard to actually form words.

“What's that?” the warden came closer.

“Your...” his voice trailed off unintelligibly again.

“What did you say?” the warden demanded to know, angry he needed to demand repetition. He was right in Squall's face now, trying to hear what he could barely mumble.  
Squall let his head fall back and hit the metal wall. “Your...breath...stinks!”

“Punk!” the warden snarled as Squall grinned.

Okay, maybe he _was_ losing his grasp on sanity.

“You asked for it!”

The officer ran back to the wall. That damn squeaky lever. Squall couldn't stop himself from screaming if he wanted too. Honestly, he was too tired to care how he looked.

“How's that?!” the warden asked as Squall's body thrashed against the chains. “How you like me now, huh?!”

Damn. It hurt.

He needed a plan. He needed something! He couldn't just let them torture him to insanity. If he was ever going to get out of here and find Rinoa, he needed a plan!

The electricity stopped with that squeaky lever and the warden came over. All confidence. Grinning at his prisoner's state.

“Well?” he asked, satisfied at the sight Squall made.

“...F-Flowers...”

“What?” The warden made a face.

Squall cursed internally. His safe word had come out before he really thought about it. A lot of good that would do him _here_.

Too late. He had to run with it now. SeeD. Flower. It made sense.

“The true...goal of SeeD...to spread...seeds...all over...the world...Fill...with flowers.”

Okay, damn. Maybe his mind wasn't as clear as he hoped. That sounded lame to his own ears.

“Yeah, right,” the guard scoffed rightfully.

“I-It's the truth,” Squall insisted, diving full in. “See...Seeing flowers...takes away...people's...will to fight.”

A mocking grin came over the officer's face. “What then? SeeD wants to bring love and peace to the world? Ha! Don't make me laugh. You can't fool me.”

“W-We...steal the will...Then we in...invade...”

“What?” The officer frowned at him as he thought over those words.

Wait...Was he actually taking that load seriously? There was no way he was that stupid. Squall couldn't possibly be lucky enough to get the biggest moron ever watching over him.

“Hey!” The warden turned and called out to the door. It opened almost immediately and another guard came inside. The warden jerked his head towards Squall. “Watch him. I've got to go report this.”

Holy Hyne, it had actually worked. Seifer would never have even close to fallen for that load of complete drivel. It didn't even make sense!

Sense or nonsense, the warden walked over. The man who replaced him remained close to the door, far from the squeaky lever. And Squall was granted a brief respite.

He meant to plan. He honestly did. There had to be something he could do.

But, in the absence of pain, everything else could finally overload his system. The gray at the edges of his vision closed in and Squall fell unconscious once more.

***

Zell's foot was tapping incessantly against the metal floor as he pondered over their situation. Over a way to escape. Because there was no way he was going to let himself stay in prison. While it was more than likely that Balamb would try to get them released, there was a very small chance that the new tyrant President Sorceress Edea would allow it.

So they needed to get out themselves. How did one break out of a high security prison with no weapons, no magic, and no idea of where they even were?

Worse than that, Zell was worried about Rinoa. She was still gone to wherever RDF had taken her off to. And Squall was likely being tortured.

So what in the name of Hyne were they supposed to do?

“We can't just sit here,” Quistis said, sighing. “We have to think of a way to escape.”

“Anyone got a plan?” Zell asked dully. His ribs were sore. Breathing hurt.

Selphie hummed thoughtfully as she looked down at the moomba who had his head in her lap and was purring quite contentedly as she stroked his mane.

“Well, we could skin this little guy and wear him as a disguise...”

Squeaking in fear, the moomba practically threw itself away from her. It backed up quickly, putting his paws together and shaking his head like he was begging her not to.

Selphie laughed, scratching the back of her head. “I'm kidding! I'm kidding!”

Zell gave her a cautious look. Because that didn't sound like kidding. She worried him...

Quistis was ignoring her in favor of actually strategy. “Well, we can't rely on magic here, so we have to go with weapons. We need to get them back somehow...”

Weapons. Right. Zell sighed. Like they were going to let them retrieve their weapons. If the Galbadians were smart, they would have destroyed them already so that they were completely disarmed and totally defenseless. That was the very reason that Zell had chosen to forego weapons when it came time to pick his specialty and-

Wait! That was it! His weapons were his fists! Even though they had taken his gauntlets, it didn't really matter. He could still do some serious damage without weapons.

“Let me go!” Zell volunteered, standing up quickly. “I'll get the weapons back.”

“Oh, yeah!” Selphie beamed at the plan. “You worked here as Ward, so you'll know the place!”

“Haha!” Zell stood proudly. They didn't need to know that all Ward had really done was mop the floors and operate some machines. “Just leave it to me, baby. You two, lie down there and act dead.”

Quistis and Selphie shared a look before obligingly lowering themselves down.

“Zell...” Quistis said warningly as he moved to the door.

“I hope this works,” Selphie sighed before closing her eyes and opening her mouth slightly. She was nothing if not a committed actress.

Zell grinned at the sight and nodded, satisfied. It didn't need to be perfect. He turned to the door then, frantic and panicked, he pounded against the metal barrier.

“Guard! GUARD! We need some help! Please!”

It was RDF's annoying voice that responded to his call. “What's the problem?” He asked lazily.

“It's the woman! The women are unconscious! I-I think a snake bit 'em!”

“What?”

“I-It was brown! It had these big black spots! I think its still in here! Please!”

The guard cursed. “Not another sand snake! Alright, stand back!”

Zell couldn't hide his smug look as he moved to the side of the door. Sand snakes were a real problem around here because they were small but deadly venomous.

RDF entered, his eyes already scanning for the reptile. It felt so good for Zell to slam his bare knuckled fist right into his gut. RDF hacked as he bent over Zell's arm. Bent over, Zell slammed his elbow into the back of his neck.

“A SeeD is never harmless,” Zell told him as he went unconscious. The door remained open behind him. Quistis and Selphie were smiling as they came back up.

“Well, I'm off,” Zell said, winking at the two of them.

He made to leave but a soft cooing stopped him. He turned to see the moomba walking up behind him, looking up at him with bright eyes.

“Huh? You wanna go, too?”

The moomba nodded eagerly.

Zell shrugged. “Alright then. Just don't get in the way. Come on. You have any idea where they might be storing the weapons?”

The moomba was already running outside. Zell shut the cell door but didn't lock it so it wasn't obvious that something had happened.

Zell followed the moomba upstairs a single level. The creature knew this place better than him, and Zell already knew that the storage rooms were near the top, so he stayed behind the beastie without complaint.

They didn't even need to go up all the way though. A pair of idiot Galbadian soldiers had pulled the weapons out of storage and brought them down so they could play with them like toys. One was brandishing Squall's Sheer Trigger, holding the gunblade awkwardly.

“What did I tell you?” One was saying to the other. “SeeD weapons.”

“Is this a gunblade?” The other asked, peering at the Sheer Trigger. “Never actually saw one before. It's supposed to be near impossible to master.”

“Yeah, that's what they say.” The other brushed off the comment, pretending to swing the blade around like he knew what he was doing. Zell flinched in comparing his awkward movements to Squall's smooth technique.

“Check it out. Nunchaku, a whip, these sweet gloves. What kinda hide you think this is?”

“It's not hide,” Zell said from behind him. “Its dragon scales.”

The two soldiers jumped back. Squall's Sheer Trigger slipped and hit the ground. Zell watched it with one eyebrow cocked.

“Come on, man. That's an expensive weapon.”

“Y-You an escapee?” The first guard asked, fumbling for his own saber.

Zell grinned. “Yo, I'm here to reclaim these!”

Laughing, he slammed his fist forward into the unprepared soldier's face. His eyes were protected by his helmet. His glass jaw was not. He fell backwards, groaning and bleeding from his nose and mouth, slobbering.

The other man was fumbling for his alarm.

The moomba pounced. The man cried out as the little lion creature brought him down. Zell cheered and kicked out. His knee slammed against the man's helmet. The blow was such that he lost consciousness even with the helmet on.

“Piece of cake, baby,” Zell laughed, victorious. Beside him, the moomba looked just as proud. He cooed and growled at the downed soldiers. Finally free of them.

“You get the whip and nunchaku. I'll carry Squall's gunblade.”

The moomba nodded and dutifully picked up his share of the loot. Zell fished his gloves out of one soldiers pockets. Feeling like he was finally dressed again, Zell let out a breath of relief to feel the familiar dragon scale leather wrapping around his hands.

“There hasn't been a prison built yet that can hold a SeeD,” Zell announced when he walked back into the cell where Quistis and Selphie were sitting. He grinned at them. “Sorry to keep ya waitin', ladies. Huh? Where's the warden?”

“Zell, the weapons?” Quistis asked, standing up.

“Oh, yeah. Viola!” Zell threw out his hands as the moomba stepped forward.

Selphie gasped loudly in delight as she picked up her Morning Star. She cuddled the large mace style nunchaku like they were babies as Quistis curled her Slaying Tail up.

“Shall we?” Zell asked, pointing over his shoulder. “We still gotta find Squall and Rinoa.”

“Whoo-hoo! Alright!” Selphie yelled twirling her nunchaku around before slipping them into the holsters in her boots.

“Yes!” Quistis agreed eagerly, snapping hers to her waist. She almost felt whole again.

“Time to go kick some ass!” Zell yelled. “Selphie, how you feel about causing some havoc?”

“Alright!” The tiny, crazy girl laughed.

“Is this the cell with the uncooperative prisoners?” Someone outside their cell asked.

The three of them turned as the moomba ran to the corner and crouched down low.

“Yes, this is it,” RDF growled from outside the door. “Please give'em something to really complain about.”

Zell grinned to hear that his voice was kind of rough from the single punch to the gut.

“Should we be picking on prisoners so soon after getting' transferred here?” A second voice asked uncertainly.

“Just be quiet and let me handle this!” The first man snapped.

RDF slid open the door and the three SeeDs turned curiously. No longer worried now that they had their weapons back in hand.

“T-These are the prisoners, Lieutenant Biggs, Private Wedge,” RDF stuttered just slightly to see Zell back in the cell. Zell grinned.

Then frowned. Biggs? Wedge? Wait a minute...

From behind RDF, the familiar faces of former Major Biggs and former Lieutenant Wedge stepped into view. They stopped and stared.

“AAAAH!” Zell, Selphie, Biggs, and Wedge all yelled at the same time, pointing to each other.

“You!” Selphie cried as Quistis looked between them, one eyebrow raised.

Biggs cleared his throat, trying to look tough. “S-So we meet again! We'll teach you the lesson we should have taught you earlier now! I know it might seem cowardly to fight unarmed prisoners-”

Quistis let her whip drop to hit the floor loudly. Wedge saw it and frowned.

“-but I hope you appreciate our position.”

Selphie jerked her nunchaku back out and twisted them around playfully.

“Hey, it's a dog eat dog world.”

Zell tightened his gauntlets slightly, grinning.

“Uh,” Wedge spoke up, interrupting his S.O. “They're fully armed, sir...”

Bigg's focused back on the fully armed and prepared SeeDs and his stomach dropped. “W-What? H-How are they-! They were supposed to be disarmed upon arrival!” He turned to RDF who looked just as confused about their state.

Biggs looked back. He couldn't miss how tired they looked. How Zell was trying to protect his injured ribs. They weren't fully recovered. This was his best chance.

“Ah, hell with it! Let's go, Wedge!”

Wedge looked uncertain but he pulled out his saber without protest.

“Hey, Zell,” Selphie grinned at him. “Prime rib or rump roast?”

“I won't fall for that a second time,” Wedge warned them. “And you have no room to move in here.”

“Eh, I'm feeling potatoes. You and Quistis can share the meat,” Zell said.

The new food metaphor flew over their heads just like the last one. Before they could try working it out, the SeeDs moved.

Quistis struck fastest and first. Her whip snaked out and wrapped around Bigg's gun arm. She jerked backwards and sent him falling to his face. Selphie ran forward, jumped off of his back, and slammed herself feet first into RDF.

Zell ran around Bigg's body and punched forward. Wedge hadn't decreased in skill any since the last time Zell had clashed with him. He caught the punch easily and threw it off. Zell couldn't help it, he grinned at him.

“You've still got it, man,” he admired, kicking out.

Wedge caught his leg on his bracer and threw Zell off. “You're injured, aren't you? How can you move so easily?”

“Pain tolerance training,” Zell told him, punching. He used Wedge's own momentum to turn around him and slam his elbow into Wedge's back over his kidney.

The private had learned since last time. He had installed armor there. Zell laughed in finding it as Wedge kicked out, hitting Zell in the side. Luckily not his uninjured side.

“You're so good!” Zell admired.

“Thank you,” Wedge smiled at him, slicing out as he spun back.

Across the cell, Biggs was getting back to his feet, trying to pull off Quistis's whip.

“I was demoted because of you! I'm a lieutenant now! I'll get my revenge!”

“I think you're mistaken,” Quistis said calmly. “I've never met you before.”

She jerked her hand, her whip back and Biggs fell backwards without the pull of it. Quistis twirled it over her head and brought it back down, slamming the bladed tip down against his armor. It cracked under the force of the Tail and Quistis pulled back.

RDF had gone down with one hit and Selphie was frowning at her lack of opponent. “Hey, instructor, can I help you? Mine is kinda lame.”

“Sure,” Quistis smiled at her, striking again and opening another crack in his armor. Biggs felt the force of that one and cried out.

“Yay!” Selphie swung her nunchaku around. The edge of one of the maces hit Bigg's helmet and he fell sideways. He landed umoving, and Selphie frowned. “Aw. Its broken...”

“I feel kinda bad about this, Wedge,” Zell said as he pummeled against Wedge's blade.

“No, I understand,” the other man grunted, still managing to block each strike. “I have no personal feelings against you. It's only our places in life that pits us against each other.”

“That's beautiful, man,” Zell said, ducking under a swung from the blade. “I really enjoy our talks.”

“Really? I didn't want to say it, but I really feel like we have a connection.” Wedge tried to kick out and hit Zell's injured ribs.

“No, dude. You're totally right.” Zell blocked the kick by grabbing Wedge's leg. He turned, flipping him over onto the ground. “Sorry about this, but we've got stuff to do.”

“It's oka-RGH!” Wedge grunted as Zell slammed his fist into Wedge's gut. Struggling for breath, Zell kicked his saber away as he stood up straight.

“D-Don't think you can just walk out...ugh...” Biggs grunted as the three of them plus the moomba stepped over them and out into the hallway.

Zell shut and locked the door behind him.

“Alright then. Squall should be around here somewhere. We find Squall, then we find Rinoa, and then we're outta here. Got it?”

No sooner than he finished the sentence than suddenly loud alarms started blaring around them. They all jumped in surprise.

“What the-?!”

“ _Warning! Warning! Escapee alert! Monsters will be let loose on each floor. If escapees refuse to surrender, you have permission to kill. The anti-magic field shall be temporarily lifted._ ”

“Do they not know we have GF?” Selphie asked.

Immediately, they all felt the soothing, strengthening powers of their GFs flooding back into their bodies as the field was turned off. Zell let out a breath that steamed in the air as his gauntlets began smoking. Quistis's hands sparked as she closed them into fists. Selphie laughed and the musical sound of it was hypnotic.

“I don't think they've ever held SeeDs captive before,” Zell shook his head.

“Their loss, our gain,” Quistis said sagely before looking at the mooomba. “Excuse me. Our friend was brought here with us. A guy about this tall, brown hair, perpetual scowl. Maybe you know where they took him?”

The moomba cooed at them, jumping in place slightly before turning and running. The three of them followed him up. There were twelve levels to this place. The stairs, though they were right next to each other, were barricaded from one another. Which meant that they had to circle irritatingly around the entire floor to get to the next staircase.

All the while, the monsters and mechs that the jailers had loosed stood in their paths. It wasn't so much of a hindrance as it was an annoyance.

“How many floors does this place have?” Zell panted as they crested the final stair case. The break from the normal, endless circles made him sigh in relief.

The moomba didn't stop. He continued running until he reached a large metal door. He turned back and purred at them, jumping in front of the door.

“Is Squall in there?” Selphie asked him.

The moomba turned back and reached up. A small scanner beside the door read and recognized his palm. The large lock turned and the door slid open.

The three of them stepped inside and cried out.

***

It was Shiva's voice, again, more than anything that pulled Squall from the inky blackness of the darkness he had lost his consciousness to. He could finally feel the swirling of her cool air over his skin as she flooded his body with cure spells. The relief of it was almost painful.

“Hey!”

Squall groaned. He didn't want to wake up yet. Just let him sleep.

“Squall!” Oh. That was Zell. He sounded like he was freaking out. He really needed to get his emotions under control.

“Wake up!” Selphie yelled. He could hear tears in her voice. Why was she freaking out too?

“Come on, Squall!” Quistis added her call to theirs. She didn't sound much more in control.

Oh, yeah. That's right. He had been tortured. He was fine though. He thought. Maybe. He was alive anyway. That had to be enough for now.

The sudden lack of pain seemed odd. Not just because the machine was turned off. His wrists were no longer holding him up. The cure spells were numbing his multitude of injuries. Shiva was finally able to take away the heat that had been so suffocating before.

The others gasped as he opened his eyes and found himself looking up at the metal ceiling past all of their heads. Selphie looked on the verge of tears. Quistis was breathing hard. Zell looked disturbed at the state he had found their leader in.

Where was Rinoa?

Groaning, Squall forced himself up. His legs buckled even as he was standing so he found himself falling back against the machine he had just been cut down from.

“You okay?” Zell asked, reaching out like he might try to pick him up.

Squall shook his head, stopping him though. He took another breath before forcing himself up. Because he had to move. He couldn't allow himself to stop yet. He was down. The others were here. He needed to focus on that.

“It was hell...” he said at last, summing up the process rather lamely.

Quistis smiled, shaking her head and looking away. Selphie was sniffing, trying not to cry. Zell let out a breath and really wished they had time to give Squall the rest he probably needed.

But he didn't.

“Let's just get outta here! Catch!”

Reflexes more than anything had Squall's hand lifting to catch his own gunblade tossed at him. It felt like it weighed twice as much since he last carried it. But it was comforting to have it back in his grasp again. He felt whole once more. Powerful.

He could stand again. He forced his abused body to do so as he walked – admittedly a bit slowly – out of the interrogation room. The others stayed just behind him, like they might try to catch him if he started to fall.

“Where are we?” He asked, looking around as he blinked at the bright light outside the room.

“Didn't you come here as Laguna in the dream world?” Zell asked, pretty sure he knew the answer.

Squall paused to catch his breath. He would really rather not think back to that sweet, village scene right now. The contrast was a bit too much in his current situation.

“No,” he said simply after a moment.

“So I guess you don't know how to get out, either,” Quistis sighed.

“Well, we can't keep goin' up,” Zell said, pointing out the lack of stairs. “The only place left to go is down. We still need to find Rinoa though, don't forget.”

“She's here?” Squall asked, turning. “Why isn't she with you?”

The others all suddenly looked uncomfortable. Squall looked between their faces in turn, not liking their guilty expressions. Zell, feeling most responsible, was the one who spoke up.

“Sorry, man. I tried to stop him. We didn't have our weapons then.”

“She's not...” Icy cold fear gripped his heart.

“No! No!” Zell hastened to say, realizing how that sounded. “I just meant that...well, we don't know where she is. One of the guards took her away. Haven't seen or heard of her yet.”

Selphie looked over to their moomba companion. “Have you seen her?”

The moomba wasn't listening to her. Sniffing at the air curiously, he moved closer to Squall. He frowned at the strange little animal, unsure if he should hit it or not. The others didn't seem bothered, but those were some big claws it had...

The scent recognized, the moomba let out a cry of joy.

“Laguna! Laguna!”

The four SeeDs froze.

“Laguna?” Squall repeated breathlessly. “You know Laguna?”

“Laguna! Laguna!” The moomba repeated happily. It was the only word he knew.

Well, at least Squall knew he was a real person now. That was one mystery solved. Sort of.

“So what do we do?” Quistis asked. “I'd be a pain to go down every floor again. The alarms have alerted all the guards and they let loose all these monsters.”

“How the hell did they carry you up here, Squall?” Zell asked. He couldn't imagine that their leader would have gone quietly.

Squall turned and pointed without a word to the large contraption suspended over the hole through which they could see every floor.

“Whoa! What's that!” Zell blinked in surprise.

“It's like a crane that can carry a detachable cell from downstairs,” Squall said, imagining his own cell within its claws.

“Oh!” Selphie walked over to the rim and looked down. “So this big hole goes all the way to the bottom. So if we jump all the way down, we're outta here.”

“Go ahead if you want to be squashed like a pancake,” Quistis told her. She honestly didn't know if the spunky, crazy girl was going to do it or not.

“Oh, hey!” Zell laughed. “I know this thing! I didn't get to see it in the dream, but I operated it. We can move the arm using the panel inside and the control room just over there. Ward had to do it. But we have to operate them both at the same time. It's a redundant system to keep prisoners from escaping. So one of us needs to stay upstairs and operate the panel.”

Selphie and Quistis shared a smile as they stepped forward at the same time. Squall didn't say anything as the two of them stopped on either side of Zell's side. Both of them were smiling sweetly as they reached out and touched his shoulder, 'volunteering' him for the duty. Honestly, Squall was just glad he wasn't being forced to do it.

In all the time that Zell had been hoping to be given some responsibility, he hadn't wanted it to be 'patsy who has to stay behind' responsibility. He jumped and looked between the grinning girls unhappily.

Squall said nothing and he sighed. Of all the times he _didn't_ want to be chosen.

“Me? F-Fine,” he groaned. “I'll give you guys instructions from upstairs. Everyone get inside. The entry hatch should be over there somewhere. Like I said, I didn't see it.”

The others found it easy enough on their own. Squall stepped inside first, frowning at all the cords spread out everywhere. That was such a bad tripping hazard. Was there no one with any sense in charge of this army/prison.”

“ _Yo, can you guys hear me?_ ” Zell asked through the comm system.

“Hiya, Zell!” Selphie laughed loudly, greeting him happily. “Loud and clear!”

“So, what do we do?” Squall asked, getting right to the point.

“ _Just press the big red button on the main panel._ ”

Squall stepped forward and located the button easily. He pressed it and the arm crane rumble to life underneath his feet.

“ _Alright. I'll take care of the rest......There!_ ”

Squall rocked slightly as the crane came to life. It started going down rather quickly and Squall breathed out a sigh of relief. Honestly, he had expected that to be a lot harder.

The bottom of the prison was narrowed to such a small room that the crane barely had room to land. It was hard for the three of them to get out. There as only a single walkway that they stepped onto, looking around.

“So-o-o,” Selphie looked around. “What are we going to do now?”

“Well, there's a door over there,” Squall said, looking towards the end of the walkway. There wasn't even a guard down here. No monsters. Nothing.

“And?” Quistis looked to him.

Well...Whatever. At this point.

“Let's check it out,” he shrugged.

They moved over to it. It was weirdly quiet down here. Squall was the one who stepped up to the door, looking it over curiously. He reached out and pressed the release.

The door didn't open immediately. It kind of groaned. Like it was under pressure. Squall frowned and took a few steps back that turned into a sprint as the door burst open. Dark, cold sand came spilling into the narrow corridor.

“Sand?” Squall frowned at it. What was with that?

“Buried?” Quistis guessed. “You mean we're underground? I guess that means we can't get out of from here. We'll have to go back up.”

“Who puts a door to the outside underground like this?” Selphie asked, frowning.

She didn't get an answer to her question as they all heard gunfire breaking out from above. They turned at the same time. The loud shots were echoing easily all the way down here.

“What's that?” Selphie frowned.

“Gunfire,” Squall answered.

“Sounds pretty bad,” Quistis brought her hand up, worried.

Who would they be shooting at so viciously?

“Zell!” Quistis and Selphie cried out.

“Let's get back, quick!” Quistis said, already running back towards the crane.

***

“There he is! Over there! Seize the escapee, dead or alive!”

“Tch!” Zell scoffed as he jumped down the flight of stairs. There was too many. And he was definitely not fast enough to escape a bullet. “I'm outta here!”

The pain in his ribs was aching dully, throbbing. He wasn't nearly as fast as he used to be. The guard chasing after him caught up easily. Zell turned just as he saw him reaching out to catch him.

Zell struck and kicked him clean over the side of the rail. He screamed as he fell down the shaft. The mechanisms on the crane were moving. Zell frowned, wondering what was going on.

Pain blossomed in the side of his head as he was struck by something hard. Lights burst into his vision as he fell forward onto his knee. He turned, his eyes watering, as a gun barrel was pressed into the side of his head by a grinning RDF.

“You bastard...” RDF growled at him. He had permission to kill.

Oh, shit. He was about to die. Zell was really about to die...

Squall jumped by so quickly that his gunblade was just a flash as he struck. He landed numbly, RDF's throat slit. The guard's gun slipped and his body crumpled. Squall stood back up, throwing out his blade to get some of the blood off.

“Didn't think he'd go down that easy,” Squall admitted.

“Squall!”

Squall cried out when Zell suddenly grabbed onto his belts. He clung to him, the relief at having lived stealing whatever dignity he might have had. “Thanks, man!”

“W-What?!” Squall made a face as he tried to pull away from Zell's clinging hands. “Let go. I said, let go!”

“Ow...”

Irritated, Squall knocked the butt of his gun into Zell's head. The pain made his grasping hands release him and Squall took a quick step back.

“Squall! Zell!” Quistis yelled as she and Selphie ran down the stairs the old fashioned way. Quistis beamed at seeing Zell unharmed. “I'm glad you're alright.”

“Squall,” Selphie looked at him, her eyes wide with amazement, “Why did you just down like that? It was so reckless! Is Zell that important to you?”

Squall groaned as Zell chuckled, scratching his head self consciously. Squall's eyes rolled. Great, she had to put that in his head.

The sudden volley of shots made them all cry out and hit the deck at the same moment. Bullets ricocheted around them as Selphie cried out. Only the thick metal railing protected them from the guards shooting them down. They couldn't move in any direction.

“There's no way we can get outta here!” Zell yelled over the automatic fire.

The dual blasts from a shotgun were detectable because the gunfire sounded so different. Then, in its wake, was an echoing silence that was tense just by virtue of it being still and calm.

Squall turned, peeking up over the rail, but both of the guards that had been shooting at them had been dropped. He stood up fully, his eyes moving around.

Footsteps from the stairs coming down caught all their attention. They turned to see Irvine very deliberately sauntering down the stairs, a smug grin plastered on his face.

“Come on!”

Squall's heart lifted at that voice.

“Stop trying to act so cool!” Rinoa kicked out, striking Irvine on the back of the knee. He buckled against his will and rolled down the stairs. He grunted in pain as his back hit the metal railing. Rinoa was glaring down at him, her hands on her hips.

“Geez,” she blew out a long breath, blasting hair out of her face. “If only you had agreed with me earlier, we wouldn't be in this mess!”

Dark movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. She looked over and her heart soared to see Squall stepping in closer to her.

“Squall!” She cried out, getting breathless just at the sight of him.

Squall was alive! She knew it! There was no way a guy like him would go down so easily. She felt elated just seeing him. All the hardship fighting with Irvine, breaking inside, then working their way down just melted away.

“Yeah!” she laughed, practically skipping down the rest of the steps.

She stopped at the base of the stairs and found herself staring into Squall's face. A big grin was stretched out over her cheeks. He stared back. His face was as neutral as it ever was. And that was so comforting. She would be more worried if he was panicked.

The two of them continued to just stare at each other – neutral to smile – as the others talked around them.

“Rinoa, you're alright!” Quistis yelled happily.

“Uh-huh,” Irvine said, standing up and trying to straighten his clothes. He was so sore. “Of course. Courtesy of _my_ escort.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” Zell frowned.

“Ah, well-”

“My father pulled some strings with the military,” Rinoa interrupted him pleasantly, talking directly to Squall. “He told them to get me, and _only me_ , out.”

Irvine tried again. “So then-”

“So this guy here,” Rinoa pointed at Irvine over her shoulder, “He came and got me – _just me!_ – out. Knowing you were all captured!” She sounded so pleasantly shocked. Squall's eyebrow came up at the sweet act she was putting on.

“Um, that's-” Irvine laughed self-consciously.

“Isn't that horrible?” Rinoa pouted, asking Squall, still being so sweet.

“Alright, alright,” Irvine grumbled. “I said I was sorry. I'm here to help now, aren't I?”

Rinoa's eyes were cold and gleaming as she turned back to him. “Only after I scratched you to death.”

It was a strangely childish threat. But the gleam of the Valkyrie on her wrist as she lifted her hands to her waist made Irvine flinch backwards, real fear in his eyes.

What exactly had happened between the two of them, Squall wondered silently.

Irvine cleared his throat, trying to bite back that fear. “Uh, a-a-anyhow, now's our chance to get out.”

“The basement door is buried in sand,” Squall said, pointing back down.

“Of course it is,” Irvine shrugged, unconcerned. “This place is buried underground.”

“The entire facility?”

“That's right. This prison is just one big-”

“There they are! It's the escapees!”

Gunfire erupted all around them again. Squall and the others dropped to the floor as Irvine jumped behind the stairs. He pulled out his shotgun and tried to keep his eyes on the guards that were taking aim on them.

“Squall!” he cried out over the gunfire. “You take the others and head on up! I'll hold'em here.”

“Up?”

“Don't have time to explain now! The exit's up there, trust me!”

Trust the guy who had abandoned them? Who wasn't even one of them. But Rinoa was nodding along with what he was saying. Well, he didn't really have a choice.

“Okay,” he nodded once. “Let's go!”

“No. I'm staying.”

Surprised, Squall looked back. Selphie was looking at him, determined.

“I can't leave you here alone, Irvine!” She said firmly. “You'll need back up! I'll stay with you!”

She looked to Squall, as though asking for his permission on something she had already declared that she was definitely doing. He nodded once, accepting her decision.

“I'll stay as well,” Quistis said. “You three, get up there. We'll follow when we can.”

“I know the way,” Rinoa said, touching Squall's shoulder. There was no way she was leaving his side now after just finding him. “Come on. This way.”

“Ready?” Irvine asked. “Go! Go! Go!”

As he yelled out, he came out from behind the stairs. He let off the two shots already loaded into his shotgun. It was a very brief moment that he got the gunfire to stop. But it was just enough for Squall, Rinoa, and Zell to make their way up. That left Quistis, Selphie, and himself to fight the onslaught of guards shooting at the three of them.

“My turn to boogie now,” Irvine said, winking at Selphie. She grinned at him as he took aim again.

***

“Are they gonna be okay?” Zell asked, peering over the side of the rails. He cried out and jumped back when a stray bullet fired up from below.

“We're just going to have to trust them,” Rinoa said, standing a bit close to Squall. Was it just her, or did he seem really rather tired? He was even more quiet than usual.

“Let's go,” Squall said, indicating with his head. “We've got to get out of here.”

Zell nodded and followed him up. It was a long ways to the top. Squall kept his groan of pain internal at each new step. The bones he had fractured in the interrogation chamber were aching, their damage beyond the scope of the cure spell.

***

Irvine groaned as another guard was dropped. And yet another took his place. The pile of bodies was growing just as fast as his hesitancy about shooting humans was shrinking. If he had known a parade of guys shooting at him was what it would have taken to rid him of his choking he would have put himself in this position a long time ago.

Then maybe he wouldn't be in this situation now.

“This is endless!” He yelled angrily, pulling back to reload.

“So, what do we do?” Quistis asked, frowning.

Selphie hummed thoughtfully. She was standing near the top of the stairs that led down. No point going that way though since the only way out was up. They couldn't go up by doing down.

“Hey!” she looked up excitedly. “What about the arm crane? Can we use that? If Zell if heading up, he'll be going towards the control room! He can operate it for us!”

“That's a good idea,” Irvine grinned. Then they wouldn't have to decimate the entire population of the prison just to get out.

“How will we get them to operate the arm?” Quistis asked. “They don't know the plan.”

“Leave that to me,” Irvine said, stowing away his gun. “Quickly, let's get down there!”

***

“OH-H-H YEAH-H-H-H!” Zell yelled as they ascended the last staircase and found themselves in the upper control room. A room that had sunlight streaming inside from the wide open door at the far end. He was actually kind of mad to think that if he had just taken that one last staircase they would have been gone already. “We're out, baby!”

Rinoa nodded excitedly as they walked forward. Fresh air tasted so much better for knowing that the others were enjoying it with her.

Squall squinted into the bright sunlight as they stepped onto the other walkways.

“ _Prisoners may not go beyond this point. You will be terminated._ ”

“Aw, crud,” Zell sighed. “It's never easy.”

“They're coming,” Squall said. They were charging from the opposite end of a long walkway that connected to a second building.

A superior officer in the Galbadian military. Two mechs with mild flight capabilities and what looked like missile packs on their backs.

Rinoa tossed back her hair. “Let's just get this done and get out of here.”

“You're not goin' anywhere!” the soldier yelled, aiming his gun at them.

Squall's eyes flashed icy blue.

“Diamond Dust!”

The explosive blast of ice took down the soldier easily. Shiva was getting more powerful. The two mechs, however, remained unaffected.

“Slow!” Rinoa threw out her magic next. The spell slammed into one mech, slowing its movement down to a crawl. Before she could get to the second one, it was already on them.

“This one's mine!” Zell announced, jumping into its path. “Ifrit, give me hot one!”

The mech was zooming in fast. Zell's fist were burning. The explosive, fiery blast when his fist slammed into the oncoming chassis not only stopped the mech dead, it sent its circuits into a tizzy and the confused bot kind of hovered awkwardly in place.

Laughing, Zell jumped onto its back. Groaning at the pain it exacerbated in his ribs, Zell grabbed the pack panel and ripped it open. The mesh work of wires and blinking lights lit up his face.

“Hey, these look important!”

Giggling to himself, Zell began ripping out the cords.

Meanwhile, Squall was stepping forward to deal with its slow moving twin.

“Wait!” Rinoa reached out and put her hand to his chest. She smiled. “Allow me.”

Squall raised an eyebrow but he didn't question her as he stepped back. She beamed appreciatively as she walked forward into the path of the very slow mech. If she couldn't deal with a mech that was almost on rewind, she would be disappointed in herself.

“Okay, Diablos,” Rinoa stretched her neck. “Let's try out some new stuff. Thunder!”

The crashing of the electric spell made Squall flinch behind her. The mech in front of her was hit and immediately started spinning out of control. In slow motion. It was kind of funny. Rinoa was laughing as she lifted her Valkyrie.

“Give me thunder on my blade, Diablos,” she ordered, taking aim. She felt her GF obeying and she grinned as the mech turned around.

There! The narrow openings where she could see its flight gear.

“Don't let me down now, Diablos!”

The Valkyrie burst out of the blaster and zoomed across the space between them. Rinoa had to admit, even with the mech going slow like it was, she was rather proud of how perfectly her edge slammed into the vents in its back.

“Did you see that?!” Rinoa asked, bouncing in place as she looked back as Squall.

“Don't turn away until you know its dead,” he told her, leaning against one of the pillars on the walkway. It was a small kind of rest. It was the best he was likely to get.

“Right!” She turned back dutifully and hit the recall on her blaster.

A strange, cringe inducing grinding noise came from the mech as her Valkyrie tried to escape. The mech was slamming into the ground, its flight capabilities shot. In slow motion.

“Oh, come on!” Rinoa growled, pressing the return again.

The grinding noise continued until the mech hit the grailing. The force of it slamming into the metal walkway freed her Valkyrie. It came zooming back and Rinoa caught it expertly. She smiled until she caught sight of it.

“AH!” The pretty blue blade of her Valkyrie was scratched and dented and deformed. “Are you kidding me? I just got this! Stupid mech! THUNDER!”

Squall flinched again as the bolt of electricity shot through the mech. It began short circuting in earnest as the slow spell wore off. Not that it did the mech much good. Unable to fly, its systems shot, it was quickly becoming a hunk of junk.

“Alley-oop!” Zell yelled out as he back flipped off of his mech. The malfunctioning droid was moving erratically. Even as Zell was landing, it was glitching itself right over the tails. Meanwhile, Zell landed neatly and came up, arms out. “Judges: Score!”

“Perfect 10!” Rinoa laughed.

“I'd say a solid 5.6,” Squall disagreed.

“5.6?!” Zell slumped dismayed. “What was wrong with it?”

“Too much style, not enough substance. And your dismount could use some work.”

“There's no pleasing some people,” Zell rolled his eyes while Rinoa laughed. Because Squall had sounded dead serious in his critique.

“ _Hey, Squall! Can you hear me?!_ ”

The three of them paused and looked back towards the control room. The obvious mechanical quality of Irvine's voice told them that he was calling over speaking. Zell and Rinoa shared a look as they walked back inside.

Irvine, from the other side of the speaker, kept calling out. “ _Hey! Hey, you guys!_ ”

“ _Um,_ ” Quistis's voice filtered through. “ _Is this what you meant when you said 'leave it to you'? What if Squall and the others have already gone ahead?_ ”

“I can hear you,” Squall said, approaching the console.

“ _See! I told you we'd be alright._ ” They could practically hear Quistis's deadpan stare through the intercom. “ _Squall, go ahead and operate the arm to bring us up._ ”

“How?”

“Yo, leave that one to me,” Zell grinned, stepping forward. He moved up to the console and walked Irvine through his end while he manned the controls. Squall stepped back to let him do so and found himself standing beside Rinoa.

She grinned at him. “So? How'd I do against the mech?”

“Besides the premature celebration? I'd say a solid...6.5.”

“Yes!” Rinoa punched the air. “That's what I'm talking about! Zell, I scored higher than you.”

“Aw, what does Squall know anyway?” Zell frowned, pulling a lever on the counsel. “His opinion his clearly biased when it comes to you.”

“And what is that supposed to mean?” Squall asked, one eyebrow raising as Rinoa suddenly found the floor fascinating.

“ _Alrighty!_ ” Irvine laughed as they heard machinery start whirring on his end. “ _We'll be there in like a second. Just wait right there._ ”

“ _Hm?_ ” Quistis spoke up. “ _Did it move this slow before?_ ”

“ _Um, no?_ ” Selphie said.

“ _So what?_ ” Irvine asked, clearly unbothered. “ _What's the rush?_ ”

“Looks like they'll be just fine,” Rinoa said, smiling at Squall. He nodded once.

“Come on,” Rinoa pulled gently on his sleeve, as close to his hand as she dared go. “The parking garage is in the next building over.”

Squall walked ahead of her and Rinoa released him. She frowned at the feeling of something on her hands and looked down. The fingers that had touched Squall's jacket had come back caked in the dried blood hidden by the black leather. She frowned and looked back over to Squall.

Outside of the prison, the heat of the sun beat down on them far harsher. The oppressive heat was suffocating. The three of them stepped out onto the walkway connecting the buildings and were finally able to look out onto the barren, desert landscape that surrounded them.

At least twenty stories down.

“W-W-What the hell is this?!” Zell gasped, running to the edge of the rail and looking down. “I thought you said it was underground!”

“No way...” Rinoa breathed, shaking her head. “It wasn't like this when we came in! I swear, we were right on the sand!”

Squall walked closer to the rail as well, but he didn't look down. He looked over to the building they had just come from. The spiral shape of the walls. The dirt caked against the hull.

“Look,” he pointed. “It's a giant drill. All three of them are giant drills.”

“Great,” Zell threw up his hands slightly. “Now what? We still can't go anywhere.”

“Let's just...head for the parking garage for now,” Squall said, indicating with his head.

Zell sighed and put his hands in his pockets as he walked over. “I swear, if there's another set of mechs over here, I'm not fighting them. That's all on you two.”

“Rude!” Rinoa said, sticking her tongue out at him.

“Leave him be. He's just tired,” Squall said.

“So are we all. That's no reason to be rude.”

“He's injured as well.”

“I know. I was there. And you're injured too. And I swear if you say 'I'm fine' I'm punching you. In fact, that's the new rule. You tell me you're fine and I punch you to demand proof.”

Squall, whose mouth was already opening, hesitated only for a second. “I was going to say that...I will be fine. Let's go.”

“That is not a loophole!” Rinoa told him, moving forward ahead of him. “You really need to learn how to take it easy, Squall. You're going to collapse one of these days because you can't admit you need rest. This has been a harrowing ordeal for everyone, especially you...”

She trailed off as she looked down at her fingers where the stains of his dried blood remained. She almost didn't want to know where it came from. She was pretty sure she already did.

“Squall?”

He raised an eyebrow at her suddenly tiny voice.

“Did they really... _torture_ you...?” The word came out as a whisper. She couldn't bring herself to say it at full volume.

Squall didn't respond to her. Which was more than enough confirmation. She felt a shiver go down her spine at the thought.

“Who did it?”

“Does it matter?”

“Squall, tell me!” She was pretty sure she already knew. She wanted to hear him say it.

“...Partly it was one of the wardens of the prison,” he started, delaying the inevitable. “...Mostly...it was Seifer.”

Rinoa let out a shuddering breath as she reached the halfway point on the walkway. She knew what he was going to say. She desperately wished he wouldn't have said it. She couldn't even accuse him of lying. He wouldn't lie to her like that. Especially not about this...

She was shivering despite the heat. Squall didn't know what to say to her. He should probably say something though, right?

The hissing of machinery stopped him and he looked back over his shoulder as Rinoa continued on. His eyes scanned the area for a mech but he didn't see one.

Then the alarms went off and Rinoa and Zell froze as well.

“What's that?” Zell asked, turning this way and that.

A low steady rumbling started under their feet. Rinoa and Squall both looked down at the walkway that was starting to tremble. Zell was backing up, almost at the second building.

“Uh, guys...” he said, casting his gaze around.

“Rinoa! Run!” Squall ordered as the rails dropped away.

She obeyed without thinking, without looking back. She sprinted towards the second building right behind Zell. Squall was stepping backward. Watching as the metal tiles started separating, zooming away from him. He was left with no choice but to turn on his heel and run backwards.

Dust started clouding the air as they heard the massive, grinding sound of tons of sand being displaced beneath them. The drills were burrowing down.

“Squall!” He heard Rinoa call out his voice. He was breathing hard, as he reached the other side and frowned as he realized the doors had been sealed on this end. With the amount of dirt being kicked up, they were starting their own sandstorm. He could already feel it scraping painfully against the exposed skin of his face, neck, and chest.

“Squall! Get inside!” Zell roared out over the storm.

“Damn...” he turned back. No choice at this point.

It hurt his cracked bones to the point of near torture – it didn't quite measure up – to throw himself down against the thin metal bar that was all that remained of the walkways. His own body weight was torment on him right now as he started swinging across the bar towards the other side.

“There he is!” He heard Rinoa yell out.

“Get inside!” Squall ordered her, regretting the action immediately as he got a mouthful of sand.

“Hold on!” She called out, and it didn't sound like she was talking to him. “Squall, over here! Hurry!”

What did she think he was doing?

Hyne, what he wouldn't give for a cura spell right now.

Squall didn't see the other end of the walkway. By the time he got there, the dust was too thick in the air and he had to shut his eyes or risk shredding the delicate lobes. He was holding his breath to avoid dragging in a lungful of sand and his chest was screaming in pain.

Then a pair of soft hands were grabbing for him. Cloth was placed quickly over his mouth and nose and he took in a deep, grateful gulp of air. A second pair of hands grabbed for him and helped haul him up and onto the walkway.

From this end, the doors weren't autolocked. The two of them guided him inside and Zell slammed his hand on the button to seal them in. The wind and sand died died abruptly, but the sound of the drills' digging didn't diminish at all.

Coughing, Squall took hold of the wrist pressing the cloth to his face and moved it down. His eyes, crusted with sand, opened to see Rinoa wiping at her own face. She had been using her duster tail as protection but had given it up to him at the last second. Both of them were coated in a thick layer of itchy sand.

“Thank you,” Squall said, his voice hoarse.

She nodded and continued trying to wipe sand from her eyes. “You okay?”

“I'm fine.”

He couldn't help it, he chuckled when she gently pushed her fist against his shoulder. 'Punching' him for speaking the forbidden words.

“Just a little sandy,” he corrected, running his hand through his hair and creating an waterfall of sand that was forced from his brown locks.

“I hate this place,” Zell said, leaning back against the wall. “I got sand all up in my-

“Thank you, Zell,” Squall cut him off quickly while Rinoa laughed.

“That was way too dangerous,” she said, trying to dust herself off. She didn't imagine that she was going to get to luxuriate in a nice, long bath for a good while.

“Yeah,” Squall nodded, agreeing with her. Damn, he hurt. All over.

“How long is this gonna take?” Rinoa asked.

“Shouldn't take too long,” Zell answer. “Mostly the sand is just a big hazard. Come on. Garage is this way, right?”

Rinoa nodded and took point on leading them over there.

***

“I guess that explains why the arm was movin' kinda slow,” Irvine said when Rinoa and Zell finished telling the others what had happened. “They had the submerge system on.”

Irvine, Quistis, and Selphie had found them in the garage, working the door open and setting out the ramp so they could hijack one or both of the vehicles they found waiting there. The artificial sandstorm had calmed down a great deal by the time those three caught up.

“Let's just get going,” Squall said now that everyone was up to speed. He didn't want to spend a second longer in this hellhole than he had to.

Selphie, who had been going over their vehicle selection – big ugly yellow, or slightly less big, ugly gray – pointed to the vehicle she wanted and called dibs gleefully.

“I wanna ride in the yellow one!” Then, without waiting for anyone to stop her or give permission – not that Squall was likely to do either one – she was walking towards the vehicle.

“I'll take that one, too,” Quistis smiled before walking after her.

“Okay,” Rinoa laughed. “Me, too.”

She threw Squall a wide grin as she raced after the other two.

“Hey, hey, hey!” Irvine called out, grinning salaciously. “Ladies?”

“Ugh,” Zell rolled his eyes before reaching out and grabbing Irvine by the collar. “Let's go, Irvine.”

Squall followed the two of them to the gray car. They automatically decided that he was the one that was going to be driving. Something he didn't bother questioning right now. He just climbed in and pulled off after the girls.

***

Squall was all too ready to get back to Balamb. He wanted to wash off this thick layer of sand, sweat, and blood from his body desperately. Then he wanted to gorge himself on something vaguely edible – he wasn't picky – and then sleep for probably three days.

Those plans fell apart rather quickly when Selphie's vehicle ahead of theirs jerked to a stop at a fork in the dirt roads dug out by the years of Galbadian vehicles passing through.

“What's going on?” Zell asked as the girls climbed from their transport.

They weren't going to find out in here. Squall opened his door and stepped out of the cabin while Selphie was climbing to the top of a defunct cruiser that someone had abandoned on the side of the road years ago – if the layers of caked on sand and grit was any indication.

“What is it?” Squall asked, looking between the girls' tight faces.

“Is it true?” Quistis frowned at him. “The sorceress is about to launch missiles at garden?”

“That's what Rinoa heard from Irvine!” Selphie said, pointing to the blue clad girl, her eyes wide.

Yeah. Squall seemed to remember something like that being said to him. Honestly, so much of the last day was a blur. He wasn't even sure if it was only a day. Time had lost meaning in that place.

He shook his head. “The only thing we can do now is get back to garden as soon as possible and warn the headmaster and students. So let's just get in the cars and go.”

Selphie was already shaking her head frantically. “They're targeting both Balamb _and_ Trabia Gardens! We have to interfere with the launch! We have to stop the missiles!”

Squall frowned as he moved over to the side of the cruiser. Selphie was pleading with him with her eyes as he walked up after her. From up here, he could almost see another Galbadian facility off in the distance.

“Please, Squall,” Selphie begged. “I just transferred from Trabia Garden! I can't just sit around knowing that Trabia is in danger! So, please! Send me to the Galbadian Missile Base! Give me some back up! Before it's too late!”

Squall frowned at the ground. She wanted him to send her into danger? She wanted him to send more than just her into danger? How could she possibly ask that of him? What if something happened to those he sent off? That would be on his shoulders...

This was exactly why he hated leadership. He couldn't be responsible for people like this. He started thinking of the mistakes that he could make, the people that weren't him that would suffer, and he couldn't get it out of his head!

Down below, Rinoa tilted her head curiously at Squall. He was completely silent, looking away from them as Quistis filled in Zell about what was going on. Though his expression was guarded, she felt like she could see right through it.

Did he even have the right to do this? He hadn't been ordered to, so was he allowed? Surely they couldn't all want this.

Well, if he thought that way, she would prove it to him.

“Let's take a vote!” She announced, silencing Quistis and pulling up Squall's head. “Squall is the agreed upon leader. Squall will decide how the party is split. Squall will go to Balamb because he is the leader. Anyone against this plan, please raise your right hand now!”

The others blinked at her, like they were confused about why she even brought up the subject. Like it was obvious that was the answer.

But Squall's eyes moved over everyone else. Looking for even a twitching right hand. Rinoa grinned, pleased and proud that she had been right. She was getting good at reading him. She nodded, satisfied, when no one moved to protest and smiled at Squall.

“I don't mind which team you put me on.”

He frowned. She wasn't a SeeD though. She wasn't even a garden student!

“You're the leader, Squall,” Quistis agreed. “What are the teams?”

Leader? He had never asked to be the leader! What was with them?

Before he could make a move, a loud, whistling explosion floated over them. They all turned in time to see a volley of missiles launch from the Galbadian base he had seen earlier. Selphie's knees collapsed as the smoke trail behind the missiles spread through the air.

“I...heard they were hitting Trabia first,” Irvine said softly, “and then Balamb.”

Squall looked down and frowned at the broken expression on Selphie's face. Like the entire world had just collapsed around her. Even if they hadn't stopped the cars, there was no way she could have gotten to the missile base in time to prevent that launch. She could do nothing. And knowing that did nothing to ease her mind.

“Trabia...” she whispered, looking off after the missiles. “I'm sorry...I couldn't stop it...”

Her head collapsed down as the others looked away uncomfortably. “Please...let everyone be alright. Please, guys, get outta there...”

She looked up at Squall, her breathing fast. “That was a miss...right...?”

Squall said nothing, because the answer was most likely 'no'. She would know that very well though and he doubted Rinoa would be too happy with him for being so honest. Not if the way he had spoken to Zell in the forest was any indication.

He didn't really need to reply though. Selphie's face closed off in determination. She stood up and launched herself down off of the vehicle leaving him alone, standing above all of them. She turned and looked up at the agreed upon leader with hard eyes.

When she spoke, she sounded far more official than he had ever heard her. “Squall, we have to report to Balamb. I'm on the missile base infiltration team! I have to be. They launched missiles at my Trabia. So, Squall, who are you taking with you?”

“C'mon, Squall!” Zell cried, shaking his fist.

“You have to decide, Squall!” Quistis told him in full instructor mode.

“Squall, think carefully now!” Rinoa told him gently but firmly.

Okay, that was it! He had had it up to _here_ with this leader thing!

Alright! Alright! Fine! He would choose already.

His eyes moved over the gathered group, his mind quickly listing off their unique strengths and weaknesses. All of them were looking back at him with implicit trust and acceptance – even Irvine and Rinoa for reasons he couldn't imagine.

Selphie as leader for the missile base team. Judging by the way that Irvine's eyes kept glancing over to her, Squall imagined that he would want to stay with the spunky little girl. His deeper, more personal knowledge of Galbadian laws and culture might help her. So she would take Irvine with her.

That team would need a level head though. So Zell was definitely out. Though he had helped them escape, Squall still didn't trust him to be able to be sneaky and discreet. Quistis, on the other hand, was great for such things. And, with her experience, she would be able to make up for what Irvine lacked as a non-SeeD.

Zell, who kept looking off to the east where Balamb stood clearly didn't want to go to the Missile Base even slightly. As far as being loud and able to tell people to evacuate if necessary, he would probably prove valuable.

And Rinoa would stay with Squall, of course.

“Selphie, you'll take Quistis and Irvine with you,” he said at last. Immediately, Irvine was walking closer to Selphie, relief obvious on his face. Quistis moved just a bit closer as well and nodded at her former student. “Rinoa, Zell, you two are coming with me.”

Rinoa beamed and walked closer to him as he climbed down from the vehicle. His sore body complained at the thought of being forced to keep going, but he had little choice at this point. He would rest when he had the chance. Just push forward for now.

Selphie and the others had moved closer to the yellow transport. Zell was near the gray one. Rinoa waited for Squall to come down before following him over there as well.

Squall looked at the gathered group before him and frowned slightly. Was he sure about this? He could be sending them off to their deaths...

Selphie and Quistis were SeeDs. They knew the risk involved in all missions. And Irvine had aligned himself with them over his home country. He knew danger as well being trained at a garden. Still, it was no easy feat to send them off.

“This mission is not like any other,” Squall told them softly. “It's not an order or a request from anyone. If you don't want to do it, I'll understand. You can say no, and no one will judge you for it.”

“Come off it, leader,” Irvine grinned at him. “We're going.”

Quistis nodded as Rinoa smiled at him from the corner of her eye.

Well, he tried.

“Selphie, do you have some kind of plan?”

She hummed thoughtfully before reaching out and touching the yellow jeep. “I think if we take this Galbadian army vehicle, we should be able to make it inside the base. But...that's about it. I'll have to think of the rest once we're inside. Do you think that'd be okay?”

Squall frowned, because he honestly didn't know. He still wasn't entirely certain about them splitting up and sending those three off to possibly get hurt.

“I'm sorry,” Selphie shook her head quickly and smiled at him. “I mean, thanks. Now there isn't much time. You better hurry to Balamb Garden!”

Squall nodded. “I'll see you there.”

“Count on it,” she promised, beaming.


	19. Galbadian Missile Base

The supply train from Deling City to the D-District Prison was an older model because the newer engines couldn't handle all the sand from the desert. It was already half unloaded by the Galbadian soldiers manning it when Squall pulled their stolen vehicle behind the station.

“Are we sneaking aboard?” Rinoa asked from the passenger seat. It would take them back to Deling and from there they could take a train to Timber then to Balamb.

“Aw, let's just take it,” he said, deciding to skip both middle men and drive it straight to Balamb.

“We're stealing a train?” Rinoa laughed.

“Yeah, sure, why not?” He shrugged, standing from the car.

The three of them made their way around the back of the train, out of sight, running up towards the front. As they spotted the engine, Squall reached for his gunblade. Which was unnecessary as the Galbadian soldier manning the controls jumped out and began walking away before they needed to knock him out to take it.

The engine was already running, prepared to pull out since the soldiers had no desire to linger here after the supplies were unloaded. The three of them didn't even need to turn it on. Squall was happy he was finally getting some good luck.

Squall stepped up to the controls and looked them over quickly. He had never driven a train before, but how difficult could it be? They couldn't get off the rails.

And for the convenience of whatever soldier was playing conductor that day, all the controls were labeled. That made throwing the driving lever up to max rather easy.

The half unloaded train responded to him easily. The old engine was no less effective for being mostly outdated. It responded readily to Squall's direction and started pulling away rather quickly. Even with the large weight behind it, the supply train was rather fast.

“HEY! STOP!”

Zell and Rinoa both turned at the same time to look over the side of the engine rails to watch the lone Galbadian soldier chasing them down.

“Hey, Squall,” Zell pointed, “some dork is coming after us.”

Squall didn't react.

“S-Stop the train!” the soldier yelled, trying to make himself go faster. He cried out in the effort it was taking to keep up with the gradually speeding up locomotive.

“Sorry!” Rinoa yelled out.

“This guy's good,” Zell admired.

Squall continued to say nothing.

The soldier's foot caught against a rock in the packed dirt and he cried out as he face planted. Zell and Rinoa flinched as he crashed and faded away.

“Sorry, it's an emergency!” Rinoa called after him.

“Nice try, sport,” Zell shook his head sadly.

Aside from him, there was no one to stop them from moving. And by train Balamb was very close.

Squall knew he wasn't going to make it. His hands were shaking with a mixture of exhaustion and pain. Pain worsened by the shaking because of his fractured wrists.

“Zell,” Squall called out.

“Hm?” He and Rinoa turned back to him.

“Can you take the controls? I need to go rest.”

Zell and Rinoa froze, then shared a wide eyed look.

Squall was admitting that he needed rest?

Rinoa looked back to him at the controls. Instead of feeling relieved that he was finally asking for a chance to lay down, she actually felt concerned. How far to the edge had he been pushed that he was admitting that he needed to stop for even a moment?

“It's not difficult,” Squall said, turning when he didn't say anything. “There's a map right there at the top of the panel. You can control the rail switches from here.”

“Oh, yeah!” Zell said quickly, stepping forward. “You go knock out, I got this.”

Squall nodded and moved back so Zell could step forward. He turned from the controls and jumped from the train engine to the next car. Rinoa and Zell shared another look.

Then Rinoa turned and followed after Squall.

The half empty supply car still had a few crates within it. Between the choice of the hard metal ground and the slightly less hard wooden crates, Squall made up his mind easily. He was already climbing down onto a low crate when she walked in. She stared as he laid back.

“What are you doing?” She frowned.

“Sleeping,” he answered shortly.

“On a wooden box?”

“See any other better options?”

His eyes were already closed, his body laid out like he was dead. He didn't even use his hands as a small cushion. Honestly, his wrists hurt so badly that he didn't want to put pressure on them. He knew those were some of the bones that had cracked during the torture.

Rinoa stared at him for a few seconds before making her decision.

“Sit up.”

“Hm?” His eye cracked to look at her as she stepped in closer.

“Sit up for a second,” she repeated.

Squall tried not to groan – he was so tired even the wood was comfortable – but he sat up. He watched as Rinoa sat down on the crate behind him and leaned back against the metal wall. She spent a couple seconds wiping off her lap before patting it invitingly.

“Okay. Lay down.”

Squall looked up from her lap to her face. “What are you doing?”

“That was an order,” she grinned, patting her thighs again. “An order from your client.”

“You know, there is an exception for obeying all orders written into the garden bylaws when it comes to sexual harassment.”

“Stop being difficult,” Rinoa laughed.

She reached out and grabbed his forehead with her hand. She knew that she couldn't move him if he didn't wish it. So either he was weak from exhaustion to the point of being pushed around by her, or he allowed it.

Either way, she laid his head back against her lap. He didn't fight her. He didn't want to admit how soft her thighs were or how intoxicating her scent was. Not her perfume, that had long since faded in the prison. Just the scent of _her_.

“There, isn't that better?” she asked, laying one hand on his chest. With the other, she reached up and gently stroked his hair back from his face.

He would never admit it out loud.

Rinoa didn't speak for a long few minutes. She watched his face as his breathing evened out and his muscles relaxed slightly. His facial expression didn't change though. It was like he was guarded and thinking even when he was sleeping.

Sitting still like this though, Rinoa could finally look his body over for damage.

Tortured.

Rinoa had asked Quistis in the car, unable to help herself. He had been chained up against an electricity generator when they found him. Despite that, he had still stood up and helped them bust out of the prison.

How strong could one person be?

And it was Seifer that had done it. The same Seifer that Rinoa had once admired. The one she had mourned and attempted to avenge. He had been the force pulling the lever.

“I'm sorry...” she whispered to Squall, touching his hair. Even with the sand and grit, the brown locks were softer than she would have guessed. They were probably one of the few soft parts about him. He chose to live a very hard life and had himself become hard as a consequence.

But torture?

Hot guilt filled her body as she finally had a chance to relax a bit.

“I'm so sorry...” she said again, shaking her head. He would probably wave her apology away if he were awake, so this was the only time she would get to tell him.

“I didn't know...I couldn't believe he would be capable of something like that,” she continued whispering to avoid waking him. “I always knew he was cocky and arrogant, but I never really thought he was a bad guy. Is that a bad excuse? Maybe I just have poor taste in men. I seem to keep wanting to go for guys I know my father won't like.”

She lifted her head. “We met last summer in Deling City when he was on vacation from garden. He's the one who helped me run away from home. He was my escort to Timber.”

She couldn't help herself, she grinned at the memories. “He always seemed so strong to me. Like he was on an unattainable level. And the way he talked, it really made you feel like you could do anything. Like only the sky was the limit.”

Rinoa had to blink back tears. She felt almost like she was mourning his death again. And, in a way, she was. She was mourning the man that could have been.

“When I was with him, I felt like nothing could touch me. Every time we met a monster on the way to Timber he would turn to me and yell, 'get back, Rinoa. I'll protect you'. Or something to that effect. It was all so gallant and exciting. He gave me such confidence, you know? I joined the Forest Owls using that confidence he gave me. Really felt like I could make a difference...”

She frowned. “And I took on the sorceress by myself using that confidence he gave me. I don't even think she looked at me. That was how easy it was for her to take me down. I realized then just how powerless I was. Just how little that confidence he gave me amounted to when it came right down to it. Because _of course_ bad things could happen to me. And no one can be around to protect you forever. His confidence was just waiting to get me into trouble.”

Rinoa's eyes focused back on Squall's sleeping face.

“With you, Squall? I never felt confident. Not even once. I've been scared since we started traveling together. Even before that. Because you never told me to stand back and to let you protect me. Do you remember what you said to me instead? You said, 'come here, Rinoa. Let me show you how to fight this thing'. You got me a GF. You gave me magic. You showed me how to use it.

“And it was those skills I used to break into the prison. I was terrified and uncertain and as far from confident as I could be. But suddenly I knew how to fight and how to cast spells. I have my guardian and my weapon. And each guard that came at us made me realize more and more that I knew what I was doing. I had gotten myself into trouble, but you had given me the skills to get out of it. You gave me the ability to build my own confidence.

“What you gave me, Squall, was worth so much more. Because I know now that what Seifer gave me wasn't confidence at all. It was bravado. It was a false sense of confidence that came from no place to back it up. He wanted to be stronger than me. Wanted to protect me. Wanted me to be completely dependent on him.

“You just don't think like that. You gave me what I needed, even if it wasn't necessarily what I wanted. I know I'm not as strong as you, but I've never felt so strong in my life. I know I can depend on you to help me, but I also know I can depend on myself. So, thank you. Thank you for giving me the one thing that no one else has ever trusted me with: Me.”

Rinoa let out a shuddering breath. “I guess...that's what makes it so hard though. Everything you've given me...And it was Seifer who...I just feel so...guilty. I feel like this is somehow my fault.”

“Don't.”

She gasped at the single word that came from Squall's mouth.

“Squall?”

“You don't have to feel guilty.” His mouth was moving, but his eyes remained shut.

“I thought you were sleeping!” She cried, her face flaming red.

“How can I sleep when you're talking to me?” There was no heat in his voice as he said it. Like he was merely pointing out a fact.

“I'm sorry,” Rinoa said quickly. “I'll stop talking. Just...Just go back to sleep.”

He didn't say anything else and neither did Rinoa. She just continued looking at him wondering just how much of that he had heard. Or if he had ever fallen asleep in the first place.

***

Distances were deceiving in the desert. The Missile Base that had looked so close from the fork in the road was actually quite a ways away. So far, in fact, that all three of them in the vehicle had time to change into the spare Galbadian army uniforms that they had found in the back. Even accounting for how fast Quistis and Selphie had changed while keeping an eye on Irvine as he drove because they didn't trust him not to peek.

Selphie was back at the wheel when they pulled up at the entry gate. All three of them had their new uniforms on over their own clothes and were trying not to show how uncomfortable the military garb was. It felt like they had been made from the cheapest fabrics and metals available. Which, knowing the Galbadian army, was probably true.

The guard at the checkpoint barely glanced into the window of the RV.

“Alright, go ahead,” he said before flipping a switch in the booth that lowered the metal gate barring their way.

Really? Selphie looked surprised at how easy that was. He hadn't even asked for ID.

The parking lot of the missile base was filled with a few other jeeps and RVs. Selphie pulled theirs into a spare spot and the three of them jumped out. As they were moving to the back of the car, someone on a loudspeaker was calling out.

“ _The launch against Trabia Garden has been completed successfully. Prepare for the launch on Balamb Garden. All personal, take your positions._ ”

Selphie scratched at the neck of her uniform. This uniform was itchy. And smelly! Did no one in this army care for the basics?

Irvine was turning a white card in his fingers as he and Quistis moved in closer.

“How long until the launch?” Quistis asked, looking around. She didn't know how long it would take to reload the next round of missiles.

“It doesn't matter,” Selphie said firmly. “We just stop the missiles, that's all there is to it, right?! We do this quick and we do this loud. If there's a door, we go in! If there's anything we can break, we break! And, in the end, we blow this place to smithereens!”

“Hey, Selphie,” Irvine grinned at her as he slipped the card back in his pocket. “I like your attitude. Let's do it up right!”

Selphie nodded eagerly. “Let's get a move on! We've got some havoc to wreak!"

They followed Selphie to the entrance. The small entry room was, surprisingly, a better guard than the actual guard outside at the gate. When Selphie pressed the touchscreen by the door to open it, it blinked a her angrily and refused to move.

“It's locked!” She stomped her foot in irritation. Her eyes moved over to the second door and moved over to try that one. It didn't try to block her out, but it did give up a prompt screen.

“Insert ID card?” She read off, frowning. “But...we don't have one!” Like the screen was somehow wrong for demanding it of her.

“Selphie, calm down,” Quistis told her, in instructor mode. “You yelling is going to accomplish nothing. Let's just work our way around it.”

“Or we could use this,” Irvine said, pulling out the white card he had been playing with it.

“Where did you get that?” Quistis frowned.

“Found it in the car. Give it a try.”

Selphie beamed as she nearly snatched it from his fingers. She turned and slid the card through the ID slot. The computer read it for a second.

Verifying...Access Granted.

“Whoo-hoo!” Selphie threw up her hands excitedly.

The door slid open easily and the three of them filed inside the missile base. The entire place smelled of oil and sweat and gunpowder. The metal walkway they found themselves moving across echoed around them along with the sounds of motors and metal hitting metal.

Selphie paused as she spotted someone standing guard by a door. He was standing still, staring off at nothing and hadn't noticed them yet. She let out a breath.

“Okay. Just act casual. We totally belong here. We are not suspicious.”

Quistis and Irvine nodded and fell in line behind the tiny Selphie as they started moving. The door guy eye's looked over to them as they walked by. In perfect sync. In one line. They were SeeDs. They fell into military formation a great deal more easily than any Galbadian soldier.

“Hey, you! Stop right there!”

Selphie flinched and grimaced as she came up short. Holy Hyne, had they looked _that_ suspicious? They barely even made it inside the door before being found out?!

“Hah!” The guard nodded, satisfied as he looked them over. “Walking in single file. Your parents must have raised you well. That's very good manners! Always be thankful to your parents for bringing you up!”

“Yes, sir...” Selphie replied automatically as she tried to wrap her mind around what he had just said and how little sense he had made.

Was he serious? What a strange man...

“What a character,” Irvine snickered after they turned a corner and started heading through an 'S' shaped walkway down towards the next level. Quistis's eyes were caught by what looked like a large machine in the background covered in a tarp.

“This army is so undisciplined,” Selphie shook her head.

“Don't complain about something that works out in your favor,” Quistis grinned, turning away from whatever machine they were building. “What's the plan?”

Selphie shrugged. “Let's just see where this leads us.”

The 'S' shaped catwalk ended in a flight of stairs that came to a small area that held a door guarded by a bored looking guy playing with his fingernails and a smaller staircase that was guarded by a guard that was as counting something off on his fingers, his mouth moving silently.

Irvine and Selphie shared a glance as they turned past the stairs and ended up in a large cargo bay where they could see the missiles being loaded. Two men were standing by the rails operating the devices that controlled the missile movement.

Selphie moved closer to them wondering if she could knock them out and take those controls. How bad would it be for the plan if she threw them over the rail and let them fall to their deaths, steal the controls, then take control herself?

“Huh?” One of the guys glanced over at her as she came in closer. “I'm busy now. Whaddaya want?”

“Uh...” Selphie dithered, uncertain what to say.

She was saved by the second guy who frowned as he lowered his controller.

“Oh, yeah. Aren't we suppos'ta inspect the circuit room today?”

“Ugh, is it that time of month already?” the first guy groaned. “We're kind of busy today, in case you haven't noticed. We don't have time to do that right now.”

“So you'd rather take the pay cut when they find out we didn't do it? You know the brass is always looking for a chance not to pay us. Even with a good excuse, they'll still nail us for not doing our jobs.”

The first guy groaned and Selphie wondered, not for the first time, how this army could continue to operate. It was a good thing joining was mandatory or no one would do so. She shared a look with Irvine and his grin told her that he was thinking the same thing, even if she couldn't see his eyes through their helmets.

The first maintenance guy sighed and looked at her. “Sorry to trouble you, but could you deliver a message for us? Tell the guys by the missile launcher to go on ahead with the inspection and that we'll catch up with'em later. Thanks a lot, we really appreciate it.”

“Thanks,” the other one said as well, throwing out his hand dismissively as they returned to their controls. They hadn't even given them a chance to say no.

Selphie shrugged and turned to go follow the order. Not because she had to but because she figured that it would get her further than openly defying it.

The missile control room was behind the door that was guarded by the guy picking his fingernails. He didn't even glance up as they passed by. He was either so fixated on his task or he just didn't care. It was hard to tell, honestly.

The man in charge in the missile control room was writing something down on the tablet he had tucked into his arm when Selphie entered. She stopped in front of him and saluted him in the Galbadian style – side of the hand to her forehead.

“Excuse me, sir,” she said, catching his attention. “I have a message for you.”

“Well? What it is?”

“It's from the maintenance team about inspecting the circuit room. They said they were too busy right now so that you should go on ahead with it and they would catch up.”

“Oh, okay,” the guy frowned, looking back at the missiles he was trying to load. “But I'm still not done here. They're not the only busy ones, you know. It's not like we can skip inspection though...Hm...Hey, could you tell them I can't go yet either? Thanks, I appreciate it.”

He waved her off and Selphie turned again. Was this what being in the Galbadian arm was like? Sent on pointless errands like this? Surely there was a grunt for this work. For all these people knew, she could be their S.O.

The maintenance guys were still working when Selphie got back. She saluted them and delivered her message that the other guy was too busy as well.

“Aw, geeze,” the first guy groaned. “Now what do we do?”

“Guess we have no choice but to go...” the second guy frowned.

The two of them stared off into the depths of the loading bay for a long moment. Selphie and the others shared a look as they thought it over. So were they going to go or not? Who was even running this military?!

“Ahhh,” the first soldier's head dropped back before looking over to them again. He seemed to consider something for a second. “Alright. Can we ask you three to go in our place?”

“What?!” The second guy jumped. “Hey, that's not cool! What if the base commander finds out?!”

“Oh, it'll be fine,” he waved away his concern. “Look, it's easy. A monkey could do it. Just make sure all the blinky green lights are green and all the non-blinky blue lights are blue. If you see any yellow or red...I don't know, hit it or something.”

“Dude!”

“Relax! When have we ever seen a yellow or red light?”

The other guy grumbled uncomfortably. But he didn't appear to want to actually abandon his current duties to do it either. “Well...I hope you're right...”

“Of course I am. So, that's that. We're counting on you.”

“Yes, sir!” Selphie saluted him, trying with a great deal of difficulty to hide her grin. She turned and stuck out her tongue to the others.

Blowing this place to smithereens! Whoo!

The circuit room was behind the weird guy. He was humming to himself as they made their way back to where he was standing. He was even rocking back and forth in place. Selphie couldn't help but wonder how old he was. He either had to be too young for this army or too old. Honestly, neither one was a good thing.

She saluted him all the same as she came in close. “The maintenance team asked us to take their place with the inspection.”

“Oh, really?” The other guy grinned. “Sweet. Then I guess my shift is over. I'm gonna call in my relief. You can go on ahead with the inspection.”

Then he just left! Left three unknown, unqualified people in charge of inspecting what was quite literally the power station of this entire place.

Selphie was giggling to herself, trying to bring to mind Quistis's advice about not questioning the folly of her enemies as they stepped inside.

She put her hands to her hips as the three of them looked around. The power core was humming behind a pane of glass to their right. There was a large control panel directly in front of them filled with blinky green and non-blinky blue lights.

Irvine walked over to the glass and tapped it experimentally. “Bulletproof,” he reported. “Can't break through to the power core from here.”

“Then let's tamper with it from there,” Quistis pointed to the control panel.

Selphie stepped up to the console and touched it. It flickered to life and waited for a command prompt from her. She dithered before just typing some random stuff. She didn't really know from computers, so she didn't really expect much. But she expected something.

The menu changed, but nothing really happened.

“Um,” she frowned at it. “Oh, whatever. I'm just going to break it!”

She reached into the back of her uniform and pulled out the Morning Star she had hidden along her back. She twisted it around and started smashing it against the panel.

“Destroy everything!” She yelled like a battle cry.

Quistis stepped back quickly, covering her face to protect it form flying debris as Irvine hooted and hollered. He started egging her on eagerly.

“Really?” Quistis looked at him dryly.

“What?” He laughed, shrugging. “It's not like it's our stuff. Hit that thing right there, Selphie! I bet it makes really pretty sparks!”

Giggling maniacally, Selphie did so. And it did in fact make really pretty sparks. Sparks that fizzled out over the entire console and through to the power core. The humming faded away with the lights as the power core was overloaded.

“Huh?” Selphie's voice came through the darkness.” Hey! All the lights went out!” She sounded surprised that her abuse of the system had resulted in a meltdown.

“ _Electrical system malfunction. Maintenance Team: investigate immediately._ ”

“I think that's our cue to get the hell out,” Irvine said as the backup generators kicked on. The room was flooded with low energy red light as the machines came back to life with some deep, low humming.

“It would look really bad if they found us here,” Quistis agreed.

“Alright,” Selphie giggled, putting away her weapon. “Next!”

The three of them left just as the real duo from the maintenance team was running over.

“Hey, you!” The one in front yelled. “What the hell is going on?!”

“Ah, crud,” Selphie bit her lip.

Let's see...Fight...Lie...Fight...Lie.......Fight...

“We just got here!” Selphie said, holding up hands like she was innocent. “We have _absolutely_ no idea what's going on!”

“Bite your tongue!” The first guy snapped at her. Who still used that phrase? “We just saw you come outta there!”

“Uh...” Selphie dithered. “Okay, we took a peek inside. But there were so many yellow and red lights! I tried to hit it, but everything just went insane! There's no way we can fix it.”

“Alright then,” the first guy nodded like that was an acceptable answer. “Let us take care of it!”

The two guys ran into the room and Selphie rolled her eyes. “This army sucks.”

Irvine laughed as Selphie started back in through the door.

“What's with this mess?!” One of the guys was yelling.

“H-Hey! W-What are you doing?!” the other guy asked nervously as Quistis locked the door.

It barely took a few seconds. Selphie and the others were coming back out, Selphie was trying to get the blood off her hands and Quistis was stretching.

“Alright,” Selphie laughed. “Let's kept movin'! We've got a lot more destruction to sow!”

Irvine laughed nervously. Selphie could really get outta control sometimes. He didn't want to think what would happen if she turned that anger on _him_. He should probably be a lot more careful if he was going to keep chasing after her like this.

“Now what?” He asked.

“Well, with those two gone, we can take their controls in the loading bay,” Selphie said. “Let's go see what kind of trouble we can make there.”

They didn't make it that far. As they were coming down off of the 'S' shaped catwalk, the guy in control of the missile room was stepping outside and caught side of them and the man standing guard on their door.

“Hey, could you four lend us a hand? The power's down and we need some help.”

“Uh,” the nail inspector groaned at the prospect of work. “I guess so...”

“Come on,” the missile controller gestured them forward.

Selphie and the others followed him inside where the controller was overlooking a team of guys that was trying to push one of the large missile launchers into place. The controller frowned at them as they approached.

“Hey, you know, I haven't seen you three around here before.”

“Uh...” Selphie thought quickly. “We just got transferred? From the D-District Prison. Honestly, I like it better here. A lot less sand.”

The controller grinned. “Ain't that the truth. Well, we need some help in here. I guess it doesn't really matter who at this point. Do you think you could lend us a hand?”

Crud. Run? Fight? More lies?

There was probably still more stuff to break.

“Yes, sir,” Selphie smiled.

“This way. Follow me. Un-freakin'-believable. A power failure at a crucial time like this. What the heck are those maintenance guys doing?”

Currently? Well, one was shoved under a control panel leaking blood everywhere and the other one had been hog tied with wires, knocked out, and hidden in the ceiling.

“That one right there,” the controller pointed to the missile silo currently being shoved against by two guys who were making absolutely no progress. “Alright, one of you get between the two of them, the other two on either side. I want this done already.”

Selphie put herself in the center and the five of them spent the next few minutes grunting and groaning against the weight of the silo as they shoved it into place. To be quite honest, Selphie wasn't really trying all that hard. She honestly hoped at one point that the guy would just give up and call it off so they wouldn't have to load the missile.

No such luck. They eventually wedged it in place and the three of them stepped back as the other Galbadian soldiers dropped, winded and sore from that alone.

“Good work,” the controller nodded as the silo dropped into place through the floor. “All we need now is to confirm the coordinates on the control panel.”

He hesitated as he looked at the other soldiers, trying in vein to catch their breath. Seriously? That thing wasn't that heavy, Selphie frowned at them.

“The program should already be ready to go. You three get on it,” the controller said, pointing over his shoulder.”

The control panel?! Alright! Now they were talking.

Trying not to giggle too evilly or loudly, Selphie led the others out to the control panel. It came alive at a touch and welcomed them to the program.

“So, what should we do?” Quistis asked as it loaded.

“So, like, let's just bust it up,” Irvine said like it was obvious.

Yeah! Bust it up real good! Selphie was already grinning as she reached for her weapon again. But she frowned as she had a new thought.

“It'll be a mega bummer if we launch the missiles by mistake,” she said unhappily. “Even worse if they go off target and hit an innocent town of civilians. So, let's just hold back a little this time and mess around with it a bit.”

Quistis and Irvine shared a surprised look as Selphie started playing with the controls.

The first thing she went to was the screen to change the target. Which, unfortunately, was locked to all but superior officers. Selphie frowned but she hadn't really been expecting that they would be allowed to make that kind of change.

However, they could change the error ratio. In return for a less energetic launch, they could make it so the missiles weren't quite so on target.

Grinning, Selphie started messing around with that screen until she had set the error ratio for as high as she could make it. With any luck, if they couldn't stop the launch, then the missiles might just harmlessly hit away from the garden.

She looked around a little more to see if she could change anything else, but everything was either locked or simply informational. She uploaded the specs on the new error ratio and stepped back with a grin of satisfaction.

“Alright then,” she nodded as the program closed out. “I think we've done all we can here. Come on, let's see if we can't sneak past that guy next.”

The guard who had been counting on his fingers earlier was back to being stoic and unmoving as they approached him.

“Uh, sorry. This place is off-limits. You're not allowed up here,” he said, his nasally voice bored.

“But we've come to report on the missile coordinate data,” Selphie said innocently. Yeah, that sounded legit.

“Oh, very well.” The guy grinned and pointed over his shoulder. “Go right ahead.”

He stood by so they could pass. What was with everyone in this army being so brainless? They were so used to being told not to question their superiors that they stopped questioning everyone. Not for the first time, Selphie was so glad she had opted to join SeeD.

The guy frowned at Selphie's back. Did they always have someone that puny in their base?

As the three of them climbed up to the control deck, they could hear the S.O. and his aids calling out to each other.

“All systems go, sir!”

“Everything is all set, sir!”

“Phew. We had some minor setbacks, but let's proceed. We're running behind schedule, but better late then never. Prepare for the final launch phase.”

“Roger!”

“Roger!”

“Attention: This is the control room. We are now entering the final phase of the missile launch. Take your designated positions and prepare for lift off.”

Selphie reached the top of the stairs and the S.O. looked over to her and frowned.

“Huh? What are you doing in here?”

“We've come to report on the missile coordinates!” she said, saluting him. She didn't think about it and she reflexively gave him the SeeD solute instead of the Galbadian one.

“Oh...” The man frowned as he watched her lower her arm. “Wait! Don't move! I thought you looked suspicious. You're the intruders! The ones behind the circuit room malfunction! No use hiding it now! That salute you just did was completely wrong!”

Yikes! Selphie frowned at herself. Well, whatever. They had made it this far. She grinned at the others before reaching into her back pocket.

“What are you-ARGH!”

The flash bang grenade that Selphie threw released a blinding light. While the Galbadian soldiers were stumbling backwards from the shock, the three of them were throwing off their borrowed uniforms and releasing their much more comfortable and familiar clothes.

“Ta-dah!” Selphie yelled happily despite the fact that the soldiers couldn't see. “Hoo! Finally! This military uniform is itchy. And it stinks!” She shivered and she finally satisfied the urge to scratch at her bare arms and legs. Quistis and Irvine, who both wore clothes from head to toe, didn't look all that bothered by it.

“Bring it _on_!” The S.O. yelled as he tried to focus on them through bleached eyes. “How dare you interfere with out plans!”

“Up yours!” Selphie laughed pulling out her Morning Star. “We're gonna screw up this crappy plan of yours all to hell!”

“Get them!” The S.O. hollered.

His aides ran forward at the same time. Laughing, Selphie leap frogged over one of them and charged for the leader. Quistis and Irvine stepped up to deal with the two of them.

“Booyaka!” Selphie yelled loudly as she swung her Morning Star around.

The mace slammed against the gun on the S.O.'s hand, shattering the firing mechanism.

“Booyaka?” Irvine repeated, confused, as he grappled for his gun with the Galbadian soldier. “What in the name of Hyne is 'booyaka'?”

“It's a thing I'm trying to start,” Selphie laughed, ducking under a swing from the S.O. She kicked out and slammed her heel against his side, sending him reeling. “It's like an exclamation. You know, like 'hi-ya'. Only cooler.”

“Selphie, you can't just decide to start a 'thing',” Quistis told her, jerking the soldier she had captured around the neck with her whip down to the floor.

“Well, I totally did, so-o-o...in your face.” She twirled her nunchaku around and slammed the mace end of one half into the S.O.'s face.

Irvine jerked his soldier forward and headbutted his metal helmet. Reeling, both men stepped away from each other. Irvine, having trouble focusing, lifted his shotgun again and blasted it. Even dazed, his aim was perfect. The soldier flew backward from the force.

“Okay, note: do not do that again,” he said, shaking his head.

“Are you mocking us?” The gagging soldier asked.

“Are they from garden?” The S.O. asked through a bleeding nose and mouth. “How can they already know of our plan?”

“We're just that good,” Selphie grinned. She twisted her nunchaku out and hit him against the left temple. His body flew to the side and collapsed against the floor.

Quistis jerked her whip up and slammed her captured soldier's body against the ceiling. Then jerked him down. Then to the wall. She smacked him against the floor one last time before jerked his whip back. His body bounced in place then stopped moving.

“Okay then,” Selphie dusted off her hands before putting her fists to her waist and looking around the area. “We should be able to stop the missile launch from here.”

“One of these control panels should be the launch control mechanism,” Quistis agreed.

“Let's just split up and start lookin',” Irvine said.

The three of them split up to the nearest panels. Quistis went left, Irvine went right, and Selphie stepped forward to one of the smaller control panels.

She frowned as she looked around. She couldn't find any missile control systems, only mundane things like temperature and moisture control. It was a panel for controlling banal things needed for the day to day running of the compound.

“This isn't it,” Selphie frowned. She moved over to where Irvine was biting his tongue as he tried to navigate through his panel.

“Oh, yeah, this is it!” he said, pelvic thrusting a bit in victory. Then he frowned as Selphie looked at the screen. “Oh, wait. No this isn't it.”

Selphie rolled her eyes, shaking her head.

“I found it!” Quistis said, calling them over.

Selphie and Irvine stepped over as Quistis quickly and effortlessly moved through the menus on the far control panel.

“There. Done. The launch is canceled.”

“Whoo-hoo!” Selphie yelled, celebrating. “All we need to find now is self-destruct mechanism! It's not in here though. Let's check through that door.”

There was a small exit in the control room into a smaller, more intimate control room. There was a single control panel here that Selphie stepped forward to use. It took her a little longer to find the emergency self destruct program.

“Hey! This is it!” she laughed. “Okay, let's see...hm...Huh? We have to set a time? Uh, okay. It's got a ten minute minimum. Is that enough for us to escape?”

“That should be enough,” Quistis nodded once.

Selphie set the time and had to go through like three 'are you sure' screens.

Then, finally-

“ _Self-destruct mechanism: Activated. 10 minutes until self destruction. All staff must evacuate the base immediately. I repeat..._ ”

“Whoo-hoo!” Selphie laughed. “Let's hurry on outta here!"

There was an emergency exit door right in the smaller control room. It opened up easily as Selphie started to pass it. And she found herself looking out into the entry room that they had used the stolen ID card to break into.

***

The guard that Quistis had tossed around like a toy lifted his head off of the floor. He was bleeding from the ears and he felt like one of his lungs had been punctured. He as going to die, he was more than sure of it.

But he wasn't going to go alone...

Grunting in pain, he crawled painful over to the launch control panel.

“It's not over yet,” he laughed, reaching for the controls.

***

A loud rumbling rocked the compound as Selphie reached for the door leading outside.

“What was that noise?” She asked, looking around.

Quistis shrugged. They exited quickly.

Outside, everything was pandemonium. Men were scrambling to get into the few vehicles that were available. The one that Selphie had stolen was already gone. Those who weren't lucky enough to fit into a ride were just sprinting towards the open gate. The guard that had been manning had long since disappeared from his post.

“Guess we gotta walk,” Irvine shrugged at the lack of vehicles.

“A little walking never hurt anyone,” Selphie said, running for the gate. She would rather be as far as possible from this place when it went up, be it by walking or riding.

The loud groaning of metal pulled her attention over her shoulder. Selphie's eyes went wide at the sight of the canons aimed their way.

“DUCK!”

Automatically, all three of them hit the ground. Blasts of canon fire exploded over their heads and hit the guard booth outside of the compound. The mechanisms destroyed, the enormous metal gates that enclosed the compound slid shut.

Selphie gasped as she lifted herself up.

She and the others turned to see a captain and his two lieutenants looking at them. The blue clad lieutenants were climbing into a large mech with six electrical generators pointing directly up and large canons mounted on the front.

“There's no way I'm letting you all live!” The captain yelled as he backed up into the machine himself, pointing his arm gun at them. “It would be inexcusable to sorceress Edea! I don't want to suffer her wrath! Are you men ready?!”

“Yes, sir!”

“Yes, sir!”

Came the twin calls as Selphie and the others got back to their feet. Their hands were already going to their weapons as they looked over the large mech.

“Alright!” The captain grinned from the hatch of the mech. “Let's go.”

The door slammed shut and the machine suddenly charged.

Selphie cried out and dropped to the ground as Quistis and Irvine leapt to either side. She was just small enough to fit in the small space between the mech and the ground it hovered above. She could feel its machinery tugging at her hair and clothes as it passed by.

The loud scrapping of metal on metal echoed loudly as it slammed into the metal gates. Selphie pushed herself back up quickly, frowning at the thing.

“What is it with this army and giant mechs?!” She asked no one as she jerked her Morning Star out of her boots and faced it.

“They spend money on the most useless of things,” Quistis agreed. “Please, allow me.”

“What? You want to fight it alone?” Irvine said, his eyebrows going up.

“Don't be silly,” Quistis laughed. “I just thought I'd make it a bit easier for us. Quetzalcoatl, my dear friend. Are you ready to come out to play.”

The delightful singing that was an almost constant in the back of her head raised in excitement making her smile. Her GF was such a friendly little thing.  
“FIRE!” The captain's voice yelled from an intercom system within.

“Blizzard!” Irvine threw out a spell, erecting a shield in front of Quistis. A hail of bullets struck against the ice spell, shattering it around their feet.

Quistis was very familiar with Quetzalcoatl though. She barely needed time to summon him.

She blinked and her eyes flashed between bright white-yellow and blue-white. Electricity sparked from her fingertips as channeled the spell through the body of her whip.

The divine power of the primal forces. The energy that human ingenuity has always tried to emulate but could never be matched. Called forth from the heavens in the ultimate display of blinding beauty and breathtaking destructing.

All of the hairs on their bodies stood on end as the current traveled through their nerves. Quistis released the built up energy in a single, devastating move.

“Thunder Storm!”

Quetzalcoatl was a dazzling, bird-like being that erupted from the ground like the thunder that he commanded. Only Quistis was blessed to be able to see him. Bear witness to the way the lovely creature drew in sparking energies from the earth below.

Then discharged it in a lethal blast against the mech.

The massive amount of energy that exploded through the generators of the mech completely decimated the circuitry. Two of the large generators on top of the body, unable to handle the incredible load, exploded and the men inside cried out.

“Captain!” One of the called as Quetzalcoatl faded back into Quistis's mind.

“Let's just get outta here!” The other begged.

“We can't let them seize this MRV!” The captain denied them.

“Why would we even want to?” Selphie snickered. “You guys are the only ones that have an obsession with enormous mechs.”

She laughed and back flipped away neatly from the gunfire that started up towards her.

Irvine stepped forward and blasted out a round of demo ammo directly at the muzzle of their mini-canon. It exploded in their face and he grinned. He took another shot, but the demo ammo couldn't break through the metal chassis.

“Water!” Selphie threw her spell towards the top of the mech where there were open spaces due to the exploded generators.

The water from the spell dripped down and started destroying the wires and circuits. That set off another, internal wave of electricity that burned it's way through the mech's systems.

“That hull is tough,” Irvine frowned. “Can we only use magic against it?”

“Actually, we only need to force the people out,” Quistis pointed out. “Thunder!”

“Any ideas?” Selphie asked. “Water!”

“Well, no rush, but we've only got...um, I'd say less than five minutes left.”

“So, wouldn't that, by definition, be a rush?” Selphie frowned.

“Thunder Storm!” For the second time in as many minutes, Quistis called forth the power of her GF and the second attack was even more devastating than the first.

Two more of the generators exploded and a fire started near the engine as black smoke started billowing out. The men inside were yelling in a panic as alarms went off.

“I-I can't control it!”

“What?!”

Selphie giggled as a mixture of fire and smoke worked together to force the three men out of the safety of the near impenetrable hull of the mech.

“Hey, boys,” Selphie grinned at the two lieutenants who were the first two escape.

A ear piercing, shrill scream came from the mouth of the captain as he escaped the MRV, literally on fire and flailing in an attempt to put himself out.

“HOT! HOT! HOT!” He cried as he beat the fire into submission. “That piece of crap!”

Then he looked forward at the grinning SeeDs. Quistis tilted her head as Selphie waved.

“What now, captain?” One lieutenant asked.

It needs repairs, sir!” The other added.

“We kill'em first!” The captain growled, aiming his gun.

“Not gonna lie,” Irvine grinned as he cocked his shotgun, “you woulda had better luck inside the burning mech.”

The lieutenants looked uncomfortable as the captain grimaced.

The fight was too easy. Irvine brought down the captain with a single demo ammo shot and Quistis used her whip to throw one lieutenant against the other. Selphie hadn't even needed to make a move against them.

“Let's go!” She yelled at the others, putting away her nunchaku.

She ran around to the side of the MRV, then back around to the other side. But it was completely blocking the gates. Gates that were too high to climb.

“We gotta stop the detonation!” Irvine said when it became obvious they couldn't get out.

But, as they ran back, they discovered, to their horror, that the door leading in the facility had auto locked from the outside in an effort to prevent those who might not know about the self destruction from entering into the dangerous area.

“What?” Selphie stepped back and ran across the parking lot, looking around.

There was a high wall surrounding them on all sides. And a fence separating them from the launch platforms. There was no where to go.

She slowed down to a halt as the implications of that hit her.

They were...locked in...

The groaning of the launchers beyond the tall chain link fence caught her eye. Selphie collapsed down to her knees as the missiles launched from the doomed facility. They could do nothing more but watch the smoke trail left behind as they raced into the sky.

Squall would take care of the rest, right? Selphie could count on him to protect the garden...Right...?

“It came quite quietly,” Quistis said from behind her, her voice soft and sad. “I thought the end would have been more dramatic...”

“Squall...he didn't trust me,” Irvine sighed. “That's probably why he put me in this team. He didn't care if I was lost...”

What were they talking about, Selphie frowned as her head hung low. Squall would have chosen them because he believed in them. Because he was confident they were the right ones to get the job done. That's what he had thought when he made up this team.

She was more devastated because she had failed despite that trust.

“Hey, guys,” Irvine called out, his voice thick with emotion. “Um, there's something I really need to tell you before...I just can't go without you knowing the truth-”

Selphie screamed as the first explosions threw her forward against the ground. The bite of concrete against her cheek made her grimace. The second explosion rocked the MRV and sent a couple of it's parts falling to the ground.

Selphie's heart was racing to the point of breaking as she looked up.

The fifth explosion was the largest, the result of the power core discharging all of its stored energy and hitting the remaining missiles in storage.

A large bloom of black smoke blocked out the sky as the facility was destroyed.


	20. Balamb Garden Battle

So, as it turned out, train stations were not at all happy to receive unscheduled, hijacked trains. No matter that Squall was able to prove he was a SeeD and it was an emergency and they could therefore contact the garden later to deal with the backlash for it being in the station. Rinoa had been a bit embarrassed, but at least they were able to move on quickly.

They ran through the town quickly, stopping only once.

“Hey, Squall!” The guy from the junk shop called out to him as he was passing by. “That thing you ordered before you left? I had it delivered to your dorm, 'kay?”

“Thank you!” Squall called back to him as he continued moving. The other man found it a little rude, but he had never seen a SeeD running like that without good reason.

Because it was faster, Squall rented them a car. Then he sped quickly down the road separating Balamb from its Garden. He frowned as he did so because the SeeDs that normally guarded the street were missing for some reason.

That couldn't be good...

Had the missiles already landed?

He parked the car in front of the garden because he couldn't get in closer. The garden was still standing, but someone had blockaded the car entrance.

“What's with that?” Zell frowned as they stepped out of the vehicle.

“Let's go,” Squall said, moving them forward.

There was no missile damage at all as they stepped in closer to the open gates.

“Alright!” Zell cried out. “The garden's safe!”

“It looked like they did it,” Rinoa smiled at Squall.

Yeah, he nodded then paused.

But...

“The missiles could still be heading this way,” he said, his honest realism setting in. “We have to report to the headmaster right away. Come on.”

Rinoa had only been here once. At night. During a formal event. The kind of thing that a place tended to clean itself up for so it looked good for guests. She only had that single night and Selphie's promise that it was a much different place from Galbadia Garden to know what to expect.

Still...

“Um, is this normal?” Rinoa asked as the three of them walked down the entrance street.

It looked like someone had kicked an ant hill. Students and faculty were running around everywhere with a sense of panic and tense anger. They were being overseen by angry looking garden clones that were yelling out over them.

The one closest to the entrance could be heard clearer than any.

“Find the headmaster!” He was ordering the students. Students that were almost exclusively cadets, Squall couldn't see a single SeeD among their number.

What as going on? Where they evacuating? Did they somehow learn of the missile attack before their arrival?

“Seize him!” The clone snarled angrily. “Kill him him you have to! GO!”

What?!

Squall and Zell shared a worried look. Rinoa was frowning because she knew that this was in no way normal. What was going on?

Squall was looking around at the chaos as they ran further into the garden. There were so many students – not a single SeeD – running around. They were all calling out to each other loudly, searching for headmaster Cid.

Okay, there literally could not be a worse time for this!

The three of them started closing in on the front gates. There, as though waiting for them, there was another clone standing around, barking orders at the scurrying cadets. They tried to run past him, but no such luck. Their attire, not in uniform, attracted the attention of the garden clone. He caught sight of them and charged. Squall frowned as the man came in closer, seething from under his hat.

“You three!” He snapped. “What side are you on?”

Squall frowned. What did that mean?

“Answer the question!” He ordered, spittle flying. Or maybe it was lubricant from his robot parts, honestly Squall thought both were likely. “Are you with the Garden Master, or are you with Cid?!”

“I don't understand what you're talking about,” Squall said honestly, calmly.

“Do you swear your allegiance to Garden Master NORG?”

Did he swear his what to who?

No. Just no. He wasn't swearing anything to anyone he didn't know. And he had so many more important things to worry about right now.

“Can you tell me what's going on?” He asked instead of answering, just trying to get a sense of what he was walking into.

“I'm the one asking questions! You're just supposed to follow orders.”

Well, yeah. But not from him. Squall was supposed to obey his clients, his senior SeeDs, and Headmaster Cid. This guy was basically just a clerk. Squall wasn't obligated to obey him. Especially not when it came to swearing fealty to people he didn't know.

He gave the clone a cold, dry look, one hand going to his gunblade hilt as he glared at him, resenting the implications of his outburst. He wouldn't draw the blade, of course. But it was comforting to hold in a way.

“Hey! What kind of attitude is that?!” The clone hissed. “You're with Cid, aren't you?!”

Honestly, if he was a representative of the other side, then yes. So much yes.

The clone brought his fingers to his fingers to his lips and let out an ear piercing whistle. Squall frowned because he recognized that call from when he and the other trainees would be in the monster's lair and there would be no monsters around to fight.

Movement from the bushes to the side alerted him that something was coming a moment before the caterchipillar came slithering quickly out. The slow moving grat following just after him, weaving its tentacles in the air, scenting their presence.

“NORG is the true ruler of the garden!” The clone yelled at them before escaping. He might be able to summon the monsters, but that didn't mean he controlled them.

“Great,” Squall sighed.

“What's up with that!?” Zell shook his head in disbelief.

“We'll worry about it later. Zell, take out the caterchipillar!”

“On it!”

“Rinoa, see those tentacles on the grat?”

“Yeah.”

“Use the Valkyrie and cut through them.”

“'Kay,” she nodded her head once, stepping forward.

She unfolded her blade from the blaster and frowned at the state of the metal. It would still work, but she didn't like using a damaged weapon. She had no way of knowing when it might truly break. Well, it wasn't like she had a choice right now, and the edge was still sharp.

She lifted it and fired. Her aim was perfect, slicing through the grat's flailing tentacles. It hissed as the remnants of the appendages crashed down.

“Now aim for the roots,” Squall instructed, pointing. He had no doubts that she could handle this. The grats were the first monster that trainees learned to kill.

She took aim a second time. The Valkyrie cut through the the tops of it's 'legs' easily and the monster collapsed over. The gastric juices in its bell shaped body spilled all over the ground, dissolving the outside of its own body that was unprotected against the harsh acid.

“Perfect,” Squall nodded. Rinoa flushed in delight at the compliment.

“Yee-HAW!” Zell cried out, catching their attention.

They looked over to see him riding the bucking caterchipillar, one hand waving in the air as the other grasped the top of its head.

“Zell!” Squall snapped, mildly annoyed. “Stop fooling around. We've got to find the headmaster!”

“Right!” Fire encased his upheld fist and he brought it down. It broke through the caterchipillar's head and the rancid smell of its burning bug guts filled the air. It crashed down, dead, and Zell jumped up with a victory smile.

Squall didn't give him a chance to celebrate further. He was already running towards the gates, Rinoa hot on his tail.

“Hey, wait up!” Zell chased after them.

Past the gates and into the garden nexus, things were even more chaotic. It seemed that the bulk of the cadets were in here, all running around. It also looked like someone had managed to break open the doors of the training center and release the monsters into the garden proper.

And, standing in front of the directory, Fujin and Raijin were frowning at the mess.

“Hey!” Raijin spotted them first and turned, pointing. Fujin turned as well and frowned at them. “You guys are back!”

“What's going on here?” Squall asked, hoping Raijin would be more cooperative than the clone.

“I dunno,” Raijin shrugged, looking just as confused as Squall felt. “Me and Fuu just got back from Galbadia this morning. At first, the faculty was sayin' somethin' 'bout roundin' up the SeeDs, ya know? Now, everyone's either sidin' with the Garden Master or the headmaster. Fightin' everywhere, ya know?”

“DISTURBING,” Fujin declared with calm, seething anger.

“Disappointin' for the disciplinary committee,” Raijin agreed sadly. “All our hard work keepin' peace around here for nothin', ya know?”

“Why are SeeDs being targeted?” Squall asked, frowning. “And where is the headmaster? Is he safe?”

“We got no clue,” Raijin shrugged.

“We need to see him right away. It's important. Galbadian missiles may be heading this way right now!”

“WHAT?!” Raijin dropped back in surprise. He turned to Fujin in a panic. “We gotta get outta here!”

Fujin was ruthless when she kicked him in the shin. Raijin cried out, jumping in place.

“Ouch! Geez, alright!” He groaned, rubbing the abused area. He turned to Squall, nodding once. “We'll warn everyone about the missiles! Man, this is no time to be fightin', ya know?!”

Squall nodded. “Then we'll go look for the headmaster.”

“CAUTION!”

“Yeah,” Raijin agreed. “The fightin' is intense everywhere! And watch out for those Garden Master goons, ya know. They're callin' the monsters on everyone that don't obey. Really just tryin' to intimidate everyone into followin' them, ya know?”

“Yo, guys,” Zell jerked his chin up at them. “Who you with?”

“Headmaster or Garden Master?” Rinoa finished.

Raijin laughed at the choices. “Hey, jus' like Fujin always says, ya know? We're with Seifer. Always have been, always will be.”

Squall and Rinoa frowned at them as they ran off to hold up their end of the deal. She didn't know if she should tell them what he had done. Squall was wondering if they knew he had aligned himself with an evil sorceress. Would they be alright with that?

“Come on,” Squall said, jerking his head to the left. “We'll start with Dr. Kadowaki. If anyone is likely to know where he is, it's her!”

Zell nodded and Rinoa fell into step beside him as he ran that way. They had to duck and dodge through various cadets and monsters along the way. With Raijin's warning, it was easy to see how a great many of the cadets weren't just running, they were running scared. They were afraid of the monsters that the clones kept calling.

Of course no SeeD would be scared of that. Which explained why not a single SeeD had agreed to side with the Garden Master.

They turned down the hall to the infirmary. But they found their way blocked by a garden clone who was flanked by two cadets. As they neared and slowed to a walk, they heard the clone chuckle darkly, facing towards the infirmary door.

“Looks like Cid has some decent pawns.”

Two SeeDs, both in full uniform, stepped forward, facing him with set jaws. One of them wielded a saber, the other a pair of nunchaku. They weren't afraid to face the oncoming trio.

The clone growled in frustration. “This is getting nowhere. I'm calling in the monsters!”

The cadets shrunk back, suddenly scared. They knew that the monsters might very well turn on them instead.

“Let's get in there!” Squall said, pulling out his gunblade.

His call caught the attention of the clone and the cadets. The threat of the monster had made the cadets jerk back. The sight of Squall made them cry outright in fear.

“Squall!” One of the SeeDs yelled, a smile forming.

“More SeeDs here?!” The clone growled.

He lifted his fingers to his lips and let out a long whistle. The quick fluttering of large insect wings alerted Squall about what kind of monster he had summoned. Laughing, the clone ran away, leaving the cadets behind to cower backwards away from the sound of the approaching monster.

“What's that?” Zell frowned, not recognizing the sound of its flight.

“It's a granaldo,” Squall said just before the thing landed just outside of the hallway in the small courtyard spaces that surrounded the halls. Buzzing, it glared at them.

“Ew,” Rinoa frowned at it. “I hate wasps.”

“Do me a favor then, and shred its wings,” Squall said as it crawled towards the hall.

“You got it!” The Valkyrie flew fast and true and sliced through not one, but both of the wings. The surprisingly heavy appendages crashed down to the dirt and the granaldo roared in fury.

Its front limb, sharp as a spear, shot out. Rinoa jumped out of the way. The cadet beside her did not. He caught the full force of it in the shoulder. Screaming in pain, he was dropped down.

One of the SeeDs jumped forward and sliced through the limb. The cadet sank down against the wall, reaching for his shoulder where the bug arm remained.

Zell's eyes burned as he reached for his GF. “Hellfire!”

The blazing attack fell down against the bug and burned it up easily. Squall was grateful that Rinoa and Zell were willing to step up and do so much fighting. Despite his brief nap – in Rinoa's very comfortable lap – he was still injured and exhausted.

As the carcass of the granaldo hit the ground, Dr. Kadowaki herself stepped out of the infirmary. Drawn by the pained cries of the downed cadet, she walked past her guardian SeeDs as they put their weapons away and kneeled down at his side. She frowned at the damage.

“Oh, my...Can you stand up?”

The cadet, grimacing in pain, stared at her in confusion. “Why are you helping me? I'm with the Garden Master...”

Dr. Kadowaki tsked through her teeth. “Do stop being ridiculous. I don't care whose side you're on. You're injured and I'm a doctor. It's as simple as that. We need to take care of those wounds now, you hear.”

As she stood up, she caught sight of Squall sliding his gunblade painfully back in the sheath. She had been watching him too long to not recognize when he was injured. She frowned at him as well because, even just at a glance, she could tell something was really wrong.

“Squall, don't just stand there,” she told him, looking at the cadet. “Give me a hand. Zell, you too.”

“Yes, ma'am,” Zell grinned as the two of them stepped forward.

Working together, with Rinoa stepping forward to hold open the door, Squall and Zell half carried the cadet into the infirmary. They laid him down in the first bed and stepped back. Dr. Kadowaki looked him over for a second before moving closer to Squall.

“What's with all this faction mumbo jumbo? It's just ridiculous.”

“Dr. Kadowaki-” Squall started.

She cut him off neatly as she walked over to her desk. “And you? Are you out of cure spells or something, Squall? Haven't I told you to always keep those in stock?”

“Well, yes, but you said yourself that cure spells can't fix broken bones,” Squall frowned. At this point he was almost out anyway. They were pretty much just weak painkillers.

“Oh, dear.” Dr. Kadowaki sighed as she reached into the top drawer. She pulled four capsules out. “I don't know what I'm going to do with you, boy. You're right, of course. Come here. I'll use one of my curaga spells on you.”

Unspeakably grateful, Squall followed her into the next room.

As Dr. Kadowaki inspected the damage and clicked her tongue over it, Rinoa was standing beside Zell and looking around curiously.

“She seems nice,” she said smiling.

“Oh, yeah. The doc's the best,” Zell nodded.

“So what was up with that reaction back there?” Rinoa jerked her head to the entrance.

“Reaction?” Zell frowned, not understanding.

“To Squall. The others seemed to know him really well.”

“Oh, yeah. Obviously. That stupid cadet was right to be scared of him. If Squall had fought him, even injured, he wouldn't have stood a chance. Everyone knows how good Squall is around here.”

“So he's...popular?” Rinoa asked, shifting on her feet.

“Um, I wouldn't say _popular_ so much. More like he's famous. Everyone knows how good Squall is. I bet he coulda made SeeD at 15 if he hadn't picked up his gunblade. And even then, man is he great. Did you know, he's the only gunblade specialist SeeD?”

“Really?” Rinoa's face brightened. Why did that make her feel so proud?

“Absolutely. He's the next level. And he's dedicated. And helpful. They say that just being in the same class as him can make your grades go up. He's always willing to help people learn and study if they need it. Apparently, all you have to do is ask.”

“Yeah, I bet,” Rinoa smiled, thinking about her own situation.

“In fact,” Zell continued. “There's this legend of this girl. They say she was the worst in her class until she asked Squall to teach her how to study. They say he spent two weeks helping her hone her study technique and now she's the top student in the medic program.”

“What? No way!”

“Zell, stop exaggerating,” Squall frowned at him as he and Dr. Kadowaki walked back in. He wasn't nearly so stiff anymore. He was still tired, but he finally wasn't in any pain. Honestly, that was more than enough for him. He rubbed his no longer pained wrists gratefully as he stepped back towards them.

“Aw,” Rinoa looked a bit downcast. “You mean it isn't true?”

“Of course it's not true. I only helped her for one week, not two. And she's top ten percent, not the top. And I would appreciate it if people would stop spreading rumors of my life.”

Rinoa couldn't help it, she started laughing.

“Squall's so modest,” Dr. Kadowaki grinned as she picked up the other three capsules she had pulled from her desk. The fourth, the one that had contained a single curaga spell, she put back with the other empty capsules. “Here, dears.”

“What is it?” Squall asked, taking one from her. Rinoa and Zell followed suit.

“Those are cura spells. I should have known better than to think that you would be able to keep yourself out of trouble, boy. You just can't resist, can you?”

“I can't run away,” Squall said immediately making her grin.

“Tough guy, huh? I think I'd be disappointed if you had said otherwise. Take those with my blessings. You're going to need them around here.”

“Dr. Kadowaki, do you know where the headmaster is?” Squall asked, breaking the capsule open and letting Shiva take the magic eagerly.

“You're looking for Cid?” She blinked. “Well, as you can see, he's not here.”

“Do you have any ideas?”

The doctor put her hand to her chin as she thought. “Hmm...Xu would probably know. She's been coordinating the SeeDs around here since everything started. I have no idea where she might be though. She's not the kind to stay in one place long. Why are you looking for him anyway? I think you can put off giving him a report from your first mission considering everything.”

“No, that's not it,” Squall leaned over her desk as she took a seat. “Listen to me. Galbadia might have launched missiles against the garden. We've already taken steps to try to stop them, but we have no way of knowing if they worked. You should evacuate immediately, Dr. Kadowaki.”

“Are you serious?!” The older woman jumped up, surprised. Then she nodded once, accepting what he said as truth and sat right back down. “Then I'm definitely gonna have to stay.”

“Wha-! But-”

“Listen here, boy, no one moves me when I don't want to go. And if someone gets hurt, who's gonna look after them?”

“And if you die in from the missile attack?” He returned dryly.

“Don't sass me, child!” She pointed at him making him step off. “I'm staying and that's all there is to it. Now you get going and look for Cid. Those boys out there are watching over me. I'll be fine.”

Squall sighed but nodded, accepting her decision.

Dr. Kadowaki was going over to look at the injured cadet as they left the room. Rinoa smiled at the elder woman then to Squall.

“What?” He asked when he saw her grin.

“Nothing,” she said, shaking her head.

It was so different. Seeing Squall in a place where he was surrounded by people who knew him. She found herself wanting to see more.

The two SeeDs outside turned as they came out.

“Thanks for the help, Squall,” one said, waving at him.

“Hey, Squall,” the other waved like they were friends. He frowned at the blank look Squall gave him in return. “What? Don't you remember me? It's me, Nida! We earned SeeD together?”

“Oh, yeah...” Squall said slowly, trying to remember. Was it him? Huh.

Nida sighed, slumping over. “Well, that's just like you not to remember. Whatever. Anyway, thanks for helping out. We're fine here though. You can get going if you need to.”

Squall nodded to him and made his way back to the nexus. He tried not to sigh as he looked out over the chaos that was the garden.

“So, now what?” Zell asked.

“I guess...we just work our way around,” Squall said for want of a better plan. He looked over to the next walkway that led to the quad. He didn't really want to, but apparently process of elimination was the only way to get what he wanted. It was a huge waste of time, but he was wasting even more by just standing here.

“Let's go,” he said, turning to run to the next area.

The quad, a very peaceful, pretty sort of place, had no one guarding the hall there. They started down the 'L' shaped stairs towards the bottom. That's when they heard the plaintive cry of one of the garden clones.

“Dammit! We need reinforcements!”

Squall came to a stop to see the clone running up the stairs; he was breathing hard and clutching an arm that was either bleeding or leaking oil. It was hard to tell because of the dark maroon color of his billowing sleeves.

He caught sight of them and growled. “More of Cid's followers? Die!”

He let out a piercing whistle and Squall grinned. Just their bad luck that Squall had stopped by the infirmary first. He was far more battle ready now.

Down from the sky, lured by the whistle, a bomb streaked down out of the sky. Hot on its tale was one of the blue skinned, floating glacial eye monsters. Two beasts with opposing affinities. Squall would have some difficulty killing the glacial eye since they both utilized ice for their powers. The bomb, however, was an easy monster.

Grinning, almost eager to put his healed body to use, Squall stepped ahead of Rinoa and Zell. The bomb was the faster of the two monsters and it was charging at Squall with a wicked grin on its ugly, circular face.

Squall stood in place, waiting...

SLICE!

The bomb's pieces, cut clean in half, separated to either side of him. His blade, quickly drawn from the sheath, gleamed in the light of the quad as Squall gently brought it down against his shoulder as the remains of the bomb crashed against the ground far on either side of him. Rinoa let out a breath at the sight he made.

Damn, she forgot how sexy he was when he moved like that.

“Rinoa,” he turned to her. “Take out the glacial eye.”

“Uh, sure.” She shook her head to remove those thoughts. Time and place, girl, she told herself firmly as she stepped up to fight the slower moving, blue skinned monster.

Wiry and slow, it proved easy pray for Rinoa. She cut it clean in half and, as it was falling, Zell lit the pieces on fire for good measure.

“You know, we don't even have those in the training center,” Zell frowned at the monster pieces. “Did they really just let monsters come inside?”

“This is going to suck to clean up,” Rinoa sighed.

Squall moved forward, deeper down into the quad. Down where there was a half finished stage that Squall was rather sure Selphie had begun setting up for the garden festival. As they approached, looking around for the headmaster – or for whatever had made the clone run – three SeeDs dropped down from above.

“Who's there?” One guy asked, landing in an attack position. His eyes widened, then narrowed. “Is that you, Squall? Who's side are you on?!”

“I'm with the headmaster,” Squall said easily. At this point, it was whatever.

The guy let out a sigh of relief as he and the other two SeeDs relaxed. “Phew, good. Because I definitely don't want to fight you.” He laughed sheepishly with the others, shaking his head. “Who's this Garden Master anyway? I've never heard of him.”

“Have any of you seen the headmaster?”

They each shook their heads.

“Where is everyone?” Zell asked, looking around. “There's usually a lot more SeeDs around than this.”

“Yeah, there were more of us here, but Headmaster Cid ordered most of us evacuate. He said something like 'the true battle for SeeD is yet to come' or something.”

Squall frowned. “What does that mean?”

He shrugged. “No idea. We didn't have much time to ask either. Things had gotten pretty crazy by that point. Most of us obeyed, but there were a few who stayed. Xu is with us.”

“We're gonna hold up here a bit longer,” the girl on the end said. “Even if the headmaster punishes us for our disobedience, we don't care. We're loyal and we won't abandon him.”

Zell grinned, nodding along. Squall nodded once, accepting that before turning. Rinoa smiled at them before following after Squall.

It was nice to see that Squall wasn't the only intense SeeD. It was actually kind of pleasant to see the loyalty that drove them to stay. And that some of them at least were willing to disobey direct orders if it they believed it was for the best. At least the garden didn't encourage mindlessness.

Continuing in the circle of the nexus, the three of them moved onto the cafeteria next door. There was another clone there. Like the last one, he summoned a bomb. But that was all.

“Stall them!” He yelled, like he could command it, running away from the monster at the same time.

“Blizzard!” Squall's spell destroyed the bomb so easily that it made Rinoa laugh.

“That worked out well for him,” Zell laughed with her. It hadn't even stalled them for a second.

They continued on into the cafeteria. It was there that they found the first cadets that hadn't been threatened into joining the Garden Master. Two girls, SeeD trainees if Squall wasn't wrong, were standing over near the counter. Two SeeDs were there as well. The SeeD girl let out a breath and grinned at seeing Squall walk in.

“Thanks for the backup,” she nodded to him.

“The headmaster?” Squall asked getting right to the point.

“He isn't here. We're gathering here to make them think he is though. Downside: They're trying really hard to break in. Oh, but don't worry about us. We're doing fine.”

“If they attacked us all at once, we couldn't hold them off even if we are SeeD,” the SeeD guy grimaced, rubbing his sore shoulder.

“But we've got others doing the same thing all over the garden,” the girl continued, grinning. “We're thinning them out. Essentially, bottlenecking them so none of us have to take them all on. Brilliant idea, huh? Wasn't ours though.”

“Then who thought of it?” Squall asked, pretty sure he already knew.

“Xu,” the guy grinned.

“She took over when this whole thing began.” She grinned and put her hands to her hips. “You going looking for him? Well, you tell those traitors to bring it on, Squall. We can take 'em.”

Rinoa grinned. Such confidence. Was it a SeeD thing?

“Hey, you guys hungry?” One of the cadets near the counter asked. “You want some hot dogs?”

“YES!” Zell cried immediately making Rinoa and the other SeeDs jump. “YES, PLEASE!”

The girl laughed and turned to her friend. “Hey, get them some of those leftover hot dogs.”

“Huh?” The other girl frowned. “Um, we finished those off already.”

Zell cried out in despair as the first girl grimaced apologetically. “Sorry.”

Zell sighed, slumping over.

“We've got some of the other nutritious stuff,” she said, making a face at the thought. “It's really...good for you. Good for energy.”

Squall said that would be fine and asked for some energy bars. They needed something. It had been a while since they had eaten anything. He finished his off quickly, Zell was nearly in tears over his but ate it. Rinoa looked at hers, took a bite, then gagged.

“Gross!” She shook her head, swallowing quickly because she didn't want to spit it out in a very unladylike fashion right in front of Squall.

“Eat it,” he ordered. “You haven't eaten in as long as we have. It doesn't taste good, but its got all the essential vitamins, minerals, and energy that you need.”

“Yeah, but it tastes like thrustie meat. That's gone bad,” she sighed. But, knowing he was right, she forced herself to eat it quickly. At least the girls also had plenty of water that they could use the wash down the...healthy 'food'.

After the very brief food break, the three of them continued. Healed, now having eaten and had something to drink, they were in far better shape than when they had gotten here.

The dormitories were being guarded by a single clone. They had apparently taken over this area because no SeeD had tried to keep it from them. Squall approached him and he growled.

“More of Cid's followers? DIE!”

He whistled loudly then ran away as a caterchipillar crawled out from the dorm halls. Squall dispatched of it quickly and left its carcass against the stairs.

“This is getting old fast,” he said, flicking bug guts off of his blade. He looked over and ran quickly back into the dorms. Rinoa followed him.

They split off at one point and Zell ran into his room. Right across the hall from Squall's. She looked between them before walking into Squall's dorm. Zell's room was surprisingly tidy. Squall's room was sparsely decorated and without any personal items aside from his gunblade case. Honestly, it was exactly what she would have expected from him.

Squall opened a drawer on his desk and pulled out some spare ammo. He had lost his in the prison and had been resorting to only using his blade. He stocked up quickly before standing and leaving. Almost sad to lose her chance to see more, Rinoa backed up and met up with Zell in the hall. Squall frowned to see him munching on a bag of chips.

“What's that?” He asked, pointing.

“Emergency stores. Want some?”

“No.” Squall turned and ran away. Zell finished the bag rather quickly and tossed it into a recycle bin that they passed working their way to the next area. He was still licking the salt off of his fingers as the three of them turned into the hall leading to the garage. Of course, they found their way blocked by a garden clone trying to break his way in.

“More of Cid's followers?” He growled. “DIE!”

“That is getting old,” Rinoa frowned as he whistled.

“The clones don't know how to be original,” Squall said, trying to flick more bug guts off of his gunblade.

“Clones?” Rinoa repeated as the faculty member ran away from the monster he had summoned, yelling out over his shoulder, “This Garden belongs to NORG!”

Squall cursed internally as he realized he had accidentally referred to the clone by his own private joke for the members. And to Rinoa. He knew better than to think that she would drop it.

“Yeah, clones,” he nodded, lowering his blade. “You notice that they all talk alike and that you never see their face? So they must either be clones or robot clones. I'm not willing to discount the latter. They're a little too in sync to even be clones.”

“Squall,” Rinoa breathed in awe, her eyes wide, “you're making a joke.”

Squall frowned. “You don't have to be so surprised.”

“No, I really think I do!”

“Um, guys,” Zell spoke up, pointing. “Not to interrupt, but he summoned a GRENDEL! There aren't even grendels in this region! Where did he even find that?!”

Squall turned and brought up his gunblade in time to catch the grendel's shinning tail against the edge as it charged. It growled as Squall threw it back.

“Demi!” Rinoa yelled, throwing out a spell. The gravity based spell was devastating against the heavily armored dragon style grendel.

Zell jumped forward as the spell faded away and slipped his arm around its neck. He threw his body around it, twisting its neck and snapping its spine. He landed on its other side as its body dropped and Zell dusted off his hands.

“Chips made my grip greasy.”

“You chose to eat them,” Squall said, walking forward past the monster's body and into the garage.

He gasped to see the headmaster standing there alongside two SeeDs. He found him!

“Sir!” He ran forward. He slid to a halt as the headmaster started winking in an out of existence. He frowned in confusion as he faded away. The SeeDs behind him grinned.

“It was just a hologram,” one of them said proudly, holding up a small hologram projector. “Made it myself using photos I scanned of him. Pretty cool, huh?”

Squall sighed shortly, somehow angry. “Yeah. Pretty cool.”

Leaving it at that, Squall turned to leave. He just couldn't even.

“What a let down,” Zell grumbled as they walked away. “I actually thought it was him.”

“SeeDs are pretty smart,” Rinoa admired. She couldn't imagine trying to program a hologram projector. Those were very high tech machines.

“A little too smart,” Squall grumbled. He had actually thought he had found the headmaster.

They moved on to the training center. Squall was fully prepared for the monster population to be thicker around here, but he was surprised to find it wasn't. Most of the monsters must have escaped and quickly abandoned the place they had been caged for so long.

As they ran down the hall, they could hear a garden clone – and Rinoa couldn't help but think of him as a clone now – calling out.

“Where did she go?”

“Over here! She's one of the headmaster's SeeDs!”

Another cadet called out after him. “She's got the junior classmen with her! Don't let them escape!”

In the front area of the training center, before the re-sealed metal doors closing off the monster lair, a young female SeeD was breathing hard, dagger in hand, as she moved the underclassmen that she had with her forward.

They hit the electric fence and had nowhere to go. She turned quickly and saw the two cadets and the garden clone approaching her.

“Oh, shoot!” She grimaced, lifting her blade with a wince. She was already injured. “I'm sorry,” she said to the kids with her.

The young boy, who was probably only a year or two out from being a cadet himself, growled as he took a fighting stance. “I'm gonna fight, too!”

One of the cadets saw him and found himself laughing. “This should be interesting...”

He stepped forward, smirking the entire time. The little boy was growling at him, his fists trembling with a mixture of anger and strength he was building up.

As the cadet got in closer, the kid struck like a cobra. His foot came out and slammed against the cadet's knee cap. Crying out in pain, the cadet dropped down, reaching for the injured patella with shaking hands.

Grinning, totally smug, the boy put his hands to his fist as the female SeeD smiled at him, proud.

“I'm not training everyday for nothing,” the boy told him. “Bring it on!”

Rinoa was giggling into her hand. “You guys start 'em early here, don't you?” She looked to her side, but Squall was gone. “Huh? Squall? Where are you?”

“Why you little...” the SeeD snarled. He stood up, his hands reaching out for the little boy's neck with an ugly snarl on his face.

Squall struck from above, slicing his blade down across the man's chest. A long laceration, spitting blood, appeared from his shoulder all the way to his hip. Squall stood up straight, flicking the blood from his gunblade and fixed him with a cold stare.

“You'll have to get past me first,” he growled threateningly.

“Another one of Cid's followers?!” the clone growled as the cadet fell back, clutching his bleeding torso. “D-”

“Die?” Squall finished for him.

The clone sputtered for a second, glaring at him from under his hat. “Y-You insolent...”

Unable to find anything to say, he lifted his fingers and let out a whistle that shrieked through the air of the training center. Squall was cool and calm as the clone snarled.

“Those opposed to NORG must die!”

He turned tail and ran, the uninjured cadet helping the one Squall had nearly cut in half run back through the front entry way.

“Squall,” the female SeeD breathed his name in relief.

The ground rumbled underneath his feet as a loud, dull sound echoed through the air.

“What was that?” Rinoa asked, turning around.

“Oh, Hyne...” Squall sighed. “You better get those two back.”

“Right.” The SeeD, recognizing the large footsteps as well, took the hands of the two children and pulled them backwards and away from Squall.

He stepped forward and stood beside Rinoa.

“What's going on?” She asked, a bit worried.

“Got any sleep spells?”

“Yeah?”

“Put them on your blade. Immediately.”

“Oh. Um, okay. Diablos?” Her GF obeyed.

The footsteps were getting louder. Zell growled as he tightened his gloves.

“It's coming...”

Thud. Thud! THUD! THUD!! THUD!!!

The air shook with a loud, strangely pitched roar. The door on the other side of the training center, the one that hadn't been re-sealed shut since the monsters were released, burst outward as the large, red and black T-rexaur slammed its large head through.

Rinoa screamed as Squall's hand tightened on his gunblade.

“Put it to sleep,” Squall said to her aside as the T-rexaur scented the air around them. “If that thing gets you in its jaws, you'll be dead and swallowed before we can react.”

“Right...” Rinoa said, trying not to shake as she lifted her arm.

T-rexaurs were renowned for being hard to defeat. For being man slayers. They were one of the few monster species that had been deliberately hunted with the express purpose of making them extinct specifically because they were so very deadly. The only good thing about them was they did not breed easily or quickly.

“Wait for it...” Zell mumbled as it came in closer.

“What is it even doing here?” Rinoa hissed, scared.

“We use them in training, of course,” Squall said calmly as he watched it. The enormous beast, at least twice his height, was watching them as it moved deceptively slowly forward.

“What could you possibly use a T-rexaur in training for!?”

“Teamwork training. Taking on a T-rexaur alone is foolhardy even for experienced SeeDs. However, if you take it on in a group, you'll find it's a much easier opponent to defeat. You just have to be careful. They move slowly in the beginning. But, whenever they feel like its right...”

The beast's eyes flashed just before it dropped its head and charged. Rinoa cried out and threw herself to the side. Zell side flipped out of the way. Squall ran directly forward.

At the last second, he jumped up and landed on the monster's head. Slicing down at its back in short, horizontal lines through the spaces in its vertebrae as he went; he ran down its spine and jumped from its tail. He rolled in the air and landed facing the monster again.

His blade had barely scratched through its thick hide.

“Hellfire!” Zell roared, bringing down a flaming ball of earth and magma onto its head. The dinosaur roared its pain but didn't fall down.

“Rinoa! Shoot it!” Squall yelled.

“Are you kidding me?!” She got to her feet, turning back. The three of them had formed a triangle around it and she couldn't help but feel hers with the weakest link. “What can my tiny little blaster possibly do against that thing?!”

“You put the sleep spell on it, right?”

“Well, yeah, but-”

“Shoot!”

Its attention caught by her yelling, the T-rexaur turned to her. Growling, it charged. Rinoa screamed and hit the fire button on her blaster, closing her eyes in fear.

She couldn't say her Valkyrie even nicked it. Its thick hide could withstand the force of Squall's blows, hers were like a feather duster caressing its skin.

The sleep spell attached to the blade, however, soaked into its skin easily and without any resistance. It went to work immediately and the large, growling monster, swayed in place slightly before its body dropped. It slid to a stop nearly at her feet, coming to a rest right in front of her. Breathing deeply, it growled even in sleep.

“What the...” Rinoa frowned as she caught her Valkyrie again.

“T-rexaurs are very susceptible to magic,” Squall explained to her over its downed body. “If it starts coming to, hit it again. Until then...”

Squall reached into his mind and grabbed for Shiva's power. “Diamond Dust!”

Rinoa's breath escaped her in amazement as the GF's magic shattered against the monster's skin. It didn't flinch, it didn't even wake up, but scratches opened up all over its body from the splintering ice all around and through it.

“Hellfire!” Zell yelled again, throwing more burning magma on its body. It burned it, but the T-rexaur still remained asleep.

“Okay, I know what I'm doing the next time I have a bout of insomnia,” Rinoa said, admiring the strength of the spell. “Alright, Diablos. Time to pull our own weight. Dark Messenger!”

She heard the massive crunch of enormous bones breaking under the weight of Diablos's gravity based magic. The T-rexaur stirred, but still didn't awaken.

“Blizzara!” Squall speared it with magic. Nothing.

“Fire!” Zell burned it immediately afterwards, heat shocking its cells. Fast asleep.

Rinoa was about to throw her own demi spell on top of theirs. As she lifted her hand to release the energy, she accidentally smacked her finger against the release trigger on her Valkyrie. The weapon, ever obedient, shot forward and hit the monster's head.

Barely even a scratch. It probably wouldn't have scratched at all if she hadn't hit it near the softer skin around its eyes.

Eyes that immediately snapped open, its pupil constricting on her.

She barely had time to even question how that tiny thing – out of everything else – could possibly wake the monster up. Using its large back feet, it launched itself towards her.

“Rinoa!” Zell yelled.

Screaming, Rinoa froze. Diablos did not. Gravity suddenly increased around her so violently that her body slammed to the ground. The breath rushed out of her lungs. The T-rexaur's teeth snapped in the air right above her body.

Growling, it pushed itself up and snarled down at her. Rinoa, shaking, tried to push herself backwards and away from it, even as she knew there was no way she was getting away in time.

The T-rexaur reared up to bite down. Rinoa clinched her eyes closed, screaming out for Squall.

The loud clanging of bone on metal rang through her ears. Squall's grunt of effort had her peeking through tightly closed eyelids.

He was standing over her, the cold air around him washing over her comfortingly. One hand on the hilt of his gun, the other holding the flat edge of the blade. He was pushing up against the T-rexaurs jaw, against its teeth, using only his own strength.

It wasn't without effort. He was shaking, his knees bending as he resisted the force pressing down against him.

“Squall...” Rinoa breathed, pushing herself up.

“What are you doing?!” He snapped. “Get outta the way!”

“Right!” Coming back to herself, Rinoa scrambled to get up and move. She ran a few feet before turning and looking back. The image Squall made squaring off against the T-rexaur, muscle to muscle, was even more impressive when she stood back and looked at it in all its glory.

“Hold it still, Squall!” Zell yelled, charging in from behind.

With a wild cry, he jumped clear over Squall's head and slammed his fist against the monster's exposed teeth. The loud cracking of bone made Rinoa flinch. The monster roared in pain and reared back. Two of its top teeth, broken clean through by Zell's punch, fell and hit the ground.

“WOO!” Zell hollered, landing and rolling away.

Rinoa recalled her Valkyrie and aimed it again. She needn't have bothered.

Reared up like that, the softer skin at the monster's neck was exposed. Squall ran forward and used Zell's back as a spring board to jump up. He sliced across in a wide arc and cut clean through the monster's jugular. Blood burst forward, then almost immediately froze from the ice Squall had covering his blade. Ice that, now with something to catch, spread into its body.

Squall landed neatly as the T-rexaur fell backwards. Its body crashed against the floor and remained still. Rinoa was breathing hard as Squall stood up straight. The blood on his gunblade had frozen over and, with a sharp whip of the blade, he shattered it and sent it falling.

“Well, that happened,” Zell grinned. “I think that's a new record. Who timed it?”

Squall sheathed his blade and walked over to her quickly.

“Are you hurt?”

“No-”

“Good. Never shoot a beast that has been put to sleep. Magic only. Magic will not awaken them, but a physical attack will. It's a very picky sort of spell.”

“I'm sorry. It was an accident,” she frowned feeling bad.

“I'm not angry. I'm warning you. Do you understand?”

“Yeah. Sorry.”

He nodded and turned to where the other SeeD was pulling the underclassmen forward away from the closed door.

“You three alright?” He asked.

She nodded, smiling at him. “Thanks, Squall. I owe you big time for that one.”

“Thanks, Squall,” the little girl smiled at him shyly.

“I coulda taken him.” The SeeD squeezed the little boy's hand warningly. “I mean, thanks.”

Squall waved away their gratitude – he didn't need it – and turned to leave. Rinoa let out a long breath, staring at the T-rexaur before running after them.

Just a few short weeks ago, she never would have believed herself capable of fighting one. And, even if she had done very little, she had still been there. She had still contributed. Oh, if only her father could see her now.

She hoped it stuck directly in his craw.

“Guess that just leaves the library,” Zell said as they left that area. “There's no way he's hidden here. Xu definitely wouldn't risk his life in the training center.”

“Agreed,” Squall nodded. “Let's move quickly. I don't know how much time we have left.”

The library, the last 'spoke' on the wheel of the nexus, was guarded by – surprise – another clone. He was growling in anger.

“What's taking so long?! Hurry up!!”

The sound of their footsteps as they walked over made him turn. He could probably tell by the expressions on their faces that they weren't his allies. And all three of them were so done with the crap pulled by the clones.

“More of Cid's followers?! D-”

“Die?” Squall, Rinoa, and Zell all finished for him.

He hesitated awkwardly. They stared at him. Growling in rage, he lifted his fingers to his mouth and let out a long whistle.

The grat that emerged from the bushes around the library seemed laughable after the T-rexaur.

“Haha!” The clone laughed at them. “Face the wrath of this monster-”

Rinoa's Valkyrie sliced through its tentacles as it shot out, then ripped through its body as it came back. The monster was collapsing in death before the clone finished speaking. She caught the edge easily and Squall's eyebrow raised at the suddenly still clone.

“Anything else?” He asked calmly.

The clone sputtered then brought his fingers up to whistle again.

Nothing happened. There were no monsters left in the area to call.

“Curse you, SeeDs!” The clone sputtered as he ran past them. Squall let him go. He could have killed him, but that would have ruined the robot/human mystery. And he felt like he needed to leave some mystery in his life.

Rinoa was laughing as Zell stuck his tongue out at the retreating clone. Squall continued into the library by himself.

A SeeD there nodded at him in greeting. “Hey, thanks for the backup, Squall.”

“Is the headmaster here?” Please, say yes.

“Nope, definitely not here,” the other SeeD shook his head.

Squall let out a long sigh as two of the cadets came forward from the back.

“Hey, Squall!” One of them, Squall was pretty sure he was from his old class, waved. “Check it out! I joined the headmaster's side. Of course. They can't bully me into joining. I know my precious Instructor Trepe wouldn't dare join their side.”

Oh, right. That's how Squall knew him. He was in Quistis's fan club.

…

He still couldn't believe she had a fan club.

“He in here, Squall?” Zell asked, walking into the library.

“Zell?!”

The two of them turned to see the library worker girl in cadet uniform flushing bright red.

“Oh, hey there,” Zell waved at her.

“You're back,” she breathed.

“Uh-huh. My first mission was pretty great. Well, except all the bad parts.”

“I can't wait to hear about it,” she laughed breathlessly. “Oh!”

Reaching into her pocket, she ran forward and placed something into his hands. “Here. For you. Thanks so much for helping save us.”

“Come on, Zell,” Squall said, walking past him. “Guess we have to start checking the second floor.”

Seriously. How hard could it be to find one person!? The entire garden was looking for him!

Rinoa looked up from the monster carcass she was bent over. She had been drawing sleep spells to replace those she had just used from its body before it all escaped.

“Was he there?” She asked without any real hope.

“Nope. But check it out,” Zell held up his prize. “I got an X-potion. This baby is supposed to be super effective. Almost like a bottled curaga spell. Jealous, Squall?”

“So jealous,” Squall said immediately, totally deadpan. Mostly to shut him up. Rinoa was laughing at him again. “Come on. We still have a lot of garden to cover.”

They did not have time for this! This kind of thing could not come at a worse time. Squall seriously hoped that the headmaster was hidden in one of the second story rooms. He didn't want to think of the consequences if Selphie and the others had failed and he couldn't find him in time.

The dark flash of a SeeD uniform was eye catching specifically because Squall hadn't seen it out here recently. All of the SeeDs had been spread out, holed up. Except the one that was starting up the stairs of the dais the elevator came to rest on.

Brown hair cut into a bob. Quick, efficient moves. A deceptively normal looking body.

“Xu!” Squall exclaimed, pointing to her.

He put more speed in his legs, but he still wasn't fast enough to catch up to her before the elevator doors closed around her. Cursing, he hit the call button but it was too late. He stood back to watch where the elevator would go, grateful the shaft that housed it was tinted clear blue.

“The second floor,” Zell said. Squall nodded and waited for it to come back down.

The three of them rushed inside and hit the button for the second floor. The elevator was quick and still too slow for Squall's liking.

When they reached the landing, Xu was no where in sight. However, as they ran forward, Squall could see her disappearing around the corner towards the emergency exit on the second floor. He ran after her, calling out for her to stop.

Xu, who had been going to see if the emergency exit could act as a plausible escape route, skidded to a halt at hearing her name called. Immediately, she went on the defensive as she turned back. She carried no weapon with her, but that meant nothing. One didn't become the top SeeD because they allowed themselves to be defenseless.

“Whose side are you on?!” She demanded to know immediately.

“Neither,” Squall snapped, tired of these games. “We're just back from assignment and we have to see the headmaster now. It's urgent. Where is he?”

Coming from anyone but the forever serious Squall, Xu would have dismissed the inquiry outright as being a thin attempt to find the hidden headmaster. But, since it was Squall, she was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.

She relaxed from her pose, clutching her hands before her, and gave him a cool look down the length of her nose. “Okay. I'm listening.”

“Galbadian missiles may be heading this way!”

“Here?!” Xu gasped.

Coming from anyone but Squall, that warning would have prompted more questions. It would have sparked disbelief and distrust that this was a ploy. But Squall would never lie about this, and he was clearly agitated. Something Squall only became when it was serious.

She composed herself quickly. “Alright. I'll inform him right away.”

“Where is he?” Squall asked, needing to know.

Xu grinned. “In his office. We made it look like he's gone into hiding so no one will check there. But he never left. He's been there all along. Come on. I'll fill him in.”

Xu was faster than Squall was. By a lot. It actually surprised him how quick she was. By the time he reached the elevator, she had already ridden it up and it was opening back on the second story, waiting for him.

The others climbed inside and followed her to the third floor. The doors opened and Xu was coming back out of the double door entrance of the office.

“He's waiting for you,” she said, gesturing over her shoulder. “I'm going to go tell everyone to evacuate.”

Squall nodded and ran forward past her.

Kindly Headmaster Cid looked unspeakably sad as he gently touched the plexiglass walls that had been painstakingly and beautifully inscribed with swirling lines on one side of the office.

“Sir,” Squall and Zell immediately snapped to attention before him, giving him respectful salutes. From behind them, Rinoa waved brightly.

Cid nodded, accepting all three greetings as he held his hands behind his back. “Xu has told me about the missiles. Unfortunately, the faculty has disabled to intercoms so we can't announce the evacuation. I've ordered Xu to do that herself.”

Squall nodded. “We met Raijin and Fujin down below. They're already doing that, but I don't know effective they are. No one seems to be listening!”

“They're all too focused on fighting,” Zell agreed, frowning.

“I want you to assist them,” the headmaster ordered. “Then evacuate yourselves.”

Squall blinked at the order. And it was unmistakably an order. One he absolutely did not want to obey at this moment. He cast his mind around quickly for some excuse that he could give for ignoring it and remaining here.

“But...I have a lot to report."

The headmaster shook his head. “You can tell me later.”

Squall frowned at the tone of his voice. It wasn't exactly encouraging. It almost sounded final. The look on the headmaster's face was sad. Distant. Not unlike what Squall imagined a ship captain would look like standing at the controls of a rapidly sinking ship.

He was not thinking of dying here, was he?!

Absolutely not. As a SeeD, Squall could not allow for the death of their headmaster. He could not accept the demise of the man that knew every single student in his garden by name, specialty, and personality. The man who commanded a group of mercenaries with kindness and smiles. Squall would knock him out and carry him over his shoulder by force from the garden if he had to.

Some of that must have shown on Squall's face because the headmaster tilted his head at him curiously.

“Do you have a problem with that?” He asked calmly.

Yes. He did. Oh so many problems with that.

He settled for voicing the simplest, least disrespectful of them. “Sir, what is it exactly that you are going to do here?”

“I'm going to stay,” he said immediately, lifting his head, “and see this to the end. After all, this place is my home.”

“You're plannin' on dying here?!” Zell yelled.

“No!” Rinoa reached out for him. “You can't! Just come with us, please! You can always rebuild this place. It's not worth it!”

The headmaster chuckled at their collective reactions. “Calm yourselves. You can rest assured, I'm not suicidal, nor am I so noble that I'll stay with a doomed building when I don't have to. I am just going to try something. There may still be a way to save the garden.”

Cid gave them a salute. An unpolished, awkward salute that was no where near the standard that was expected of the students. Then he smiled and began walking away.

He got maybe two steps. Then his bum knee collapsed out from under him and sent him falling. Squall facepalmed at the sight.

Laughing sheepishly, Cid forced himself up as quickly as his aged body would allow. “I think I'm too old for this kind thing.”

“Sir,” Squall stepped forward immediately. “I'd like to handle whatever it is that you're planning.”

Cid looked over to him, his eyes watchful and dissecting. He didn't immediately jump on the chance as Squall would have expected. He just continued looking at Squall like he was a puzzle that needed to be worked out.

“Really? And why is that?”

Squall started at the question. What kind of thing was that to say right now?

He didn't know...

Because the aged headmaster might screw up. Because he wanted to do more than just announce the evacuation order. Because this wasn't _just_ a building. Because he wanted to know his plan. Because this was his home too. He had too many reasons. He didn't know. Who cared anyway? It's not like it even mattered.

Squall's spine straightened as he went official. “My motives are irrelevant, sir.”

Headmaster Cid chuckled. “Quistis was right. You do have a hard time expressing your feelings.”

Next to him, Rinoa tried and failed to cover her laughter at the statement. Squall's eye twitched. What was with this? Why was he being judged right now?! And why even bother? They had so many more important things to worry about at the moment. Like everything. All of it was more important than Squall's feelings on any subject.

“Sir, please just tell me your plan! We are your SeeDs and it is our job to serve you.”

“Oh, Squall, I hope you don't seriously believe that,” Cid frowned sadly. “You're not...” He sighed, looking away. “But now's not the time, is it? Very well. Listen up.”

Zell and Squall snapped back to attention.

“This building was not always a garden. Before I acquired it, it was a shelter. 80 years ago, after the Cataclysm that destroyed the Centran civilization, the few remaining people who survived built shelters as places of safety and escapism from the harsh realities of the new world. By the time this one came into my possession, it was barely functional. I found it easier to simply remodel it into the place it is now than try to fix the old mechanisms. However, I was assured by the mechanics at the time that, should I have need of it, the system should still be operational. Here.”

Reaching into his pocket, the headmaster pulled out a key that he tossed over. Squall caught it deftly in the air.

“Use that key to open the small access panel in the elevator. There you will find the button that will take you down to the MD level. I've been told that, further below the MD level, there is some kind of control system for the shelter this garden used to be. I have never seen it since it was mostly inoperable by the time I got it, so I have no idea what it does. All I do know is that it was used to keep the people here safe when it was a shelter. It may be a small chance, but if it can prove effective against the missiles, then I'm willing to give it a try. That's what I'm betting on.”

Squall looked over the tarnished key in his hand with a frown. It was pretty far fetched. But it was better than nothing. Squall's hand closed around the key and he nodded once.

“I understand. I'll find the control system and check it out.”

“Good luck to you,” Cid said, smiling like he was proud of them.

“Rinoa,” Sqaull turned to her. “You get outta here. Evacuate to Balamb and-”

“Excuse me?!” Rinoa drew back like he had insulted her. Her hands went to her hips and she put her face nearly in his. “Squall Leonhart, I know you did not just tell me to run away!”

“If this place goes up-”

“Then I'm going to be right here, having fought to keep that from happening. Now, come on. We're wasting time. And don't you ever tell me to run again!” She leveled a finger at him before turning and stepping out regally, like a queen.

Behind him, Zell and Cid were snickering.

“Oh, my boy,” the headmaster lamented with a grin. “You have so much left to learn.”

Squall resisted the urge to groan. She was making it so hard to keep his promise about seeing to her safety. Why did the girl have to make everything so damn difficult? Better question: Why was he so drawn to the girl that made everything so damn difficult?

Squall ran from the headmaster's office, Zell right on his tail. Rinoa was already waiting for him, inside of the elevator as though to prove her point. Squall gave her an even look that she returned as he stepped up to the lock beside the access panel.

The key twisted with a little difficulty from disuse, but the panel fell open easily. The old button nestled inside wasn't nearly so pretty as the ones above it leading the various floors of the garden. Squall pressed it as Zell climbed aboard.

The doors sealed shut and they started dropping.

“What do you think it is?” Zell asked.

“Maybe like a huge protection spell?” Rinoa guessed. “That would be useful.”

“Or maybe it's a security fence. In which case it's not,” Squall added. “Which is why you should have left. This may be completely pointless.”

“Not listening to you,” Rinoa told him, refusing to let his realistic outlook bring her down.

That was when some genius part of the fighting on the first floor decided to attack the generators. The power cut off suddenly, stranding the elevator in mid-air. Zell and Rinoa cried out in surprise as the lights flickered off, leaving only the strip of emergency lights coming up from below.

Squall frowned and reached out for the buttons again. The didn't respond.

“Great,” Zell threw up his hands. “Now what?”

“Emergency evacuation drills in the event of lost power,” Squall recited like he was reading it off of a pamphlet.

As he spoke, he was kneeling down. His fingers reached out and flipped open a tiny hatch on the wall that housed a smaller lever that acted as the non-electronic locking mechanism for the escape hatch on the elevator below their feet. He pushed open the door revealing a thin, narrow ladder buried into the wall of the elevator shaft.  
“Alright, Squall!” Rinoa admired brightly.

“Nobody's been here for a while,” Squall said, looking at the rust and catching the distinct scent of stagnation from below. “So be careful.”

Figuring if it could hold his weight, it could hold any of theirs, Squall put his weight on the rungs of the small ladder first. They were hugging so close to the wall that it was hard to get his fingers around them and it felt like his feet might slip off. But the metal was sturdy and bore his weight without even groaning in protest.

Rinoa started down after him, Zell after her. The three of them moved down the shaft. Squall was scanning as he descended, checking for a place that he could get off. He spotted the exit for the elevator below just as he heard a surge of power.

“Shit! Squall!”

Zell's call and the grinding of the elevator on its tracks warned him that it was coming back down again. Suddenly, he was quite unhappy by how fast the elevator was. There was no way he was going to make it to the elevator stop.

There! Right above the stop was an access tunnel. Squall swung his body inside and ran forward quickly. Right behind him, he heard Rinoa land with a cry before scrambling to her feet and running as well. Zell cried out as he dove within and just barely avoided the elevator slamming into him.

Squall stopped and turned back, breathing hard as Rinoa caught up with him. The power returned down here and a harsh yellow light turned on, illuminating a floor hatch at the back of the service tunnel.

“That was too close,” Zell grumbled, dusting off his butt as he stood.

“Come on,” Squall pointed forward. “Let's just keep going.”

The hatch leading down was nearly rusted shut. Squall had to use his foot as leverage against the ground in order to jerk it open. But when it finally gave, it swung open too quickly and slammed against the wall with a loud clang.

The scent of oil and dust hit their noses from below.

Grimacing, Squall jumped downwards. He stepped out of the way and looked around. Rinoa was right behind him, landing with a small 'oomph' before she moved so Zell could follow.

The metal tunnel they were in had a walkway to allow for people to move within it. Below that walkway though, there was a river of thick, black oil moving below them.

“An oil stratum,” Squall said while Rinoa covered her nose uncomfortably.

A loud, strangely high pitched growling from below made her shiver.

“What was that?” She asked, concerned.

“A monster?” Zell blinked. “Down here?”

“Monsters can fester and thrive anywhere if you leave them alone long enough,” Squall quoted form one of his old text books. “They're very good at adapting to their environments. In this case, that can work in our favor. If they're able to survive in oil, then they're probably weak against fire. You two have the fire spells. Use them.”

“Right,” Zell beamed.

“'Kay,” Rinoa said from behind her hand.

“Let's go,” Squall said, pointing forward. There were metal bars behind them, so there was really only the one direction they could move.

He led the way down the oil pipe to a long, open tunnel pointing directly up. The oil broke into two and started flowing away and around the long drop. Squall aimed himself for the ladder at the end of the walkway.

It wasn't a long way down. Just a bit too far to jump. Squall moved quickly into the circular bottom of the metal pit. There was a door there. He took it.

The control room inside was outdated and covered in a thick layer of dust. The computer system along the wall was all dark and cold. The only other thing inside though was a release valve that just said 'open' along the bottom with an arrow pointing to the side.

Squall shrugged and moved towards it. He grabbed the large metal wheel in both hands and gave it an experimental twist.

Rust kept it closed tight.

Alright then. He rotated his shoulders and took tight hold of it again.

His muscles shook and strained against the valve. Long set, it was very resistant to being moved from its resting place.

Metal started groaning as he grit his teeth. It moved about a milimeter, but it was a hard fought fraction and it seemed to only get harder to move.

“Need some help, man?” Zell asked, already stepping forward.

He had barely reached out to grab it when, with a loud groan of protest, the valve finally slipped out of its place. And, as it was being loosened not tightened, it only got easier from there. His wrists aching from the force applied, Squall unscrewed the valve. As he did so, they all heard something loud and heavy moving outside the door.

“Macho man,” Rinoa admired with a grin as Squall stepped back.

“Meh, that's nothing,” Zell dismissed the feat.

Squall ignored them both and stepped outside. Rinoa was right behind him.

“Woh,” she breathed and her voice echoed down the long drop that had opened up below the narrow walkway right outside the door. She knew headmaster Cid said it was a long way down, but this was more than a little daunting.

“Let's go,” Squall told her, fearless as he moved back to the ladder. She groaned but followed loyally, thinking that Squall was lucky he was cute. And strong. And smart. Okay, she would have followed him even if this led down to the pits of hell. Who was she kidding?

The base of the ladder – which took forever to reach – ended in a long, zigzagging catwalk. Squall dismounted and started down. Rinoa followed and looked out over the large glass cylinders sticking out from the wall.

“What do you reckon those do?” She asked.

Zell shrugged, because he honestly had no idea. Squall was already ahead of them and the two moved quickly to catch up.

The catwalk ended on a large, circular platform with railing that separated it from...more platform? The walls had no other doors. There were no more catwalks.

A dead end, Squall frowned as he walked around, looking for something.

“Oh, man,” Zell groaned, turning him back to see what he spotted. “Another ladder...”

“We have to climb up again?” Rinoa sighed, rubbing her tired arms. “Where does this one go?”

The three of their heads fell back, following the body of the ladder as it moved up. All the way at the top, it connected to yet another catwalk. Which zigzagged across the ceiling to a room that was likely another control booth at the far end of the enormous room.

“Oh, over there...” Zell said, awed. This place was huge!

Squall dropped his head and turned back around to the ladder. Rinoa was looking at him.

“Well, Squall?” she asked.

Why was he always the one that had to decide?

Ugh, whatever. He was getting tired of trying to fight this battle.

He looked at the ladder again and frowned. It was rusted and dirty. It didn't look at all stable. He didn't know if he could trust his weight on it, much less all three of their weights. His muscle mass was the heaviest, so he would probably have better luck asking one of the others to go.

Rinoa, of course, as the lightest would make the most sense to send up.

…

Yeah, no.

“Alright,” he let out a breath, stepping forward. “I'll go take a look. You two wait here.”

He walked to the base of the ladder and reached out to take hold of it. Immediately, the top layer of the metal flaked apart under his grip. That was a good sign...

Gritting his teeth – it's not like he had another choice – Squall started climbing.

Rinoa and Zell had to back up quickly as his feet and hands worked off more of the metal and caused it to fall down around them the higher up he went.

“Are we sure that's safe?” Rinoa frowned as he continued.

Squall, not for the first time, was thankful that he was not afraid of heights. He was just trying to focus on putting one hand, one foot in front of the other and work his way up. The higher he went though, the more rusted and dilapidated the ladder became. The near constant groaning it emitted was far from comforting and each rung felt more unsteady than the last.

He was almost there though. The catwalk was right there. If he could just reach that-

The cracking of the heads off of old screws was accompanied by the pained groaning of old metal and assured Squall that he was so not going to make it. The next rung he reached for snapped clean off and his body swung outward as a result.

The entire ladder started leaning and, as his weight and the weight of itself fell onto the lower screws, more heads started breaking apart.

Squall's mind, racing quickly looked down to see where the ladder would fall. To try to work out some kind of landing strategy-

Hyne! He was heading right for the glass window of the control booth! If he broke through that, he didn't know how well his leather would protect his body from being sliced to pieces.

“Shiva, blizzard!” He ordered, throwing out the magic.

The glass groaned as it froze over. Squall, to avoid going in headfirst, twisted himself around the falling ladder and threw his body downwards. His boots slammed into the frozen glass. It shattered rather than splintered and the shards weren't large enough to slice him to pieces.

He skidded to a halt on the far side of the room, his boots kicking up layers of dust and rust from the metal ground below him. Outside, he heard loud groans and echoing crashing as the catwalk, no more stable than the ladder leading to it, fell to pieces.

Breathing hard, adrenaline racing through his veins, Squall stood up straight and tried to dust the glass and ice off of the leather of his clothing.

He was suddenly fiercely glad he hadn't sent up Rinoa instead. Even if it might not have fallen under her smaller weight, he so did not want to risk this happening to her.

He walked over to the window where the body of the ladder had come to rest. He found himself looking out over the entirety of the platform below. He could see a bright blue speck that had run to the railing. Rinoa, coming to see if he had made it out. He didn't know if she'd be able to see the black of his jacket from this height, so he just moved to the control panel.

Unlike the last booth, this computer system was still alive. The green screens, ancient technology, were flickering. There was no touchscreen here, but the physical controls responded to his touch. The largest, most obvious button, below a diagram of the platform caught his attention. He grabbed the rounded handle and, after moving it in a few directions experimentally, he found that it twisted and he jerked it around in a circle.

The entire area started shaking around him and Squall rushed to the shattered window to see the large, metal area surrounding the platform begin shrinking away. The place continued, if it was possible, even further down!

Squall shook his head and finally caught sight of the catwalk. Between that and the ladder being separated from the wall, there was no way he could leave through the door. Which meant that he would have to use the ladder again.

Oh, joy...

Surprisingly, the trip down was easier than the trip up. Spreading his body across the ladder so his weight wasn't localized in one spot, he had to climb down at an angle. He moved slowly because of that, but the ladder didn't give out from under him.

As he reached the bottom, the other two had come back to the ladder. Rinoa had clasped her hands above her heart and Zell was staring as Squall jumped down to the platform.

“That was close!” Zell cried. “You alright?”

“Yeah,” Squall said, rotating his shoulder.

Rinoa let out a long breath. “Gosh, you scared me. That must've been terrifying.”

“Nothing new,” Squall said immediately, his automatic reaction to sweep it under the rug.

Rinoa gave him a dull look.

“What?” He frowned at her expression.

“Stop being so tough,” she grumbled, crossing her arms. “That's just you getting away with saying 'I'm fine' without actually saying it.”

“Fine, maybe it was a little scary, but who cares?”

“I care!”

“We have bigger things to worry about,” he talked right over her, walking towards the railing. “The missiles still might be on their way and we don't have time for being relieved or scared or whatever.”

The blinking light of the exit on the rail told him where to go next. Squall grabbed hold of the handle and jerked it up, unlocking it, then pushed it back.

Then another ladder!

Hoo-ray...

Squall didn't complain verbally as he threw himself over the edge and began climbing down. At least this climb wasn't as long. And, at the bottom, he found himself standing on another platform that was suspended like an island over a lake of gently rippling oil.

“It's kinda getting hard to breath,” Rinoa said, covering her mouth again as she came down off of the ladder. “Are we there yet?”

“Looks like the walkway is blocked,” Zell pointed to a large metal door at the end of the only walkway leading away from the platform.

Squall was already moving towards a level placed near the elevator. He took hold of it and threw it sideways without worrying about what might happen. At this point, everything had been fairly intuitive. Whoever designed this place clearly had done it with the intent that anyone should be able to activate the system if they needed it.

The door on the end opened and revealed-

Wait, another ladder?! How far down could this place possibly reach?! Squall felt like they should already be digging into the earth at this point. He was suddenly very glad that he hadn't allowed his aging headmaster to come this way instead.

The three of them started running towards the end of the walkway.

Bubbling of the oil to his left caught Squall's attention. He didn't have time to do more than cry out a warning before the monsters burst out of the lake of oil in an explosion of black liquid that showered down on them as first one, then another launched itself from the dark below.

Slightly globular, with tiny, scraping tentacles that wiggled at the end of the limb pods they possessed, the ugly monsters were totally blind but sniffed at them using long, narrow tubes that protruded from what Squall imagined was their face. They looked somehow slimy and didn't so much walk as they wiggled in place.

“Gross!” Rinoa drew back. “They look like worms! But worse!”

“We have to hurry!” Squall growled, drawing his blade. “You two, light them up. But be careful not to hit the oil!”

“Fire!” Rinoa and Zell yelled at the same time throwing out their magic.

Both oily monsters caught fire easily and screamed – literally screamed – in pain as it burned through their thin, flammable skin.

Squall ran forward as the spells burned out – so as not to catch the rest of the oil on fire-- and brought down his sword into the head of the one on the left. Its brain, however, was not where he had guessed and it kept wriggling as Squall balanced on its back.

“Gross!” Rinoa reiterated, taking aim.

She fired and the Valkyrie sang through the air. It sliced neatly through the monster's 'face' and thick, purplish blood came oozing out like petroleum jelly.

Squall twisted and planted his boot. Growling with the effort it took, he sliced downward along the monster's back. More incredibly viscous blood pushed out – it didn't drip at all. Squall jerked back and slammed the gunblade down. He pulled the trigger and a burst of ice sliced through the monster's internal organs.

The monster started slowing down.

“Flaming fists, baby!” Zell yelled in delight, pounding his fists together and sending sparks flying before he charged.

Keeping careful control over the flames to prevent them from spreading, he started slamming his fist against the oil monster. Small, localized, deep burns burst against its flesh where Zell punched and the thing drew back in pain.

“Diablos! Fire on my blade!” Rinoa ordered, taking aim again. The tip of the Valkyrie burst to life with blue flames as she hit the trigger.

The Valkyrie zoomed down the monster's back and across its tail. Bright blue fire burned hotly through its flesh, catching easily on the thing's blood. Zell, unaffected by the hottest of flames, charged in and slammed his fist through the thing's back.

The rudimentary heart that the monster's possessed was three chambered, small, and thick. It had to be to pump that thick blood. Zell caught it in and and squeezed just as Squall's random piercing found the target in his monster.

Both oil creatures let out long, bubbling noises as they collapsed down. Their bodies looked like they melted somewhat as they lost the power to keep them upright.

“EW!” Rinoa gagged, stepping away as Squall came down. He was covered in the thick, purple, petroleum jelly like blood. “You are not allowed to touch me again until you wash that stuff off!”

“I don't want to touch anything until I wash it off,” Squall admitted, trying to flick it away. It clung tightly to his skin and leather.

Zell laughed as the flames engulfing his body burned away the blood while Ifrit left Zell and his clothing completely untouched.

“Jealous?” He asked, grinning smugly.

Squall raised an eyebrow as Shiva reached out and froze the blood soaked onto him. He lifted his foot and slammed it down against the ground. The force of it shattered the frozen blood and it fell around him in glittered shards.

“No,” he said, putting his gunblade away. “Come on.”

The missiles could be coming any minute now. How he hoped desperately that he was wrong and Selphie had been successful.

They raced for the next ladder.

***

Racing out over the ocean, leaving a long trail of smoke in their wake, the missiles aiming for Balamb sank down from under the clouds and raced toward the ground. The program fighting against the increased error ratio focused on their rather large target.

***

The final ladder ended in a strangely spherical room that echoed uncomfortably in their ears as they walked forward. The large, foreign engine sitting, waiting, for them was enormous. The platform leading to it was rusted and held only a single, simple control panel.

“Looks like we're here,” Squall whispered. His voice still echoed.

“So...What are we supposed to do here?” Rinoa asked, looking around.

How in the name of Hyne was he supposed to know, Squall thought resentfully as he stepped up to the controls. Even the headmaster didn't know.

Well, there was a strange control stick...

He reached out and clicked it sideways.

…

Nothing. The entire room was deadly silent.

He clicked it again.

…

More nothing.

“Do you know what you're doing, Squall?” Rinoa asked, grabbing her arm.

Of all the stupid- Of course he didn't!

“What else can I do!?” He asked almost angrily, turning from the console.

The ground dropped down under their feet as something loud clanged somewhere outside or inside of the room. It was hard to tell where it came from with the horrid echo. But the room was shaking and the three of them swayed, trying to maintain their balance.

The screens on the console blinked to life first as electricity started sparking from the large machine in front of them. Squall flinched because the memories of his torture was too fresh. But he was able to look past that automatic response and turn around, trying to follow what was going on.

The large machines in front of him that Squall could make neither heads nor tails of started spinning, slowly rotating around the centers. Then, as Squall watched, around each other.

He heard something heavy thud underneath him and the platform dropped. It was only a few centimeters, but the sudden stop made all three of them hit their knees.

Then, groaning like an old man trying to get out of bed, the platform started raising.

Squall pushed himself up quickly and watched as the machinery, spinning dizzily fast now, sank beneath them.

“Squall, the ceiling!” Rinoa pointed.

He turned to run back, but the walkway to the ladder out of here was far below them. They were moving too fast now! The ceiling was rushing right at them!

The strange weightlessness that came over him told Squall that there was magic being cast all over the platform. But he didn't know the spell. Light washed over their bodies. Rinoa cried out as her belly dropped out from under her and the platform burst through a hole in the roof of the engine room that opened barely in time for them to pass.

Straight up they flew. Ancient machinery and rusted metal flashing by them too quickly to identify. The green lights on the old screens of the control panel were their only lights as they raced upwards. The shaft ended in another dead end and Zell cursed at seeing it rushing at them.

It had to open soon, right...

Right?!

“Brace for impact!” Squall yelled.

The roof of the shaft opened, not by mechanics, but by magic. With a flash of light, they passed through with a strange, cooling sensation. Almost like chewing on mint gum. The brightness of daylight surrounding them, the fresh air of the third floor office hit them hard.

Not nearly as hard as the platform hitting Headmaster Cid. The old man cried out in surprise as a burst of light from the floor of his office sudden bloomed into an old metal platform. His bad knee buckled under him and he landed hard on his rear as the platform burst upwards.

Reaching high above the common area of his office. Looking out over the headmaster suite, giving an almost dizzying view of their surroundings.

The platform jerked to a halt. It dropped back down only slightly as something heavy and metal snapped into place, locking the platform in the sky.

“Squall?!” The headmaster gasped, eyes wide.

The SeeD was already getting back to his feet, casting his gaze around.

He could still hear machinery grinding and groaning to life. And he could still feel magic, like a cloud, thick in the air around him.

The bright ring of light and metal that had always floated above the garden had been, for many years, a source of mystery and beauty. No one knew what it was for. No one could even figure out what was holding it up there. Perfectly stationary, glittering from unknown metals and magic.

As Squall and the others looked around, directly above their heads, they could see the metal ring starting to glow. Starting to slowly spin.

The long golden spokes spun counterclockwise. Sandwiched between those two layers, the ornate white and silver piece spun clockwise. Countering each other. Building energy.

It started coming down on their heads.

The bright light it created, white and blue and blinding, got impossibly brighter, seemingly darkening the sky behind it in comparison.

Squall panicked for a moment. That ring was too small! There was no way it would fit over the entirety of the garden! It was going to crash down around their heads. The technology was too old, left without maintenance for too long.

The light and the ring hit them at the same time.

While the ring slipped easily over the apex of the garden where the headmaster's suite resided, the light washed over everything.

Squall heard an almost uncomfortable groaning, bending, warping of metal, glass, and wood. The ring hit the garden somewhere below them, but it didn't crash against the hull. It slipped through. From directly above, looking down through the windows that offered a 360 degree view in almost all directions, Squall could see that the ring and the light weren't doing any damage at all.

But they were leaving the garden...changed somehow.

He could feel the floor sinking. Then raising.

The ring hit the ground beneath the garden. The loud snapping of concrete, bedrock, and the explosion of dirt as the ring dug its spokes into the earth was immediately followed by an enormous cloud of dust and dirt that burst up from below.

The ring continued to spin. The dirt spun with it, creating a vortex.

A loud beeping on the control panel caught Squall's attention.

“No way!” Zell was yelling at everything as Squall tried to decipher what the frantic beeping meant.

Rinoa, squinting through the window, understood first.

The long tracks being left over the ocean. The flashing of metal as they raced towards them.

“Squall!” She yelled, grabbing his jacket sleeve. Her arm, frantic in its fear, smacked against the strange control stick on the control panel.

“Missiles incoming!” He roared in warning.

What had they even accomplished here? Was it enough?

There was a delay between control panel and the engine below. Rinoa's arm on the console registered with it seconds later. And the garden gave a lurch.

They all three looked up as the shining bodies of the missiles jerked upwards, the smoke trail encasing them almost like a cage.

They turned, and zoomed back to deliver their fatal cargo.

The large windows gave a perfect view and Squall turned as he watched the missiles zoom directly past them. No, not just the missiles. The garden, it was...

It was moving!

Squall covered his face as the missiles struck. The bright, blinding light, not the first they had seen in the last minute, nearly blinded him. He heard the sound of more rock and stone being crushed and pulverized. The dust around them got, if possible, _thicker_.

A second later, the shock wave from the blast hit the garden.

Rinoa hit the ground. Zell was thrown against the rail. Headmaster Cid, still on his butt, rocked uncomfortably but kept himself up.

Squall was thrown backwards. His elbow his the control panel and the lever. As the garden rocked from the force of the blast, the delay passed, and the garden suddenly zoomed forward.

They burst out of the dark dust cloud and into the bright light of day. The garden was moving. And it was moving fast! The enormous building-

No. The enormous vessel was eating up land faster than any car Squall had driven.

“We're...moving?!” Squall gasped. What in the name of Holy Hyne!

“I see...” Cid breathed, trying to gather himself. Shaking his head, he stood up slowly. “So this is the secret. I could see how this would prove beneficial in the aftermath of the Cataclysm.”

“Holy Hyne...” Rinoa breathed, still trying to drink it all in.

“Helluva ton better than a protection spell,” Zell laughed, craning his neck around to try to stare at the familiar scenery observed from an entirely new angle.

“The garden...” Cid frowned, looking back and down towards the door of his office. “What's going on outside? Are the students safe?”

“Come on, Squall!” Laughing like a kid, Rinoa grabbed his arm and began pulling him quickly towards the platform at the back of the deck. The only part that looked like it moved. “Let's go! I want to see!”

“Yeah!” Zell agreed. “How do you work this thing?”

Letting Rinoa lead him, Squall stepped onto the small platform. He looked around for some way to activate it. Rinoa found it first. There was a small pedal near the far right corner. She pressed it with her foot eagerly and the platform started moving down.

They took the elevator down to the second story. As they got out, the first thing they saw was a man running in frantic circles crying out in surprise. Another man was staring out over the rails of the second story walkway. At least they weren't fighting.

Squall ran past them to the second floor halls. In front of the classroom, SeeDs and cadets alike were standing around, talking quickly. Did the hallway look different? Either way, none of the students seemed to be negatively affected. The safety system hadn't harmed anyone when it was activated. Just changed everything.

They jogged down through the hall, through more people that had laid down their weapons in exchange for looking at each other and trying to figure out what the hell had just happened.

At the far end of the hallway, past the emergency exit, there was a door that led to the second floor observation deck. No one had ever used it for anything because, really, the only thing it had ever observed was the mountains directly behind the garden. At least that was the mystery solved of why anyone would point an observation desk at a wall of boring rocks. They hadn't.

The small staircase up to the observation deck was only wide enough for one. Squall went up first and slowed to a halt as the sunlight hit him. Rinoa, however, ran past him. Throwing out her arms, laughing, she raced for the metal railing.

Birds were calling out over the garden. Rather than being frightened away by the explosion and the suddenly no-longer-stationary garden, they were flying alongside it.

Squall continued forward calmly as Zell laughed loudly and ran to look down at the ring. Which was now directly below them. Its magic keeping the garden afloat between its circular body.

Rinoa leaned out slightly over the edge. The wind rushed through her hair. She took a deep breath of the fresh air, trying to banish any lingering scent of oil that remained in her nose. She heard Squall's footsteps approaching behind her and she turned.

Her face was flushed with excitement. The wind was scooping up her hair and playing with the jet black locks. It was also pushing against her clothes, molding them to the shape of her body. The light surrounded her like a halo. She beamed at him, leaning back against the railing slightly. Squall almost felt like she was offering her body up to him.

“See?” She laughed. “Wasn't I right?”

Squall lifted an eyebrow curiously. About what? Because she certainly hadn't predicted the garden being able to move.

“If I had evacuated to Balamb, you would be up here alone without me,” she clarified. “And then how would you feel?”

“I would feel like you hadn't come within inches of death because the missiles barely avoided hitting us,” he said immediately, totally serious.

Rinoa threw back her head and laughed. “Aw, who cares? We survived, right? And you don't get to feel this alive without coming within inches of death...”

What was she talking about?

Her head fell back and she smiled at him invitingly. “Come here. Come look at the view.”

“I can see it just fine from here.”

She grinned. Then, unable to stop herself from teasing him just a little, she ran one of her fingers up from her thigh, across her belly, around the swell of her breast then up into her hair. Squall's eyes tracked the entire movement and made her grin.

“Oh, but, the only thing you can see is me.” The only thing he attempted to look at was her. Her voice sounded completely innocent, like she was merely blocking his vision, yet the inference couldn't be missed.

Squall made a face before he stepped forward. He tore his eyes away from her body and looked out, mostly just to prove a point. Beside him, Rinoa laughed as she turned. She wasn't really trying to look at anything but him either.

His hair, so unexpectedly soft, was billowing in the wind. His skin, tanned and hard, looked right at home under the sun. The bright lights of outdoors highlighted what he was always trying to downplay with the black leather. The natural highlights in his hair. The brightness of his skin. He was so unreasonably attractive, even with the scar, it took Rinoa's breath away slightly.

He caught sight of her staring out of the corner of his eye and turned to her. Instead of quickly looking away, Rinoa continued looking at him. His eyes, always so serious, always ON, felt like they were looking right through to her soul. But unjudging. Accepting. Like he had seen the depths of human misery, pain, and darkness and nothing she held inside her could close to compare.

She felt like she could stay up there for hours more. Staring at Squall while he stared at her. Neither speaking, but so much being passed between them.

Until Zell, who she had honestly forgotten was out here with them, spoke up.

“Hey, guys. Let's go check out the first floor,” he said, moving towards the door again.

Squall nodded once. Stared for just another second more, then turned away. Slightly disappointed – when would they ever get a chance to be alone?! – she followed him back down into the second floor hallway.

They had barely hit the ground inside when they heard Xu calling out. She was racing towards them, a frightened look on her face.

“Squall! It's the headmaster!” She jerked to a halt and waved him back. “Get back to the bridge on the double!”

They sprinted back to the office. The same button that lowered the lift rose it back to the deck. The headmaster was there, dithering over the control panel. He turned quickly when he heard them coming up.

“Squall!” He pointed, moving out of the way. “The controls aren't responding! I don't know what to do! We're going to crash into the town of Balamb if we don't do something!”

“No way!” Rinoa turned back as Squall cursed internally. “Can't we do something?”

“Man...” Zell breathed, running to the window and looking out over the beach side town that they were quickly bearing down on. “This can't be happening!”

“Squall, can you think of anything?” Cid asked desperately.

No!

“Squall, C'MON!” Zell yelled, waving him towards the controls without doing anything himself.

“Squall, do something!” Rinoa begged expectantly.

How the hell should he know what to do?! They were all staring at him. The town was coming up fast.

“DAMN!” he yelled loudly, running to the controls.

For lack of anything better to do, he just started hitting everything. Buttons, levers, the control panel itself. It started making weird noises in protest at the incoming signals, but Squall just kept beating away at it.

The wires that carried signals down to the engines were corroded and worn. They delayed signal transmission and, with the sudden activation at the system, were dying quickly. But, at Squall's banging, they gave one last cough of life and the garden lurched.

“WHOA! What was that?!” Zell yelled as Rinoa took hold of the rails to keep from falling.

The headmaster, breathing hard, looked out of the window. A bright smile crossed his face. “Yes! You did it! We're turning!”

The town of Balamb, so peaceful and quiet, panicked at seeing the large, once immobile garden bearing down on them. The wind generated by the spinning ring whipped through the town, sending hair and leaves and whatever else that wasn't tied down flying.

But the garden was turning. It passed within centimeters of hitting the wall outside the town.

“Alright, Squall!” Rinoa yelled, jumping in place. “You did it!”

Squall let out a breath, leaning against the control panel.

“AH!” Zell yelled pointing. “Yeah, but now we're going to crash into the SEA!”

“Everybody, hold onto something!” Headmaster Cid yelled, reaching back for the rails. Zell was already clinging onto them. Squall gripped the control panel. Rinoa rushed forward and grabbed onto Squall's arm.

The water rushed towards them. Squall turned his arm quickly and took proper hold of Rinoa's shoulders, bringing her in close to keep her from falling.

The waves crashed against the base of the garden as it fell from the short cliff. The garden didn't wobble or tilt. The ring around it' base acted almost like a gyroscope and kept the garden perfectly level as it drove forward and down.

The engines creaked and groaned and sputtered as they slammed into the surf. The body of the garden crashed and they all jerked forward as they touched down.

But the garden didn't sink.

The massive wave they created by displacing so much water washed over the pier of Balamb, but the town had experienced worse during bad storms.

The engines gave one last cough before the control panel in front of Squall suddenly darkened and everything died. The garden, still coasting on its own momentum, continued drifting out into the open water.

The control deck remained completely still as everyone tried to take a breath. As they waited to see if the massive garden was going to start dropping under the waves. But the ring, whatever it was, kept them floating just above the base of the garden. The magic ring, independent of the mechanical controls, remained completely functional.

Headmaster Cid broke the silence first as he let out a long sigh of relief. Zell started laughing nervously and Rinoa's entire body slumped against Squall as all her muscles relaxed at the same time.

He realized that he was still holding her and he jerked his arm back quickly. She didn't miss the move but she smiled at him nonetheless.

“Squall, Zell, Rinoa” Headmaster Cid called to them, turning their gaze away from the window. He nodded to each of them in turn. “A job very well done. I couldn't ask for better. I think...the worst is behind us for now.”

“Where are we heading?” Squall asked, glancing back out the window. Nothing but open water stretched out in front of them.

Headmaster Cid shrugged. “I guess...We'll just drift along for the time being. Until we figure out how to fix and maneuver the garden. There shouldn't be any major towns out here,,” he laughed. “So I think we can finally relax for a while. Clean up this mess we've made. And spend some time considering what to do next.”

He smiled at them good naturedly as they looked back at him. Squall immediately felt better with that list of things to do. As crazy as it was right now, a to do list of simple, easy things to check off was a blessing.

Headmaster Cid laughed. “So much for my room, eh? Where am I going to change now?”

Rinoa and Zell laughed with him as Squall shook his head in disbelief. How could he be so calm?


	21. Drifting

How long had it been since they started moving?

Drifting. Days at sea with nothing much to do. Squall was definitely not meant to live a sailor's life. He couldn't handle just sitting around. Laying in his bunk when he wasn't training because there was nothing else to do.

All of the monsters had been cleared out of garden. But that had barely taken a full day with everyone around to help. The garden clones were going out of their circuits about the garden and seemed to have forgotten that they wanted to kill the headmaster. So that left everyone, even the cadets, available to put what monsters they didn't kill back in the training center.

Oh, yeah. He still had to give his official report to the headmaster. In all the confusion, the poor headmaster had been too busy to really ask for it. Regardless of the fact that they were huge failures, Squall still needed to report on both of them. And there were just so many things he wanted to know. Questions that he felt the need to ask.

Order wasn't established quickly though. There were now rivalries and hostilities amongst the garden staff, students, and SeeDs that hadn't been there before. As the headmaster, and as someone who cared deeply for those under him, Cid was seeing to all of it personally.

Which meant that Squall had nothing to do. He couldn't pilot the ship. He couldn't fix the unbelievably complex engines. There was nothing left to kill and nothing left to do. They were out in the middle of nowhere and he couldn't even go up to the classes that some instructors were still trying to hold despite everything.

So he spent a great deal of time in his room. At his desk or in his bed. Staring at the ceiling. Counting the holes there for lack of anything better to do. He couldn't train all the time, unfortunately. There was inevitably going to be times where he had nothing to do.

He hated having nothing to do. It got him thinking too much. Action, at least, let his mind calm down and keep him focused. Without that, his mind was free to run wild and land on any topic then proceed to worry it until Squall annoyed himself.

He hoped Selphie, Quistis, and Irvine were alright. He desperately hoped that he hadn't just sent them off to their deaths. They would try to come back if they were alive, but they would find only a crater and wild stories from the people of Balamb. He knew that it was no use worrying over them, but he did useless stuff like that when he had nothing but time to think.

Was it wrong for him to let them go? Had he assumed too much responsibility to do so? What had Quistis and Irvine thought about it? They hadn't protested, but maybe they were just too well trained to do so. What if they ended up hating him? Or dead? Or both?

And the sorceress? Who was she exactly? Where had she come from? Squall thought the last sorceress had been killed at the end of the Sorceress War. Why would she fire missiles at the garden? Did she seriously just do it because they had been hired to kill her? No other country blamed them for what others hired them to do? Why hate them for that?

Was Seifer ever coming back? Was he really happy licking the sorceress's toes? Squall couldn't believe he had taken on such a subservient role for his 'romantic dream'. The damage to his body had been healed, but Squall still hated Seifer with a passion now. He would get even with him. Next time. If there ever was a next time.

He just continued on in that vein. Thinking about things he couldn't control, couldn't understand, and couldn't help until he put himself to sleep. Endless questions became confusing dreams. Restless energy turned into restless nightmares. Which would only make things worse when he woke up because he would start thinking about _that_ instead. At least, in the morning, he could go back to the training center and wear himself out again.

***

Three days aboard a slowly drifting garden was exactly enough, Rinoa figured, for Squall to have rested up sufficiently. She had made sure to keep her distance in that time because she didn't want to disturb his chance to finally recover and relax.

But she had heard yesterday afternoon from Zell that Squall's 'relaxation' involved him fighting to exhaustion in the training center each day then retiring to his room for the remainder of the night. He showered and ate in the communal areas, but he didn't really mix with others.

Well, then, if he was healthy enough to fight monsters, he was healthy enough to deal with her.

Early the next day, she stepped from the guest room assigned to her in the dorms with Angelo hot in her heels. He loved it here. Mostly because everyone loved having him here. There was apparently a no pets policy that she got to break simply because there was no where for Angelo to go. He would play and run around, often without her. Last she had seen, he was playing games with the underclassmen in the courtyards.

Rinoa had apologized and promised to bring him under control when she found out. The SeeD instructor in charge of them had laughed however and begged her not to. The kids loved playing with him and he loved playing with the kids. Plus, his faster reflexes was doing wonders for their reaction times when it came time to play catch the pooch.

Geez, was everything about training with these people?!

As Rinoa moved towards Squall's door, her dog was racing off to go play. She let him go because she planned on having some alone time – _finally!_ – with the aloof SeeD.

She almost knocked. But she didn't want to give him a chance to send her away. Besides, she knew how early he got up. He was probably already awake. She just hit the release on the door and let herself in as it quickly slid open.

She took two quick steps inside and the words she was about to call out died on her tongue. The door sealed behind her and she blinked in surprise.

Squall was sleeping!

Tucked under his blankets, one bare arm resting above his head. His face was guarded still, but he hadn't moved when she came in. He was well and truly asleep.

She was tempted to leave and let him keep sleeping?

But when would she ever get this chance again?

Biting her lip and grinning, Rinoa crept in closer. She wished that the dorms were carpeted instead of covered in smooth marble, but her shoes were still very quiet with each slow step.

Squall's mouth was moving. Sound was barely coming out. Was he talking in his sleep?

Giddy with that discovery, Rinoa moved in even closer until she was standing almost directly over him, beaming down at his face. She wished he would at least relax while he was asleep!

Huh?

Rinoa's face flushed red. From this angle, she could see that his arms weren't the only things that were bare. His entire chest was uncovered. He slept without a shirt on!

“...Rin...oa...” he mumbled and she jumped, certain for a moment that he had caught her.

His head turned though, and he remained asleep. He was calling out to her in his dreams. That meant he was having _dreams_ about her!

Rinoa beamed, excited about the thought. That had to be a good thing, right?

“Rinoa...” he repeated before growling. “...Get out...”

Her face fell and she rolled her eyes. Geez. Even asleep he was a meanie.

“...s'not safe...” he continued, looking back up, breathing a little hard from the nightmare.

Rinoa blinked then smiled again. Yeah, that sounded like something he would say.

Her weight shifted and her shoe squeaked just slightly against the floor. It was barely audible.

He struck so quickly that she didn't even see it coming, much less have time to react. Rinoa cried out as his hand suddenly snapped around her arm. He threw her down across her bed and the shadow of his body came over her. His fist was raised and she screamed.

“Squall! Squall! It's me!” She held up her hands, begging him not to bring that fist down.

Squall blinked a couple times and the sleep faded from his eyes. The automatic reaction to protect himself had moved him before he even realized what he was looking at.

Why was Rinoa in his bed?

She grinned when she saw himself come back to himself. Mostly because she got to see that fantastic chest of his held over her body. In his bed. Ah, the imagery. She didn't know if she was disappointed or relieved that he wore black pajama pants to sleep.

“Hey,” she greeted as calmly as she was able as he looked around, trying to orient himself. “Good morning, sleepy head. I thought you'd be up already.”

Squall released her and sat back, frowning. “What are you doing in here?”

“You didn't lock your door. Don't complain when people help themselves.”

“These doors don't have locks,” he told her dryly.

“Really?” She sat up. “Mine does.”

“That's because you have a guest room. SeeDs and students don't get locks on their doors.”

“Why not?”

“Surprise inspections and sleep attack drills. You didn't answer my question. Why are you in here?”

Chuckling, Rinoa crossed her legs as she looked down Squall's body, drinking in the half naked sight he made in his own bed.

Oh, yeah. A girl could get used to that view.

“I came to see you, of course,” she finally said, smiling. “Imagine my surprise to find you still in bed this late in the morning. Squall, it's almost eight am! You lush. But, works out great for me. You looked so adorable, sleeping like a baby.”

“Please stop,” he said, dryly, trying to hide his own embarrassment. “And get out.”

Instead of listening to him, she cast her eyes around. Her gaze brightened as she came upon his SeeD jacket hanging from a peg on the wall behind his bed.

“What's this?” she grabbed it off the hanger and jumped up before he could stop her.

“Put that down,” Squall said, throwing off his blanket to stand up.

Continuing to ignore him, Rinoa twisted around. As she did so, she slipped her arms through the large sleeves. The jacket hung limp and long on her body. The tips of her fingers barely came out of the wrists, it practically smothered her in its size.

But it smelled like Squall. And it was warm and comfortable. Giggling, she turned back and winked at the half naked SeeD coming after her.

Squall stopped in his tracks as he felt a punch to his gut.

Damn it.

Rinoa looked so damn good wrapped in his clothes. Her wide eyes as she fluttered those long lashes at him, tucked into his jacket, were too cute. Her fingers, barely coming out of the jacket, as she grasped at the edges tickled something deep in his gut. The fiery fist of desire clenched tight around his groin and he had to work to catch his breath.

“Take that off,” he said, his voice rough.

“Why?” She asked, twisting slightly. “Does it not look good on me?”

He was so not answering that question. “Because it is against the rules for non-SeeD personnel to wear any part of our uniform. You'll get me in trouble by wearing that.”

“Who's gonna see? We're safe here in your dorm with no one looking.”

She tried to dance away from him. Squall reached out to grab her. He caught the edge of his jacket but, instead of pulling it off of her, he accidentally jerked her body against his. Her hands came up to catch herself and her fingers got to stroke the hard expanse of his chest.

And he was warm. He didn't have Shiva's power junctioned and his sleep warmed body was so hot that Rinoa practically melted from the heat.

She very nearly purred. Squall moved back quickly like he had been electrocuted.

“Take it off,” he repeated, looking away. When she didn't move, he continued. “Did you just come in here to steal my clothes, or what?”

“No,” she admitted, moving back and sitting on the edge of his bed.

In his bed, in his clothes. Dammit, he wished he had a less vivid imagination.

“Come on, get dressed and let's go,” she said, smiling at him.

“Go where,” he looked back at her and tried to ignore that fist of desire. He really needed her to leave. Immediately. He didn't even have Shiva to cool him down right now. She was sleeping in her capsule in his bedside table.

“You're going to give me a tour of the garden,” Rinoa said immediately, like he had no choice.

He hesitated, thinking over her words. “Is this another one of your orders?”

“No,” she brushed at the leather of the SeeD jacket. “I just want you to show me around. You know, to get acquainted with the place.”

“You've been here for three days already. Aren't you familiar with it yet?”

“That's not the point. Please?”

He hesitated, looking her over as she smiled at him. Damn. He was weak.

“Give me the jacket back and I'll take you.”

She looked at him critically, her eyes dancing. It was to be negotiations then? Alright, she could do that.

“Okay, but only if you promise not to wear a jacket when we go out.”

“Huh?”

“Leave the leather jacket behind,” she repeated, pointing to his fur lined leather coat hanging on the back of his desk chair. “I know you don't feel hot, but I want you to leave it behind.” She wanted to see those fantastic arms of his.

Squall considered her terms for a long moment. Then-

“Fine, but you have to leave while I get dressed.”

Giggling, feeling like she had won, Rinoa jumped up. The SeeD jacket slipped easily from her shoulders as she did so and fell back on the bed.

“Deal! Don't take too long or I'll come back in and I don't care how naked you are when I do.”

Either because he was a fast dresser, or because of her threat, Squall was stepping from his room very quickly. As promised, he had left his leather jacket behind so he was wearing only a short sleeved white shirt that plunged low down his chest with a decorative slice. Rinoa could almost see his chest though it when he moved. He still had on his gloves though, which made her smile.

“Satisfied?” he asked.

“Not yet,” she grinned, falling into step beside him. From there, she was able to see the muscles of his arms move as he swung his arms while walking.

Mm...So good it had to be wrong.

“What?” Squall frowned when he caught her staring.

Rinoa laughed and suddenly grabbed his arm. She hung off of it as they walked. He continued to frown at her, but he made no move to dislodge her.

“What are you doing?” He asked though.

“Do you not like it?”

He was not answering that question either.

“It will be hard to fight if we're attacked with you hanging off me like that.”

Rinoa laughed. “Attacked? Squall, the garden is totally peaceful! You yourself were in charge of seeing to putting all the monsters away. Are you saying you somehow didn't do a good job?”

Squall didn't respond and she grinned at the corner she had put him into. He continued to not say a word as he walked with her out of the dorms and towards the garden nexus. The people that they passed stared. And hard.

Squall ignored them and Rinoa didn't care. Finally they were alone and peaceful. She was not going to let anything ruin this.

He turned left at the central circle of the garden and started forward. Rinoa looked around as they walked, taking in all the sights.

“This place is huge! Do you think it's bigger than Galbadia Garden?”

“Who knows?” He asked, uncaring.

“What's over there?” She asked, pointing to the place they were walking past.

“The parking lot.” He was totally emotionless.

“What about over there?” She pointed across the nexus.

“The cafeteria.”

She looked back at him and frowned at the deadpan way he was speaking. He hadn't even looked to what she had pointed to. And she knew that he probably didn't need to, but it felt like he was trying to distance himself from her despite how close she was to him physically.

“Squall,” she started, giving him a look, “I really appreciate you showing me around. But can you try to make it a little more...fun? You know, like a normal tour?”

What did that even mean? What was it she wanted from him? He wasn't opposed to giving it to her, but he wished she would just tell him what it was. He didn't know what a 'normal' tour was, or how to make it fun for her.

He continued forward and Rinoa frowned when she spotted what he was aiming himself towards.

“Squall, I know you are not taking me to the directory.”

He looked over to see her giving him a hard look.

“You asked for a tour,” he reminded her.

“I did not mean the directory! I know how to use that if I need to. I want you to show me around the actual garden. Take me to the places and tell me about them. Like a real tour. See, this place. Let's start here. Come on.”

She turned him deliberately on the nearest walkway and Squall frowned as she directed them towards the library.

“You've already been taken around,” he reminded her.

“Fighting monsters and running for my life is no way to take a tour,” she pouted. “Do you not want to give me a tour?”

...Damn, she was cute. He hated how weak he was.

Squall didn't say anything and she beamed, taking that to mean that he did.

Rinoa hadn't walked into the library before. When Squall had searched it for the headmaster, she had been outside siphoning magic from the grat's body. So this was the first time that she had actually come inside.

Rinoa stopped dead in her tracks and gasped.

It was beautiful!

Rinoa loved books. She loved reading. Squall's arm slipped from her grasp as she looked around quickly, trying to take in the glory of it all. SeeDs didn't just appreciate combat. They also valued knowledge and that showed in the amount of books stored here. Rinoa hadn't seen this many books in one place in her entire life. It was better than the presidential library in Galbadia by far.

Squall, who had taken a few steps ahead of her, turned back when she released him. He looked at her curiously. He couldn't miss the rapture on her face.

“Wow!” Rinoa breathed, looking back at him. “This is so cool! Do you mind if I just look around for a minute?”

Squall held out his hand, inviting her to help herself.

“Thanks,” Rinoa beamed.

She turned and cast her eyes around before walking over to the first shelf she saw. Squall watched her for a minute. She looked so happy and all he had done was walked her inside of the room. If he had known this would have made her happy, he would have taken her here a long time ago.

Putting his hands in his pockets, Squall looked around himself. The quiet of the library was always so comforting. Though he was more inclined to be in the training room, he couldn't deny he liked the peace of this place. It was the one room where everyone was required to be silent.

Looking over the books, wondering how long Rinoa would want to stay in here, Squall moved deeper into the stacks.

He paused as he came upon the study desks. There was only one person back here at the moment. One thin, pale person with short brown hair and no fashion sense.

It was her! That girl that had come to see him in the infirmary!

Curious, he stepped forward. At hearing his footsteps, she turned. She caught sight of him and a bright smile lit up her face.

“Hi, Squall,” she whispered. Her eyes were shining so bright at the sight of him.

“Who are you?” He whispered, searching her pixie face. She looked so familiar...

“You know who I am,” she said, frowning slightly at the question.

Squall shook his head. “No. I don't. Who are you?”

The girl sighed. “I didn't think it would be this hard.” She looked back up at Squall, her eyes so sad at hearing his denial. “Try to remember. I would hate to think I was forgotten.”

How could he have forgotten her if he had never met her?

“Squall!”

He turned to look over his shoulder at Rinoa's cry. He looked back at the girl who was smiling at him gently, like she was just happy he was there. He took a step back away from her before turning to go back to where Rinoa had stopped.

She beamed at him as he came around the shelf. In her hands was a book that she immediately waved in his direction.

“Check it out!” She laughed excitedly. “Do you know what this is?”

“A book?”

She gave him a dry look at his sarcasm. “Yes, of course it is. But it's not just any book! This is the classic be-all, end-all of romance novels. The Sorceress's Knight!”

The name caught Squall's attention and he reached out to take it from her. The title was emblazoned in gold across the top. Beneath that, there was a picture of a young woman in the arms of a man wearing full body armor, blood soaking his sword.

Rinoa sighed as she looked at it. “It's the best. The story of a young woman who becomes a sorceress and starts to be corrupted by the power. The world turns against her but this man here, he loves her so much that he becomes her knight and vows to protect her from the world.”

“Really?” Squall asked, turning it over to look at the back.

“Uh-huh,” she smiled, leaning her head against his shoulder as she took his arm again. “It's so sad.”

“Why?”

“I don't want to spoil it for you!”

“Just tell me.”

Rinoa sighed dreamily, looking back at the cover. “It ends with the people cornering her and the knight in the mountains and he gives his life to save her so she can get away. She escapes and becomes a hermit in the Grandidi Forest and gives birth to his son.”

Squall frowned at her. “How is that romantic?”

“Because he was willing to die for her!” She pointed out obviously. “And that his love and sacrifice were able to negate the corruptive powers of the sorceress. And even without him, she never moved on. She loved him the rest of her life. It's a tragic romance.”

“That's stupid,” he said coldly and Rinoa frowned at him, offended.

“What's so stupid?”

“How is it romantic that he dies and leaves her alone to care for his child by herself?” It wasn't romantic to die for someone. It was romantic to live for someone. To not leave them alone. Leaving wasn't romance, it was just reality.

He didn't say any of that. Rinoa didn't need to hear him say it though. She could see it in his face. She could infer it in the words he spoke. A small smile graced her face as she put her head back on his shoulder.

“Yeah. I always thought it would have been better if he had lived, too. They could have taken care of the baby together. Been hermits together. It's easy to love someone when you only see them for a short time. Real love is love that lasts through the years.”

Squall didn't say anything. He stared at the book for a moment longer before he slipped it into his pocket, into his INVENTORY. He would read it later. Try to figure out what it was that Rinoa found so interesting about a story like that.

Rinoa didn't miss the move. She smiled and pulled on his arm. “Come on. We've still got a lot of garden left to tour. I can come back and read to my heart's content later.”

Squall didn't fight her either. He let her pull him out. He took control again at the end of the walkway and turned them right to move them onto the next area. At least now he had a better understanding of what she was asking of him.

They moved onto the training room. Though Rinoa was already familiar with it, she still looked around like an brand new tourist a he took her up to the sealed metal doors. He didn't take her through the gates because he didn't want to equip Shiva or pull out his gunblade at the moment. But he gestured around as she looked at the artificial forest with interested eyes.

“This is the training center,” he told her. “Or, as we call it, the monster's lair. The monsters are left to run loose so students can get a feel for actual combat.”

“Cool,” Rinoa admired.

“There's a rule about coming here alone. You're not allowed to. Training in the training center must always be done, at least, in pairs.”

“Hey, you come here alone!”

“Yeah, and I'm not allowed to. I get in trouble every time I'm caught. But it's worth it because I learned how to fight on my own.”

“Hm...” Rinoa looked thoughtfully over the area. There were no monster's near the electric fence, but she could hear them calling out to each other in the far trees. “So can I come here to get better?”

“Of course. But not by yourself. You have to have me with you.”

Rinoa grinned over at him. “You specifically? Alright.”

Squall realized what he said too late and he looked away. “Or Zell. Or any SeeD, really.”

“Uh-huh,” she grinned. The damage was already done.

He sent her a grin. “So eager to train are you? Want to go a few rounds?”

Rinoa laughed and shook her head. “You know, I can just imagine you doing that on a first date. You're such a romantic, Squall.”

“Who said this was a date?” He asked, raising an eyebrow at her with a grin.

“Who said I was referring to this as a date?” She countered, smirking.

Squall frowned at her. When had she gotten so smart anyway?

“Come on. Let's go if you don't want to fight.”

She giggling, knowing she had won and let him take her out again. The next room was considerably less interesting. He walked in and held out his hand.

“Just a parking lot. Nothing special.”

“That's it?” She frowned.

“Yeah.” What else could there be? It wasn't even like they could drive the cars anymore. The garden had been broken off at the front gates when the ring came down, which was the exit at the end of the garage which had been roped off for safety.

Rinoa sighed. “Nevermind. Let's keep going.”

“What were you expecting?” He asked as they left, wondering what he had done wrong.

“Nothing,” she sighed. “You're right. Just a parking lot. So the cafeteria would be next, right?”

“Yeah.” She still looked disappointed and that didn't sit right with Squall. What exactly had he done wrong there?

Across the nexus, the two of them walked into the cafeteria. There were more people here. More people to stare at the way Rinoa clung to Squall and the way he let her do so.

Rinoa had been here more than just when they had run around before. This was the ballroom where she had first met Squall. It looked so different when it wasn't cleaned up, but still so beautifully elegant and pristine.

Squall stopped them in front of the line before the lunch counters. A line that Zell was standing in the very back of, twitching in anticipation.

“This is the cafeteria,” Squall said, showing it to her. “We use it as a ballroom during formal events. But, obviously, this is where we usually take our meals.”

He looked down to see her looking up at him. Expectant. Anticipating. She wanted more. She always wanted more from him.

He cleared his throat and continued, trying to think of what else there was to say.

“I should warn you, there's really only one thing on the menu that tastes good. Which would be the hot dogs. They're the only things that the staff managed to make perfectly nutritional without sacrificing any flavor. There's also, unfortunately, a lot of competition for it. You have to get here early to reserve a hot dog for lunch or dinner. If you're late-”

“Sorry, we've run out of hot dogs today,” the apologetic lunch lady called out.

“No...” Zell's cry from the front of the line caught their attention. They looked over to see him slumped down across the counter like a man defeated.

“-that happens,” Squall finished, indicating to the dejected Zell as he turned away.

He took a few steps before he noticed the two of them standing there. He flinched.

“Oh, hey guys,” he waved, trying to appear nonchalant.

“No luck today, Zell?” Rinoa asked, holding in her laughter.

“Ah, I can afford to skip a few meals,” he shrugged. “Been starting to pack on weight anyway. What are you two doing here?”

“Squall's giving me a tour.”

“Oh, really? Why didn't he just show you the directory?”

Squall have her a look that said 'see?' and Rinoa rolled her eyes. What was it with these people and not wanting to have a little pointless fun? Not everything had to be about practicality.

“Guess I'm gonna go to the library,” Zell sighed.

“The library?” Rinoa tilted her head. Zell didn't seem the type to hang out there.

“Yeah, that girl who works there always has snacks on hand,” Zell grinned. “How do you think I got a secret stash hidden away in my room? I'm gonna go see if she can get me something.”

Grinning, he started walking away.

“So much for skipping meals,” Rinoa laughed. “So, I guess since they're out of hot dogs, I'll have to get something else to eat. What do you recommend, Squall?”

“The curry.”

Rinoa frowned. “The curry? But everyone told me that stuff is hot enough to set your tongue on fire.”

“Exactly. Burns out all your taste buds and you can no longer tell how anything tastes. Makes finishing your food easier if you can muscle past the pain.”

Rinoa started laughing and Squall looked at her, confused. He had been completely serious. He couldn't possibly be as amusing as she made him out to be.

“What's so funny?” He asked, almost annoying. It felt like she was laughing _at_ him now.

“You're just so...serious,” she sent her bright smile at him. “Like this is life or death kind of stuff. It just seems kind of odd. We're only talking about cafeteria food.”

Squall glowered. What was with her? “You're the one who asked me to show you around.”

Rinoa looked surprised. “Oh, I'm sorry. You don't have to get mad like that. I wasn't making fun of you. I think it's kind of cute.”

Squall felt his eye twitch. Cute? He didn't think anyone had ever described him as 'cute'. In fact, he was quite certain that he didn't at all like the sound of that. Cute was for puppies and babies. Rinoa was cute. He did not want to be 'cute'.

Rinoa tilted her head, watching him curiously. Aside from the twitching of his eye, he didn't really react to what she had said. Somehow though, she could just tell it didn't sit right with him. She beamed and reached out to take his arm again.

“Come on, Squall. There's still a lot of garden left to see.”

He let her lead him out and onto the next area.

“This is the quad,” Squall said as they walked down the steps. “Mostly it's just an area for students to hang out. Selphie's trying to set up the Garden Festival here. Her stage was kind of busted up when the garden started moving though.”

The wreckage of it hadn't seemed to discourage anyone though. The quad of the garden used to open up outside to a courtyard. Since the garden began moving, most of that had been chopped away, leaving only a long balcony that someone had tried to rope off. However, since it was now beachfront property, it was the new hotspot for people to come hang out at.

Rinoa breathed out a sigh of delight when he walked her close and let her see the ocean spread out all around them. Someone was fishing off the side. One cadet had dug up a guitar and was strumming it gently. There was a group of friends playing triple triad. A couple against the wall was staring dreamily out at the water, holding onto each other.

“Selphie was right,” Rinoa let out a sigh. “This place really is different from Galbadia Garden. Everyone here just seems so much more relaxed. Yet, your garden consistently keeps putting out better warriors. Why is that, do you think?”

“Who knows?” Squall shrugged. He was still kind of stinging at her 'serious-cute' comment earlier.

“Maybe it's _because_ you're more relaxed.” Rinoa kept walking them forward until they were leaning against the rail with the others. Squall put his arms on that rail, looking out at the water. Rinoa didn't release his arm though. She still kept hers intertwined with his. They got so many looks by the people around them that it was starting to make Squall uncomfortable. What exactly were they so interested in anyway?

“It's a great view, don't you think?” She smiled at him.

It was water. Who cared? “...Sure.”

“Guess you're not interested,” she looked back at the ocean. “This is my first time on the open sea like this. I knew the ocean was big, but it seems almost infinite all the way out here.”

Squall said nothing.

“How long do you think we're going to drift like this?”

“Who knows?”

“Yeah. I guess if there was an end, we would have found it already.” Rinoa sighed, looking back towards Selphie's stage then to their arms wrapped around each other. “I hope Selphie and the others are okay. Do you think they're okay?”

“I don't know."

“Yeah, I know, but if you had to guess.”

Squall looked over to her. What was with that question? He didn't know. He couldn't know. At the rate they were going, it was likely they might not ever know until they just realized one day.

“They were all trained to the highest degree,” he finally said. “If there was a way they could have used to save themselves, I'm sure they would have done so.”

“Wow.”

“What?” He frowned at her surprise.

“That almost sounded comforting,” she laughed. “Cold and clinical, yeah, but comforting. It almost sounded like you believed in them.”

“There's the chance that there was no way to save themselves. You can't escape everything and they're not invincible.”

“Yeah, that sounds more like you,” Rinoa laughed. “I'm going to think they escaped.”

“Don't get your hopes too high.”

“Why not?”

“It'll hurt less when they're disappointed.”

“'When'?” Rinoa frowned at the finality of his tone. “That sounds a lot like bitterness, Squall.”

“It's the truth.”

“Yeah? Well, you be dour and grumpy, and I'll be upbeat and hopeful. And we'll see which one of us is right in the end.”

She didn't understand. She hadn't yet experienced that crushing disappointment of having reality slamming down upon you. The way it ripped you apart inside when every hope you had was destroyed and denied.

Which was why it was stupid that he was letting her hold onto him like this. It was completely foolish that he kept bending to her will and allowing those big brown eyes of hers to manipulate him into doing things like this tour. It felt good now, but that would only make it hurt worse later.

“Listen to them go."

“What?” Squall looked down to see Rinoa had rested her chin on his bicep and was staring at him.

“Listen to them go,” she repeated, reaching up to tap at his forehead. He caught her wrist in midair before it could connect and she laughed. “I can just hear the gears in your brain going. You have to drive Shiva crazy with that constant thinking of yours. What are you ruminating about so much, Squall?”

“What does it matter?” He released her hand and she took hold of him again.

“It matters to me. I'm curious.”

“Well, you're going to be disappointed.”

Instead of being put off as he would expect – as he would hope – Rinoa grinned. Her eyes sparked with the thrill of the challenge and he nearly groaned. This woman was going to be the death of him, he just knew it.

“Come on,” he pushed back from the rail. “We've got one more stop on the tour."

“One more?” She lifted an eyebrow as he turned them back to the stairs. “What are you talking about? We've still got the entire second floor.”

“There's nothing but classrooms up there,” Squall frowned. “You see one, you've seen them all.”

“Yeah, and I haven't seen one yet. So you have to show me that. And then we're going to go eat lunch together. After which, you and I are going to go to one of the courtyards and I'm going to force you and Angelo to work out this animosity thing you've got going.”

“Got it all planned out, do you?” Squall asked dully.

“Prepare yourself, Squall Leonhart,” she grinned. “You're going to have fun today, one way or another, and I'm not letting the date end until you do.”

“I thought you weren't describing this as a date?” What was he doing?! Stop joking with her! He was flirting and it was _not_ okay.

“I never denied it was a date, I just hadn't used that word yet,” she grinned, putting her nose in the air.

She was laughing when he had no comeback as they left the quad. Mostly because he also wasn't denying it was a date, despite the fact she had given him plenty of opportunity to do so. True, he also hadn't claimed it was one, but she was taking baby steps with him. He was so afraid of intimacy, she had to push gently.

They came around to the infirmary. Which Squall honestly thought was self explanatory. But Rinoa still demanded an explanation from him.

“Dr. Kadowaki is a very nice woman,” he told her as they walked down the hall. “She's also very skilled. In whatever form of healing you need.”

“She seemed to really like you,” Rinoa smiled.

“I probably frequented this place more than most. I used to fight a lot against regulations. Got me in trouble and landed me in one of these beds.”

“Yeah, I remember. You told me,” she grinned.

He had? He didn't remember. “Well, if you need anything, Dr. Kadowaki can certainly help you.”

The door of the infirmary slid open as they approached. The smell of antiseptic and flowers and the sea breeze flowed over them as they stepped inside. There were no customers today, but the windows had been opened to let in the fresh air.

The doctor wasn't at her desk as Squall looked around, trying to find something to talk about.

“It's against the rules to take anything from the infirmary without permission. If you start getting sick, come here immediately to avoid spreading it. Don't sass the doctor, she hates that.”

Rinoa giggled as he listed of the things.

“What?” He frowned.

She tightened her hold on him. “You're just so cute when you're being all serious like that.”

Ah! There went his eye twitching again. That was cute too. He was getting annoyed with her. She wondered why he wouldn't say anything about it.

“Rinoa, you-”

The door slid open behind them and they turned, their arms breaking apart. Dr. Kadowaki looked up from the tablet she was typing on and smiled.

“Oh, hi there, Squall,” she greeted. “And...I'm sorry, dear, I don't think I got your name.”

“I'm Rinoa,” she said quickly, reaching forward to shake her hand. “It's very nice to meet you.”

“Likewise,” Dr. Kadowaki nodded at her. “You're not a student here, are you?”

“No, ma'am. I'm with him,” Rinoa reached out and touched Squall's forearm gently.

The move was quick, but it lingered for just a second. And Squall didn't jerk away or even seem all that surprised by it. Dr. Kadowaki couldn't help the smile that came over her face.

Oh, her boy!

“Oh, my, Squall,” the doctor grinned at him. She had to tease him just a bit. “It's not every day I see you walking around with a girl. Is she your girlfriend?”

Squall was about to insist he was just showing her around. He really was. But Rinoa's comments about him being 'so cute' when he was serious, and that he was always so serious, were still right there in the front of his mind.

“Yes,” he said immediately.

Rinoa gasped and turned so quickly her hair flew around her face. Her face was bright red, her eyes glowing. “Are you serious?! Squall! I'm gonna take it seriously!”

Wow. That had not been the reaction he had expected. Why did Rinoa never react the way he thought she was going to? How did she always manage to surprise him?

“I'm serious,” he nodded.

“Woo,” Rinoa let out a breath, her heart racing. “I'm speechless...”

“Seriously joking,” Squall finished.

Rinoa's face fell immediately and she groaned in disappointment. “You were joking? Ugh...Well, I guess that's a good one for you.” Her voice was bitter though.

Squall frowned. “You're mad?” See, this is why he didn't make jokes!

She shrugged. “Guess I'm more...let down?”

“I never asked you to be my girlfriend.”

“Are you asking me to be your girlfriend now?”

“Why would you want to be my girlfriend?” Why were they even having this conversation?

“So you're not saying you're _not_ asking me to be your girlfriend?”

“I think you're reading too much into a joke.”

“Every joke contains a grain of truth. And it was a poor joke anyway.”

“You just said it was a good one.”

“A good one _for you_.”

Laughter turned the two bickering teens away from each other and back to Dr. Kadowaki who they had quite honestly forgotten was still standing there.

“You two are quite cute,” she said and Squall's eye twitched.

There was that word 'cute' again. Was it the lack of jacket? Why was everyone throwing that word at him today? He didn't like this new trend.

Rinoa, however, was smiling at the compliment.

“By the way,” Dr. Kadowaki looked at Squall. “Do you know where Headmaster Cid is?”

Squall shook his head and Dr. Kadowaki sighed.

“That man works entirely too hard. Well, if you see him, can you tell him to come and see me?”

Squall nodded and Dr. Kadowaki smiled at him in gratitude.

Not wanting to be in her way, Squall started to lead Rinoa out of the infirmary. Dr. Kadowaki couldn't miss the way Rinoa latched onto his arm. Or, more surprisingly, the way he allowed it.

Oh, dear. Her boy was growing up so fast. Dr. Kadowaki actually felt a bit emotional.

“I believe the second floor was our next stop?” Squall looked down at her as they walked back into the nexus.

“Yup,” Rinoa beamed. “Then we can get lunch/breakfast. I just realized we didn't eat this morning. Seems like something a good tour guide should have seen to.”

“Well, no one ever accused me of being good at this.”

“Oh, you're doing fine. Except for the forgetting to feed me part. But, you know, a B- is still a passing grade, so you should be proud.”

“A B-?”

“Oh, what's wrong?” Rinoa laughed. “Never get a B before?”

“Yeah, I did. Once.”

She laughed at him, at his completely serious expression. She could tell he hated it, but he was just so cute! She clutched his arm tighter, a smile breaking wide over her face. And, yeah, he had made the bad girlfriend joke. But at least it proved that the word was on his mind.

Baby steps, Rinoa. She wasn't going to break through that barrier in a day. But she had the feeling that, once she did, Squall was going to be an entirely different man. There was no way a guy as distant as he was would get attached and not _stay_ attached. She was going to have to earn it, but once it was hers she couldn't imagine she would be able to lose it.

“You know, I hear that guy fishing in the quad is selling his catches,” she told him as they came around towards the elevator. “I bet we can buy one instead of having to eat that nasty cafeteria food.”

Squall looked like he was considering it when a garden clone suddenly rushed towards them from the elevator steps. He didn't look like he was in a good mood. The clones never looked like they were in any kind of good mood.

“Public displays of affection are forbidden in the garden, or did you forget?” The clone snapped at them, annoyed. They didn't get a chance to respond – aside from Rinoa tightening her grip and giving him a glare. “Student ID No. 41269: Squall Leonhart?”

“Yes?” Squall raised an eyebrow at him. What did the clones want now?

“The Garden Master wishes to see you. Report to the Master's Room right away.”

Well that sounded like an order if he had ever heard one.

And Squall's immediate reaction was to disobey it. Once again, he thought about how he wasn't obligated to the clones the way he was to his headmaster. He especially wasn't devoted to this 'Garden Master' that he had never met or even actually heard of. He had absolutely no reason to obey an order from him.

What he did have, however, was curiosity.

He had never heard of the Garden Master. No one had. So who was he? Where was he? What was he after? Why had he turned on the headmaster? The questions burned in him and he found himself dearly wanting to know who he was.

“Where is the Master's Room?” He asked, earning a look from Rinoa.

“Take the elevator to level B1,” the clone said immediately. “You _have_ permission.”

Just like that, the clone started walking away. Squall looked after him then glanced towards the elevator he had indicated.

“Squall,” Rinoa frowned at him. “You're not seriously going, are you? You can't! Our tour isn't over. And you still owe me lunch.”

“Aren't you the least bit curious?” Squall asked.

“Well...yeah. But not enough to stop a date!”

“When did this become a date?”

“This was always a date!” She stomped her foot, releasing his arm. “Squall, can't you disobey an order, just once? I know he's the Garden Master, but-”

“I don't have to obey orders from him.”

She blinked, surprised. “You don't?”

“No. I don't know who he is. I've never even met him. And I'm not inclined to give my loyalty to someone whose face I've never even seen.”

“But...Aren't you a SeeD? Isn't that what you do anyway?”

“No. I give my skills to the holder of the contract. Which is different, because loyalty is not a skill. And since I'm not contractually obligated to him, and I've never sworn myself to him, then I don't have to obey an order he gives me.”

“Wow...” Rinoa breathed. “I can't believe I'm actually hearing you say that.”

“I'm not a mindless drone,” Squall frowned at her.

“No, I know. It's just...weird...”

“I'm gonna go see the Garden Master.” Squall reached up and pulled off his necklace and handed it to her. “Here, my ID chip is in this. You can connect it to your PDA and use it to buy whatever you want at the cafeteria. Or buy fish from the guy at the quad. Whatever.”

“Woh!” Rinoa grabbed his hand instead of the necklace. “You're going _alone?_ ”

“You said you didn't want to go.”

“No, I said I wasn't ending a date for him. Which still holds true.” Rinoa reached up and slipped the necklace back over his head. “Now let's go down there together and romantically deal with whatever it is he wants.”

“It will probably be incredibly dull,” he warned as she stepped back.

“Then I'll play footsie with you or something to pass the time. I don't care. I am _not_ ending a date for him. Now then, escort me.” Rinoa held out her arm expectantly, a haughty look on her face.

Squall almost grinned as he reached out to loop it around his elbow. She was an empress in full form as she walked – strutted – towards the elevator on his arm. When Rinoa was forced to do something she didn't want to, she acted like it was her idea all along.

He respected that.

The two of them moved towards the elevator together and hit the call button. Rinoa didn't release him until they were already inside, but she stayed close to him. Squall reached into his pocket and pulled out Shiva's capsule. He broke it open and absorbed her and her magic together.

“What's that for?” Rinoa asked curiously.

“You never know. The Garden Master is clearly a hostile force.”

She chuckled. “A night watch when one isn't need, multiple escape routes at any given time, and a deep seated paranoia. Tell me, is this a 'SeeD' trait or a 'you' trait.”

“Who said they were exclusive?” Squall returned.

Rinoa laughed, and then, only because he had done it first, she reached into her own pocket to mimic him and absorb Diablos and Carbuncle. The two of them took their places in her head and Rinoa frowned, reaching up to scratch where Carbuncle liked to settle.

“Something wrong?” Squall asked as the elevator touched down.

“Not really,” she hedged. “More like...uncomfortable. Carbuncle is sweet and all, but he just feels like...wrong. Somehow. Like he doesn't fit.”

“He probably doesn't get along with Diablos then,” Squall explained. “Not all GF like to share and they especially don't like to share with GF who have contrasting affinities. I held Ifrit in my head once and it was painful because of how basically opposite he is of Shiva.”

Rinoa hummed thoughtfully as they stepped out. The elevator started rising behind them and Rinoa edged just a little bit closer to Squall in nervousness.

The room they found themselves in was nothing like any other room in the garden. While brightly lit, it seemed darker somehow. More unnatural. Whatever alloy made up the floor also made up the walls and ceiling and the area blended into each other with a seam that Rinoa found difficult to make out. The glowing blue material seemed to be flowing somehow out towards the walls and beyond. And, just behind the elevator shaft, there was a monster machine whirring softly, somehow threateningly.

The two of them started down the stairs and Rinoa made a face at the smell. It wasn't _bad_ , per se, but it was unnatural. It smelled too artificial. Like a mixture between metal, plastic, and rubber.

“Please!” They heard someone call out. “Listen to me!”

Squall and Rinoa shared a look. That as the headmaster's voice...

The elevator came back down behind them as they heard a reply that was too low to understand. They turned around to see Zell coming off of the lift, a bag of chips in his hands, some already stuffed in his mouth with grease on his fingers.

“Hey,” he said, looking at them then looking around. “What are you guys doin' down here?”

“I was told to come here,” Squall answered.

“What are _you_ doing here, Zell?” Rinoa returned.

“Me? I was following you. I was gonna ask Squall if he wanted to go kick some butt in the trainin' center when I saw the elevator go down. I wanted to see where you two were heading.”

“Isn't that kind of...nosy?” Rinoa frowned. “What if we had wanted to be alone?”

Zell flinched back, surprise flashing across his face. “Wait! What?! _Did_ you?”

“Yes!”

“Not particularly.”

Rinoa and Squall looked at each other and she glowered.

“Yes,” she repeated more emphatically and he shrugged.

“Let go of me!” Headmaster Cid yelled again, catching their attention once more. They turned to see him being nearly carried back towards the lift and away from the machine by two clones. He was struggling fruitlessly. “I'm not finished!

The clones pushed the headmaster and his knee gave out. He fell to the ground and stayed there, his fists clenched and shaking as he growled.

“Greedy son-of-a-bitch!” He shouted and all three of them flinched. It was sounded downright wrong to hear their gentle, fatherly headmaster cursing. “Why did I even bother talking to you?! SeeDs were brought up for the future! And that future is now! Why can't you understand that?!”

The clones turned and walked away, dismissing him without word. The headmaster slammed his fist against the ground, snarling.

“Dammit!” Again, they all flinched at his cursing. “I should've never trusted you! I wish I could go back ten years to tell myself you're nothing but a money grubbing son-of-a-bitch!” (flinch) “Then I could raise them all properly!”

The headmaster still wasn't standing and, worried, Squall stepped in closer to see if he needed help getting back up again.

His footsteps alerted Cid and his head shot up and around. His face first paled then reddened in embarrassment and shame. “Squall?!...Did you...Just hear all that?”

Squall supposed he could have said no. Try to spare some of the shame. But he wasn't one to lie like that, nor soften a blow. Besides, his headmaster was allowed to be human.

“...Yes.”

Cid sighed and pushed himself up slowly, brushing off his knees. “I'm embarrassed. I apologize for that display. But, sometimes even old men like me lose their tempers. What are you doing here?”

“I was summoned,” Squall said calmly.

Cid made a face. “You don't have to speak with him, Squall. In fact, I think I'd prefer you didn't.”

“Is that an order, sir?”

The headmaster sighed. “Always business with you, my boy. You know, not everything in life is about orders.”

Squall said nothing and continued to stare at him until the headmaster shook his head. “No, that wasn't an order. You're free to speak with him if you wish it. I won't stop you. Just remember though, you don't have to follow any of _his_ orders. He has no power over you, Squall.”

“I'll keep that in mind, sir,” Squall nodded. Oh, right...

Cid started past him and Squall turned quickly.

“Sir, I still have to give you my report.”

“Please come to my office later,” he said over his shoulder, pushing the call button.

“Oh, and that doctor...” Rinoa started.

“Right,” Squall nodded. “Dr. Kadowaki wants you to go to the infirmary. She sounded serious.”

Headmaster Cid laughed sheepishly. “Looks like I finally made her mad. Well, I've been putting it off long enough now I suppose. Thank you.”

He walked into the elevator and footsteps behind Squall had him turning to see a clone walking towards the three of them. He looked between the three gathered with a frown.

“You, Squall Leonhart, are the SeeD who returned from Galbadia, correct?”

“Yes.”

He looked to Zell and growled. “Zell Dincht, you were not summoned.”

“I invited myself,” Zell shrugged, finishing off his chips.

The clone looked to Rinoa and probably scanned her with his robot vision. “And you. You are not even a student of this garden. Be gone.”

“If she leaves, I'm leaving with her,” Squall threatened immediately, glaring at the clone.

The clone flinched, surprised. “You cannot disobey me, SeeD!”

“You gonna try to stop me?” Squall asked calmly, reaching into his pocket where his INVENTORY held his gunblade. “The garden faculty forfeited their power, if you ever had any, over SeeDs when you turned against our headmaster. I'm here as a courtesy. I can and will leave if I wish.”

Squall's voice remained perfectly level. Rinoa tried not to grin in satisfaction behind him and instead adopt a stern, aloof expression like his. Zell was staring too, quite unconcerned. All of them knew that in a fight Squall could take down the clone with one hand.

The clone glared for a long moment, not even ruffling Squall's calm feathers. Finally, admitting defeat, he snapped.

“You're late! It's about time you showed up. Master NORG has been waiting for you. Come.”

Rinoa beamed at Squall as he started after him. Though he didn't return her smile, his eyes weren't as guarded as they usually were and that warmed her to her toes.

The three of them started forward around the giant machine. Squall let his eyes roam over it as they came in closer. He couldn't determine what it was. The machine was rounded at the top with two large bulbs at the base that emitted blue lights but at such a low power they didn't really illuminate anything so as to call them true lights.

There was another garden clone waiting in front of the large machine. The first clone walked over to join him and Squall and the others stopped. He turned around, waiting for another man to walk out but saw no one except the clones.

The second clone, having been unable to miss their interaction with the first, growled at them in irritation. “Whenever Master NORG calls you, be sure to be there within 3 seconds.”

A strange blowing sound echoed through the chamber. Squall turned, trying to trace it. Trying to even place it with sounds he was familiar with. It sounded like a cross between a horse whinnying and someone blowing slowly into a fan: 'Fushurururu....'

“3-SECONDS-ARE-UP.”

Squall's head jerked towards the large machine, the large capsule, they stood before.

The loud voice that echoed around them was deep and gravelly. The words it spoke were breathy, almost covering each other as though the tongue that created them wasn't entirely sure where the spaces between the sounds went. Or maybe its throat wasn't meant to form human vowels.

The capsule, the pod before them, hissed out long breaths of steam from release valves set on its sides and raised the temperature of the camber. Protesting, Shiva immediately reached out and covered Squall with a cold breeze. Rinoa shivered a bit at feeling it, but couldn't deny that it was a little comforting having Squall back at that temperature, back at his normal.

The smooth, rounded top of the pod opened and more steam came out. They unfolded gently and the enormous creature inside was revealed.

He wasn't human. It barely needed to be said. Yellow skin, with a strange consistency almost like jello, formed three pseudopods from its neck or its chin – Squall couldn't tell which. One large central pseudopod hung from the base of its face, two smaller lumps rested against his shoulders. Like earlobes that had grown too long with old age. His mouth, wide and set just above the large central pseudopod, had no teeth, but also didn't look like it had ever housed them. He had no nose to speak of and incredibly tiny, beady eyes that were entirely sea foam green with no whites or iris to break the bright color field.

He breathed out again, and the pseudopod from his neck warbled along with that same sound again: 'Fushurururu...'

Large hands, with incredibly long fingers, lifted from the controls of the pod and rested on the outer rim. He had no fingernails. The ratio of fingers to palm was completely off by human standards. And the fingers wiggled like he had an extra joint that they did not.

This was the Garden Master? The proclaimed proprietor of garden? The force that hid beneath their school then tried to command the student body like he had the right? They knew nothing about him. He wasn't even human.

…

What a shock, Squall thought dully for lack of anything better.

That breathing sound again. 'Fushurururu....'

“GIVE-YOUR-REPORT-ON-THE-SORCERESS,” the man-thing, NORG, demanded, narrowing his already beady eyes at them.

Squall raised an eyebrow at him before sharing a look with Zell and Rinoa. Zell shrugged, Rinoa was still trying to wrap her mind around NORG. He was going to have to decide on his own. He was almost getting used to it at this point.

Oh, well. What could it hurt?

Out of habit, Squall adopted a formal, straight backed posture. Zell followed suit and, after a moment, Rinoa did as well. Better just to blend in than invite questions.

Let's see. Where to start...

“Answer him quickly,” one of the clones snapped at him. “Be concise.”

He was so done with all of these people. Whatever. It was going to be a sad report anyway...

“...We failed to assassinate Sorceress Edea,” Squall stated right away, getting to the meat of the matter immediately. NORG showed no reaction. It wasn't exactly a shock. “Confirmation of Headmaster Cid's order was made at Galbadia Garden. After Irvine Kinneas, a sharpshooter trained at Galbadia Garden, joined our party, we set off to carry out the 'Sorceress Assassination' order from both Balamb and Galbadia Gardens-”

Angry now, the breathy sound was harsher at the front. Now more of a 'Bujurururu...”

“GALBADIA- _AND_ -BALAM'S ORDERS?!” 'Bujurururu...' “YOU-WERE-FOOLED!”

Squall frowned, uncomprehending. “I...don't understand.”

'Fushurururu...' Was that his calmer sound?

“EXPLAIN-TO-THEM,” the large man-thing ordered the clones.

Thank Hyne. Squall was having a really hard time trying to fight through that accent, like he wasn't even aware of which words were which.

One of the clones stepped forward, smug superiority coating him heavily. “Master NORG has known about the alliance between the president of Galbadia and the sorceress for some time now. He heard it from the Galbadian Garden Master himself.”

“The Galbadian Garden Master...?” Squall cut him off.

'Fushurururu...' “THE-MASTER-OF-GALBADIA-GARDEN-IS-A-SUBORDINATE-OF-MINE-NAMED-MARTINE.”

“You know him as the Galbadia Garden _head_ master,” the clone continued. “They are one and the same, unlike at this garden. The sorceress and garden, all gardens, are closely connected. That is why the sorceress will try to gain control of all gardens, or see them destroyed.”

The other clone nodded and picked up where he left off. “So Master NORG sent an official order to Galbadia Garden. It was to kill the sorceress. An assassination was thought to be the best means. To be carried out by _Galbadia Garden_ operatives alone. However...”

'Bujurururu...' Was that his angry sound?

“THAT-SLY-WEASEL-MARTINE-USED- _YOU_ -INSTEAD-AS-A-LAST-RESORT-FOR-THE-ASSASSINATION. HE-GAVE-YOU-THAT-ORDER-TO-PLACE-THE-BLAME-FOR-THE-ATTEMPT-ON- _ME!_ THAT-THAT...BASTARD!” The room shook with his rage as his voice rose in volume and his massive fists slammed against his console.

Squall didn't much care about that. He was focused on the master's words and trying to make sure that he had correctly deciphered what he thought he had just heard.

“Are you saying that Balamb Garden had nothing to do with that order?”

Headmaster Cid wouldn't usually interrupt an ongoing mission with new orders. Something of that great importance should never have been given to a SeeD below rank 20. The fact that the headmaster had not sent a SeeD sniper to fulfill the order had never added up.

Unless they had never been meant to do it in the first place.

“You just happened to show up just before the mission was to be carried out,” one of the clones said, his voice low and smug. “They _used_ you.”

Then the fight...

The imprisonment...

The torture...

It had all been on stolen orders and lies. Misappropriated SeeDs and blind obedience.

The inner turmoil boiling within Squall must have shown on his face. Despite his years of discipline and cool detachment, knowing that everything he had done, everything he had endured, had been for nothing, was a harsh punch to the gut.

Rinoa's hand, so warm and alive against his, broke him from the spell. He looked over to see her staring at him with wide eyes.

The implications had not flown past her head either.

“But...” Squall turned slowly back to NORG, Rinoa still holding onto his hand. “The operation failed. The sorceress is still alive and she...”

“The sorceress retaliated,” the clone finished when Squall trailed off. “Just as we suspected she would. Not against Galbadia Garden as intended, but against _us_. You don't need to tell us that it was the sorceress who ordered those missiles to be launched. That is without doubt.”

“So something had to be done to calm the sorceress's anger,” the second added. The smug one, grinning at Squall hungrily from under his hat.

“Something...” Squall shook his head, not liking the sound of that. “Wait a minute. That's just-”

“In order to do so,” the smug clone continued over him, “we needed to hand over those involved in the assassination of the sorceress. That began with you. You should not have tried to escape prison. You should have stayed there like a good little SeeD.”

You should have allowed yourself to die.

To be tortured...

Squall shivered at the memory of the pain. Ripping through his body. Scorching his nerves. Shattering his mind. Stealing his very will to live.

Rinoa's fingers weaved through his, gripping tighter, trying to pull him back from the brink.

“That wasn't enough, of course,” the smug clone continued. “We needed to do more. We had to show her, prove without a doubt, Balamb Garden's sincerity.”

'Bujurururu...' It sounded like he was laughing at them now.

“OFFER-THE-SeeDs'-HEAD-ON-A-SILVER-PLATTER-AND-PRETEND-WE-OBEY-THE-SORCERESS. LET-HER-HAVE-THEIR-OBEDIENT-LIVES-SO-THE-REST-MAY-LIVE. THAT-IS-WHAT-SeeD-IS-GOOD-FOR.”

“Wha...” Squall's breath left him in a rush. He couldn't be serious.

No! That wasn't what SeeD was for! They were willing to die for the cause, yes, but before that, before _anything_ else, they were willing to _fight_ for the cause.

“Why aren't we standing up to the sorceress!?” Squall demanded to know loudly. “What about all the training we endure everyday?! What good is it if you throw our lives away!?”

The blood. The sweat. The pain. Years. His entire life. Crafting. Honing. Turning himself into a living weapon to fight the battles no one else could.

“What good is it?” He whispered fiercely to the ground, shaking his head numbly. His eyes raised slowly, crackling frostily with his riled power. “We are not worthless things to be discarded at your whim. If she is a threat, we should be fighting her. If she comes against us, then we should raise the SeeD army against her.”

“WHAT-DID-YOU-SAY?!” NORG growled angrily, as though annoyed that Squall would dare be a being with his own thoughts and feelings.

“ _I don't want you all to become machines..._ ”

“ _YOU_ -LOST-TO-THE-SORCERESS! QUIT-YOUR-WHINING!”

One of the clones shifted nervously. “You know, Headmaster Cid was saying the same thing...”

“H-Hey...” Smug Clone looked at him nervously.

'Bujurururu...' Yeah. It was his mad sound. The two clones jumped then ran away when NORG slammed his fists down against his console again. It was a wonder the machine didn't break.

Squall's hand tightened on Rinoa's. Drawing strength from her. Reminding himself that, if the assassination contract was a fake, hers was not. She was still real and still needed him. The things he had done, he could say, he had least done for her.

“CID?!” NORG shouted, angry at his name. “THAT-IDIOT-CID-WAS-TOO-MUCH-OF-A-COWARD-TO-DISPATCH-SeeD-TO-KILL-THE-SORCERESS! I-HAD-TO-ACT. AND-NOW-THAT-YOU-HAVE-FAILED?! THIS-GARDEN-WILL-BE-DONE-FOR-UNLESS-I-PROVE-MYSELF-TO-THE-SORCERESS! _MY_ -GARDEN! IT-WILL-ALL-BE-OVER!”

Squall snarled at him, his finger itching on the release button of his INVENTORY. Shiva's power had begun turning his breath to fog, the air around him started frosting over. Rinoa shivered in his grasp but didn't pull away from him.

“THAT-IDIOT-CID...” NORG growled. “HAS-HE-FORGOTTEN-THAT-IT-WAS-I-WHO-PUT-UP-THE-MONEY-TO-ESTABLISH-GARDEN?! HE-WOULD-BE-NOTHING-WITHOUT-ME! I-WANTED-TO-OFFER-THE-SORCERESS- _CID'S_ -HEAD-ALONG-WITH-THE-SeeDs. I-ORDERED-THE-STUDENTS-TO-FIND-CID-BUT-THEY- _SIDED_ -WITH-HIM!”

Slam! Down his hands went again against the console. 'Bujururu...Bujururu...' “DISLOYAL-TRAITORS! THIS-IS- _MY_ -GARDEN!”

“NO!” Squall snapped at him, furious.

No. It was _their_ garden. Their home...

Squall's and Quistis's and Zell's and even Seifer's. This was their place. The place that molded and made them. The headmaster who cared for all of them and knew them by name. Compared to this hermit who barely spoke their language, was it any wonder that they had sided with Cid?

Squall was not a machine. He was not a mindless thing blindly obeying orders. He wasn't Seifer, licking the boots of those superior in rank to him.

If he was subservient, it was because he _wanted_ to be. If he followed an order, it was because he had _chosen_ a career where it was a necessity at times.

But he would give his life only to those people who would never demand it of him. Cid. Rinoa. He wasn't just a tool to them. He wasn't something to be killed when it outlived its usefulness or sacrificed for their own gain.

He was a SeeD and this was his garden. This Garden Master, however, was not his. And Squall would gladly and readily break the chains he bound himself with to deny him.  
“It's not just yours,” Squall growled, the air freezing with his words.

'Bijurururu...' Laughing again, but angrily. “THEN-WHOSE-IS-IT? DOES-IT-BELONG-TO-CID-AND-EDEA?! DOES-IT-BELONG-TO-THAT-PATHETIC-MAN-AND-HIS-WITCH-BRIDE?!”

Squall started, not just at the slur for sorceresses, but at 'bride'.

Who's bride? The headmaster's? His _witch_ bride? Surely he couldn't mean-

'Bujurururu...' Angry again, rolling in rage.

“OH- _NOW_ -I-UNDERSTAND! I-KNOW-WHAT-YOU-SeeDs-ARE! CID-AND-EDEA-ARE-TRYING-TO-USE-YOU-TO-TAKE-GARDEN-AWAY-FROM-ME. YOU'RE-ONE-OF-CID'S-FOLLOWER'S-AREN'T-YOU?”

Not this again...

“PREPARE-TO-DIE!”

Yeah, he thought it was going to be something like that.

Instead of annoyance or boredom at hearing the familiar threat, Squall felt only a rushing sense of pride and purpose.

Yes, he was one of Cid's followers. And for that man, the man who cared for every person here personally and who would never sacrifice them for his own life, Squall would gladly lift his blade at any time.

Squall jerked his hand out of his pocket, away from his INVENTORY. His gunblade and sheath flew out along with it into the air where they turned in place. Squall took it neatly by the handle and sliced it sideways, throwing off the heavy sheath and sending it flying.

Zell, who was never without his weapons, lifting his fists with a snarl of steam.

“Squall!” Rinoa cried out a warning, jerking back. She didn't have her weapon today. She hadn't thought to bring it because she couldn't imagine she would need it! She had only Diablos in a capsule in her pocket.

The pod hissed again as it sealed shut around NORG, closing him off in a protective cocoon of metal and magic. And Squall allowed it.

He wanted to rip it open. He wanted to destroy that pod and dig the creature hiding within it like an oyster from a clam. He wanted the pleasure of showing him a SeeD's power.

With no other option, Rinoa popped open Diablos's capsule and let his power sink into her. She felt his curiosity as he learned their situation from her thoughts and senses. Then he chastised her for ever being without her weapon.

Well, at least she still had her magic.

“YOU-CANNOT-FIGHT-A-SORCERESS! SO-I-WILL-ATTACK-YOU-WITH-MAGIC!” NORG announced, the lights on his pod flashing to yellow.

“You can't possibly match a sorceress for magic skill,” Squall grinned at him. “I will show you the power of the SeeDs you so easily dismissed. This is _our_ garden, and we will see you dead before we allow you to take it from us.”

NORG growled from within his cage and Squall heard a rumbling as the first spell came out.

The pod was designed with old technology. Squall realized now that its size wasn't simply to accommodate NORG's large stature. This was an outdated magic storage and release system. The same kind that had been miniaturized and put into armor by Esthar engineers long ago.

The first spell NORG cast was fira.

Zell jumped in front of Squall and Rinoa and caught the blast neatly in his hands. The burning flames only served to further his own strength and stamina. He absorbed the energy and smoke sizzled from his palms as he let out a long breath of steam.

“That's what I'm talking about, baby!”

He charged. His sparking fist came up as he jumped at the pod. He came down, leaving a trail of smoke behind him, and his fist penetrated the metal body with a sizzle of melting steel.

Squall lifted his blade and aimed it at the hulking mass. Zell jerked his fist back, molten metal clinging to his forearm, and back flipped away. Squall let out a shot of freezing ice that erupted in the hold he left behind. The heat shock cracked the metal. The ice flower burst through the circuits. And when Squall shot a second round, the flower shattered and the shards sliced through metal and wiring with ease.

'Bujurururu...'

“Diablos,” Rinoa reached into her GF. “Thunder!”

As the ice was melting quickly back into to water, Rinoa's electricity spell shot through the hole and fizzled the electronics. The lights on the pod started dancing erratically. It hissed again and the pod doors looked like they might burst open for a moment before settling back in place.

NORG roared and they heard the machine coming to life again.

The wind that began kicking up at their feet made Squall curse. He turned his gunblade upside down and buried it deeply in the floor. Before Rinoa could ask what he was doing, he reached out, grabbed her, and jerked her close to him.

The wind was getting stronger now. Standing too far from them, and unprepared, Zell was quickly lifted from his feet. Squall and Rinoa were elevated as well, but with his sword in the ground and his hold on her, they just floated there as wind buffeted them.

Tornado. The king of wind spells. The harshness of the magical storm around them threw Zell to the roof, spinning and pelting him with whatever wasn't tied down. Things were hitting Rinoa and Squall as well and she cried out. The wind itself, tearing at them so harshly, was hitting their skin so hard and fast that the friction rubbed them raw.

Then, just as suddenly as it started, it dissipated again. Zell came crashing down to the ground and landed with a loud crunch on his hip. He gave a cry of pain as Rinoa and Squall, thanks to his quick actions, fell down on their knees from a much more reasonable height.

“Zell!” Rinoa cried out.

“My damn hip!” He roared, rolling.

“Cura!” She threw out the spell he had forgotten about in his pain.

Squall jerked his gunblade out of the ground and sprinted forward as NORG's machine charged another spell.

Squall slammed the tip of the blade deep into the hole in NORG's pod. He jerked on the trigger of his gunblade and the explosion of ice outward enveloped him in its sweet embrace. It also erupted forward into the machine, tearing through its already damaged parts.

The inside of NORG's pod was kept at a high temperature and humidity. Whether it was for personal comfort or a necessity of his species, Squall neither knew or cared. The important thing was that he was immune to the cold and NORG was not.

“Blizzara!” He shouted, pulling the trigger a second time.

The humidity accumulated inside the pod started freezing over as great spires of ice erupted through the varies systems of the machine.

You should have died like a good little SeeD.

“Blizzara!!”

The second wave of ice encased Squall completely as it pierced so deeply through the hull that NORG could feel it in his bones even in the safety of his capsule.  
You only need to obey and submit to being used and discarded.

“BLIZZARA!!!”

This is _our_ garden.

The expanding ice in the pod had no where to go. The pressure inside was pushed too high. The ice shattered. The capsule doors exploded outwards and off their hinges. Snowflakes danced from Squall's breath as the room was washed in the freezing might of his fury.

He jerked back his gunblade, a shower of icicles falling with it, as he backed up. NORG was thrashing in his pod as the cold hit him harshly.

Not just cold. Snow. Squall's anger coupled with Shiva's power had brought snow to the room. It was falling everywhere but over Zell. Ifrit's fire in his veins melted the snowflakes as they got near, turning them to steam as they hit his body.

“DAMN-YOU-SeeDs!” NORG roared, trying to orient himself past the cold. He glared at them through his sea foam green eyes. “THIS- _IS_ -MY-GARDEN! I-WON'T-LET-YOU-DO-AS-YOU-PLEASE!”

“And we won't let you dismiss our lives as meaningless,” Squall returned coldly, calmly.

“Demi!” Rinoa cried, throwing out her magic at the Garden Master.

NORG cried out as his own weight threatened to crush him. His hand reached out and ran along his console, bringing it alive again to summon his magic.

The blast of water that shot for Rinoa was burning hot. Squall threw up his hand.

“Blizzard!”

The spire of ice shot up. The boiling water slammed against it. Steam erupted in the room as the two canceled each other out.

As the steam quickly turned to ice under the influence of Squall's anger, Rinoa frowned.

There was a voice...

Carbuncle, cheeping sweetly in her head heard it before Diablos. The latter of whom immediately protested, adding another voice to an already cramped head. And please get the little green vermin out, he was annoying.

Another voice?

Rinoa gasped and looked to NORG. The crying was coming from him.

“Squall! He has a GF!” Rinoa yelled.

'Bujurururu...'

The rushing of water out of NORG's hands was not an ordinary water spell. Squall lifted his blade and sliced up quickly through the coming tide. It froze over at the touch of his blade and the room got, if possible, colder.

“Yo, Squall,” Zell frowned at him. His entire body was steaming now. “I know you can't feel the cold, and admittedly I don't think I can either. Rinoa, however, totally can.”

Squall's eyes turned to her. Looking at her past the shelf of ice he had created leading back to NORG who was trying to burn through it with a fira spell.

“I'm okay,” Rinoa promised, smiling. “I like the cold...”

The words trailed off as the air suddenly got warmer around her. There was a breeze around her body now. But, unlike Squall's that brought cold to his body, this one was pushing away the chill. No, more like Shiva was _pulling_ it away to keep her from icing over.

She looked over to him again, but Squall was already focused on NORG once more. The ice around him was quickly turning to steam under his fira spell. Steam that rose, condensed, and fell again as snow all around them.

“Zell,” Squall said to him softly. “It's dinner time.”

Zell grinned and started stepping backwards.

“WRETCHED-SeeD!” NORG yelled at Squall, slamming his massive hands down against the shelf of ice. It splintered under his touch, but it didn't melt away.

“I lost to a sorceress once,” Squall told him, owning up to his defeat without shame. “But I know now what to expect from her. I can train myself to be able to defeat her. Because that's what SeeDs do. Anyone can fail once. But I won't fail again.”

“YOU-ARE-TRYING-TO-DESTROY-WHAT'S-MINE! THIS-GARDEN-IS-MINE! THE-STUDENTS-ARE-MINE! YOUR-LIVES-BELONG-TO-ME!”

“My life always has been mine alone,” Squall said calmly, with a seething sort of anger.

'Bujurururu...' NORG lifted his hands, drawing power into his palms.

“Zell! NOW!”

Letting out a loud battle cry, running in from behind the capsule, Zell launched himself over the machine and landed with a whoop behind NORG's head. The Garden Master twisted in surprise, the spell he was powering fading in surprise.

“Sick!” Zell yelled, grabbing onto NORG's weird skin flaps. “He's got all the consistency of pudding!”

“Hurry up, Zell!” Squall ordered.

“One GF extraction, coming up!” Zell laughing, pulling a spare capsule from his pocket.

“NO!” NORG tried to throw Zell off.

Laughing, Zell slammed the open capsule against the back of NORG's neck and pressed the draw button to pull out the magic. NORG resisted, trying to cling to his GF. The GF, however, wanted to be freed from this dark, windowless room and gratefully let himself be taken.

“Thanks!” Zell flipped himself up and over NORG's face. He closed the capsule with one hand as he planted his feet against NORG's lack-of-nose. He pushed off with a a blazing flame, scorching NORG's skin in the process.

He landed with a roll and came up, catching the capsule in mid-air.

“Ladies and and gentlemen,” he grinned, holding up his prize.

NORG, crying out in pain, beat the fire from his face. He reached out for the controls on his capsule blindly. The snow that had fallen around him had melted from Zell's presence and he encountered water on the precious electronics.

“Rinoa!” Squall ordered.

“Thunder!” She struck immediately, calling down the bolt on NORG's pod.

The shock spread through the water, through the system, into NORG himself. The Garden Master thrashed helplessly against the magic and pain.

Squall charged. He jumped at the base of the pod and launched himself up. He came down, point first, and slammed his gunblade through NORG's chest. Dark brown blood sputtered from the wound as NORG suddenly stilled. Afraid now to move.

Squall leaned down closely, digging the gunblade slowly, cruelly deeper, and whispered.

“Don't forget, _master_ , that SeeDs are paid to kill. I have no qualms about ending your life. In fact, this is probably the first time I would find it a genuine pleasure.”

Squall planted his boot against NORG's body and pushed off. He flew backwards landing hard on his feet as more brown blood erupted from NORG's new wound.

Shaking, the garden master grasped for the gaping hole on his chest. He was staring at Squall, his beady eyes wide as he tried to push himself as far away as his pod would allow.

'Fushurururu...' Trembling.

“I...I-CAN'T...” NORG gasped, hitting desperately for a button low on the console. “I'M...AFRAID-OF-YOU. NO...WHY-ME...?”

The last, selfish inquiry faded away as NORG hit an emergency button on his capsule. The pod couldn't close anymore, not with the doors blown off, but a healing light enveloped NORG's body. He hid away inside of it, trembling with downcast eyes.

Squall stepped back away from him a few paces before turning to go retrieve his sheath. He bent down slowly and picked up the discarded item.

As he slid the length of his blade into its home, the snow falling down from above slowed to a halt. He clicked the blade back in place and the magical chill in the air snapped. The temperature began rising again.

Zell was staring hard at NORG. Well, at the blue sphere of magic surrounding him. NORG's body was hidden completely behind the healing spells.

“So, uh, what in the hell was that?!” He finally asked, turning to Rinoa.

She shrugged, just as confused.

“Forget about it for now.”

Rinoa turned to Squall, his back to her, frowning. “Forget about it? I can't believe you said that. I think what just happened is really serious. We can't just dismiss it-”

“What's the point of talking about it now?!”

Rinoa and Zell jumped. Squall had raised his voice in the past, but never before had either of them heard such raw emotion bound up in the tone. His hands clenched on the handle of his gunblade, on the long end of the sheath. His shoulders were taught and his eyes were downcast.

“But, Squall-” Rinoa stepped forward.

“You don't know what's going on either!” He snapped, still refusing to turn to them.

He was breathing hard now, like he had just finished a marathon. When he spoke again, his voice was softer, like he was speaking to himself.

“This is crazy...I don't know what's goin' on anymore...I feel like a helpless puppet being manipulated in some major scheme...”

Rinoa and Zell shared a look. They had never heard such...despair in his voice before. Like NORG's words had really gotten to him.

Setting her jaw, Rinoa walked forward. Her hands hesitated just for a second before she reached out and touched his back gently. His muscles jumped, but he didn't pull away. Rinoa moved just a little bit closer, resting her head against his jacket. She wondered if she threw her arms around him now if he would accept the comfort she offered.

“Squall...” she said softly.

He didn't respond. She repeated herself, stronger.

“Squall.”

“...What?” His voice was rough, ragged, like he might have just finished screaming.

“Isn't it you who says there's no point in worrying if you don't anything?” Rinoa ran her hand gently along his back, caressing him as much as she dared. “We don't know if what he said was truth. We don't know if it was the _whole_ truth if it was. Right?”

“...Yeah...”

“So? Let's go find out.” She reached out to take his arm, to turn him. He didn't and she ended up coming around to face him.

She had to stifle a gasp at the amount of raw emotion on his face. Partially hidden by the bangs that had fallen in front of his eyes, but undeniably there. His eyes, unguarded, were a raging typhoon of storm clouds. The hard clench of his jaw was taught like steel and the despair etched into his features spoke of one learning of the futility and meaninglessness of life itself.

Rinoa didn't try to stop herself. She reached up and took his cheek in hand. The muscles underneath were hard and uncompromising. He didn't pull away from her, but the chill of his skin wasn't welcoming to her touch.

“We don't know anything yet,” she told him, trying to pull his head up. “So, let's go find out for sure. Let's learn the truth, the whole of it, before we make a decision.”

She didn't know what decision there was to make, but it felt like the right thing to say. He needed to focus on something and she needed to pull him from his depthless thoughts.

Finally, after a long moment, he let out a shuddering breath as the shields came back over his eyes. His face evened and softened back to his normal calm expression and Rinoa was almost sad to see it go. It was the first time she had ever seen Squall so open and honest.

But that tormented expression wasn't what she wanted from him.

“Yeah...” he nodded slowly, lowering his gunblade. “I'm going to go see the headmaster.”


	22. White SeeD

It wasn't hard to find the headmaster since Squall had told him exactly where he needed to go next. He headed off to the infirmary, Rinoa and Zell hot on his heels. They were just as curious as he was. Even Rinoa, who wasn't a SeeD, wanted the truth.

Dr. Kadowaki looked up when they came in and fixed a polite smile on her face. She wasn't at her desk though. She was standing guard over bed one.

“Sorry, dear,” she told Squall. “You know I don't take visitors when I have patients. Confidentiality and all that. Unless you need treatment, you'll have to-”

“Where is the headmaster?” Squall cut her off. He knew her well and he could tell by the way her eyes tightened that she didn't at all appreciate the rudeness. In this moment though, he didn't rightfully care. If his entire life was a lie, then what did it matter if she was annoyed?

“You need to see him?” She asked, her voice chilly at his attitude.

“Yes, now.” More rudeness. She was going to make the next treatment he got from her hurt as punishment for this he just knew it.

Dr. Kadowaki held up her head tall. “Well, you'll still have to come back later. The headmaster is-”

“I'm okay now, doctor,” Cid's voice came from behind her.

Dr. Kadowaki turned with a concerned frown. “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” he breathed out, a sad smile evident even in his voice. “I believe I'm done crying.”

The doctor looked at him for a long moment before she let out a breath. She turned back to Squall and beseeched him with her eyes. “Just take it easy, okay? He's got a lot on his mind.”

Yeah, he wasn't the only one.

Dr. Kadowaki moved out of the way and Squall stepped into the exam room. Rinoa stayed just a few steps back. Zell leaned against the entrance. The headmaster was standing up as Squall approached, a sad smile indeed plastered over his face.

He didn't look like a man that had just been crying. He looked like a man that just had his world ripped out from under him and couldn't handle the strain of it any longer. Then again, maybe that's what a crying person looked like. Squall didn't know. Such moments tended to be kept private and he wasn't close enough to anyone that they would allow him to be privy to that act.

Cid chuckled, embarrassed as he ran his hand through his mostly gray hair. “You all see me in such embarrassing states...”

Squall didn't care. His headmaster was allowed to be human. He was allowed to have weaknesses. It didn't matter to Squall. In fact, he liked the headmaster just as he was. Sweet, coddling, and capable of crafting the greatest fighters in the world with those traits.

Squall let out a breath, unsure where to even start now that he was here.

Headmaster Cid smiled at him. “NORG got to you, didn't he? He's always known just what to say to cut a man down or bring him up as suits his own needs. I can't tell you how he used to inflate my ego back in the beginning of all this.”

“Yeah. I mean, no...” Squall trailed off, unsure of himself.

“It's alright. You can ask me anything you wish, Squall. I'm not going to hide anything from you or tell you lies. You have a right to the truth.”

“...The mission...” Squall finally mumbled. The start. The best place to begin, always.

“Your Timber mission?”

“The Galbadian mission. The one you didn't really send me on.”

“Ah...” the headmaster nodded along knowingly. “Yes. I'm able to guess easily what must have happened. I'm sorry for that, Squall. You should never have been used in that manner. Headmaster Martine is a coward and abused his power to take control of you with lies. His position gave you no reason to doubt him and it's not untrue that orders were sent from Balamb to Galbadia. You were left with little choice. I don't blame you at all.”

“But we failed...” Squall frowned.

“Of course. A common sniper hit against a sorceress? It's a ridiculous kind of plan. If that's all it took to kill one, the Sorceress War wouldn't have lasted as long as it did. You all acted with utmost professionalism and skill, though. Given your situation, you behaved perfectly. You were doomed to fail, and despite that you came so close to success. I'm quite proud of you, my SeeDs.” Headmaster Cid smiled warmly at him, like he really was proud.

“What about the others? Selphie and Quistis and Irvine? I sent them off to the missile base and they still haven't reported in!”

“You did what you had to do in a bad situation. And your quick thinking and actions saved all of our lives. I should probably promote you again.” He laughed. “How many times have I already promoted you? What rank are you at? Add two to it.”

“Headmaster, please,” Squall frowned. He already felt guilty about it, this was just making it worse.

“Squall, Quistis is a prodigy, and Selphie is one of the few transfer students that successfully made SeeD with no prior training in our garden. Don't underestimate what kind of skill that requires. And Irvine, I'm sure, is just fine. He is, after all, a fantastic sharpshooter. Even if his nerves can fail him at crucial times,” he laughed.

Squall blinked. Wait. How did he know that?

“What I mean to say is, you did everything I would have expected of you, Squall. And far beyond that. Dr. Kadowaki told me the shape you were in when you made it back. What you must have endured just to even walk in such a condition...” Cid's smile faded to be replaced by pain. “I cannot ask your forgiveness for such a thing, my boy. I don't deserve it. But please know that I could not possibly be more proud of you if you were my own flesh and blood.”

Squall shook his head. “You did nothing to me, headmaster. It was...”

“I can guess who it was. It's alright. Seifer was always such a...free spirit. He had such ambition. I really thought that...Well, too late to regret what was done now. It's not like I would do it differently if I could. Everything I did was done for a reason.”

“Headmaster. What is the real meaning of SeeD?” Seifer's question was haunting Squall even now. Just because it was so easy and therefore impossible to answer.

Even Headmaster Cid looked confused. “SeeD is SeeD. The elite mercenary force of Balamb Garden. Hm? Why? Were you told something different? Do you know something else about SeeD?”

Squall never knew anything.

Headmaster Cid smiled. “The Garden will train SeeD. SeeD will defeat the sorceress.”

Squall frowned and looked up. The words had fallen so familiarly from his mouth. Like they were words he had repeated a hundred times before. Yet Squall had never heard that revelation before. That didn't mean that...

Seifer had been right?! SeeDs were opposing the sorceress?!

“You look so surprised,” Cid raised an eyebrow. “Didn't I tell you that during your inauguration?”

“No!” Squall gasped.

“Oh? Oh! That's right! That faculty member interrupted me before I could say it. I'm sorry, Squall. But it's not really a secret. Any senior SeeD member could have told you that. Quistis knows it already.”

“But...why?”

“It is our purpose. SeeD was conceived for that reason alone. The many missions around the world are only part of the training for the fight against the sorceress. Though, I suppose now that a sorceress has become a major threat, our true mission has begun. I should probably begin recalling the SeeDs from around the world back to the garden.”

“That still doesn't explain why,” Squall insisted.

“To be perfectly honest, I don't know myself,” Headmaster Cid frowned. “I'm merely fulfilling the will of someone much more powerful than either of us. I'm doing my part in a prophecy that she gave me many years ago.”

“A prophecy?”

“Well, I like to call it that, she never used that word. But what else do you call a moment when your wife looks at you and tells you that she's seen the future then sets you an impossible task like this one?”

“Your wife...” Right. The other thing NORG had said. “He said that your wife...was Edea. He can't have meant Sorceress Edea, could he?”

“He meant exactly that,” Headmaster Cid rocked on his heels, his face sad and distant. “Though I haven't seen her in many years now. We've exchanged letters, of course, but we haven't been able to meet face to face for far too long.”

“That...makes no sense...” Squall shook his head. Headmaster Cid's wife was an evil tyrant? She had tried to blow up her own husband and the task she herself had set him? Were they even talking about the same woman? Maybe there were two Sorceress Edeas? That somehow seemed to make more sense than what the headmaster was saying now.

“She's been a sorceress since childhood,” the headmaster explained. “She told me she inherited her powers from her adopted mother who got them from her adopted mother and so on. She's descended from the least bloody line of sorceresses, the last line of peaceful sorceresses. I married her knowing what she was.”

Was he sure? Because the woman that Squall had seen murder a dictator, subjugate an entire nation, and sentence hundreds to die for crimes they hadn't committed was not his definition of 'peaceful'. It really seemed far more the opposite.

The two Sorceress Edeas theory was looking better by the second.

“We were happy together. I loved her dearly and she loved me. We tended to stay away from large populations for her safety. No one trusts a sorceress, you know. And there are those who would come after her powers. It was just easier to stay away. Especially after the Sorceress War began. It was a simple life, but it was a fulfilling one. Edea and I adopted our children and we built our home and worked our fields together. It remains to this day the happiest time of my life.

“Then, one day, Edea began talking about building a place called a garden and training SeeDs. I became obsessed with the idea. I thought it would be a slightly more stringent military academy, but warmer, more like a family. A place where we could raise and teach our children and others. And with such powerful people supporting her, who would dare try to hurt her for the crimes of another sorceress? Then she told me their goal. Told me what must be done. The Garden will train SeeDs. SeeDs will defeat the sorceress.”

That still made no sense. None of this made any sense! Squall felt like he was listening to a story that was skipping every other page.

“Of course I worried about SeeDs goal. Especially as the Sorceress War was ending and we were about to begin building. I don't know what happened to the Tyrant of Esthar, but she must have been deposed somehow. Meaning my wife was the only sorceress left. And if SeeD was trained to defeat 'the' sorceress, then didn't it stand to reason they would be coming after her? She laughed. Told me that would never happen. That she wasn't the sorceress SeeD was after. But now...”

Headmaster Cid sighed, his eyes downcast. “I haven't seen my Edea is so long. Who's to say what has changed in these ten long years? I still can't believe she would do the things you all say, but I also can't deny that they were done. I have little choice now but to fall back on the vow I made to her to keep pressing on with this. No matter what.”

“Headmaster, please,” Squall shook his head. “I don't understand.”

“You're not the only one. I've told you everything I know about her. About this. Perhaps you can find out more and enlighten me.”

“Where does Master NORG fit in?” He asked, trying to figure out something. Anything.

“He is a member of the Shumi Tribe,” Headmaster Cid immediately, like he was grateful for the topic change. “Well, a black sheep of the tribe, one might say. I've met the others, and he really bears very little resemblance to them. I met him while I was running all over Gaia and back trying to find funds to build the garden. He's a business man and quite successful. He became interested in my ideas and plans about the garden and we hit it off. I will be the first to admit that it was only thanks to his funding that the garden was completed.

“However, we needed an enormous amount of funds to run the garden. I refused to let this place be common and uncomfortable. If this was going to be the base for my SeeDs, for my children, then I wanted them to have the best. So they could be nurtured properly and grow strong. That kind of devotion doesn't come cheap though and NORG wasn't running a charity.

“Dispatching SeeDs as mercenaries was his idea, but I went along with it quite willingly. It worked out perfectly. My SeeDs got to hone their skills, the people of the world had a need satisfied that they didn't before, and we began to make money. At first it was just monsters that normal fighters couldn't quite deal with. Then it was raids. Then it was espionage. As the needs of the clients grew, so too did the SeeD skill base.

“It still took a great deal of money to run the garden. But now we were getting an even greater stream of capital back in again. That, I think, was where everything began to change.”

“Change?” Squall frowned. “What do you mean?”

“We...No, I lost sight of our ideals. Though I kept the message Edea had trusted me with in mind, it became less about training and more about the missions. NORG didn't like leaving his chamber or giving up his power. He hired the garden faculty to let them carry out his will in the garden. And I allowed them control over missions because I had so many other things to watch over. He kept the truth hidden to keep making money, and I...Well, ten years is a long time to be completely devoted to a cause, no matter the reason. In the end, I only blame myself. I gave up control to NORG and the faculty to make my life easier and I paid for it.”

“I wouldn't say that,” Rinoa said gently from behind Squall, reminding them all that she and Zell were still there.

“No?” Cid asked, smiling at her.

“No,” she nodded firmly. “Yeah, it got crazy there for a bit, but from what I saw around the garden, you're not the one who gave anything up. NORG cloistered himself away, but you stayed with your students. And when it came down to it, they sided with you. Mostly. Those who weren't bullied into changing sides anyway.”

Cid's smile was sad but grateful for her words. “Thank you for saying so.”

Squall let out a long breath. He felt almost as confused as when he came in here. More tired. So was his entire life a lie or not? He had a purpose he didn't know about. He had been tortured for crimes that he had, in fact, committed no matter how unknowingly. And he couldn't figure out the riddle that was Sorceress Edea.

“So...What do we do now?” He asked, looking back up. Give him a task. Give him a mission. He needed to do something. He couldn't stand having nothing to do. No action to take. It made him feel helpless. Worthless.

Headmaster Cid's head fell back slightly as he looked to the ceiling and thought. “Well, we must stop drifting around soon. I've had as many engineering and technology students as possible trying to solve the problem of the dead engine, but they can't even figure out what it is much less how to make it run again. I only hope that things can go back to how they were. Maybe even better.”

So nothing that Squall could do. Nothing he could help with. Meaning he was going to have to just live with being helpless and worthless for an indefinite amount of time.

Basically: Standby.

How was he going to survive this one...

***

Angelo was playing with the underclassmen in the small courtyard beside the infirmary. They were playing a game of catch the tail that Angelo appeared to be winning quite easily. He would often stop and wag the tempting appendage then jump away right before the children caught him.

It was so easy and uncomplicated. Squall found himself staring at them from the railway of the hallway for a while. Headmaster Cid's words kept ringing in his ears. The half-explanations tormenting him for being nonsensical.

Zell was standing back, shadow boxing again. Rinoa was hesitating. Then, slowly, as though unsure of herself, she came forward and leaned against the rail beside him.

“So?” She looked over.

“So what?” He asked, his voice dead.

“What do you want to do now?”

Must he do anything? Why was he always the one to decide? And how could he possibly know? He couldn't stop the garden. He couldn't defeat the sorceress. He couldn't even understand what life he was living right now. He didn't want to decide. He didn't want to think. He just wanted...

He wanted...

“Let's go buy some fish from the quad guy,” he said, pushing himself up.

Rinoa smiled and stepped back. “You still owe me a tour of the second floor.”

“So I do.” He didn't need to plan that. He didn't need to decide that. She had already decided on it for him. He just had to follow her orders. And what a simple, easy thing that was to do. It required no thought from him and removed that burden from his shoulders.

It was a sweet release.

“So, what quad guy is selling fish?” Zell asked, falling into step beside them.

“The one with the fishing rod, of course,” Rinoa laughed. She didn't mind Zell being here so much anymore. At least with him around, it wouldn't fall silent and the gears in Squall's head could stop grinding together quite so loudly.

They didn't get far.

Xu was rushing down the steps from the elevator as they stepped into the nexus. She caught sight of them and Squall frowned as she picked up the pace.

Damn...

“Squall! Squall!” She called out, skidding to a half in front of him. “Have you seen the headmaster around?”

“He's in the infirmary.”

“What's wrong?” Rinoa asked, frowning at her fearful tone.

“Go to the second floor deck and see for yourself. There's a ship approaching. It could be Galbadians or worse; the sorceress might be aboard coming to attack us! I have to tell the headmaster right away!”

She took of running at the same time Squall did. They rushed past each other, Squall aiming for the elevator. Rinoa and Zell took off after him.

By the time they reached the second floor deck, the ship had already pulled up beside them. Long, slightly older, but no less impressive for that. Squall walked closer to the edge and found himself looked down at three pairs of eyes that were waiting below for someone to arrive.

“Ho, there!” The man in front called, his voice formal.

“What do you want?” Squall demanded, his hand reaching for the hilt of his gunblade.

“Is Headmaster Cid with you?” The man asked.

Squall was instantly suspicious. “No, he's not. Are you from...Galbadia?”

“No, we are SeeDs! This is Edea's ship. We are Sorceress Edea's SeeD!”

Squall started. That was hardly a reassuring thing to hear. Unless...

Could they be talking about the same Edea that the headmaster had been? An apparently sweet, simple woman that had been the start of SeeD?

He was so confused.

“We're coming aboard!” The man below yelled. “We're unarmed!”

Squall stepped back quickly as three jumped, timed perfectly, launched the SeeDs up into the air. They flipped at the crest of their peak and landed neatly on the deck.

Their uniforms were so different from Squall's. The black leather and ornate decorations had been replaced with what looked like a sturdy, almost white material that looked so familiar to Squall. It took him a moment to remember where he knew them from.

Yeah...He had seen those once before. He had seen the man before him once before too. He was one of those that escorted the girl with no fashion sense from the training center after she had been attacked by a monster...

He was not to be trusted. He had associated himself with Edea. The very same Edea that had nearly killed then tortured Squall. He was not inclined to even let them near the garden. His hand went to his weapon immediately upon their landing. Behind him, Rinoa and Zell similarly took ready positions. They followed him naturally, without question.

“Please, we come in peace,” the leader said, holding up his hands to prove he had no weapons. Squall could see the empty spots on his belt where he would hang his weapons if he had them. Just by the way he was walking, Squall could tell he was uncomfortable to go unarmed.

Slowly, suspiciously, Squall relaxed from his position, but didn't quite release his weapon. Behind him, Zell and Rinoa similarly 'relaxed'.

“You claim to side with Edea?” Squall asked him, his voice low.

“Yes,” the leader nodded once. “We are her personal SeeDs. We mean you no harm.”

“You'll forgive me for not quite believing you.”

The leader nodded again, accepting his disbelief. “That is neither here nor there. Please, we must speak to Headmaster Cid. Where is he?”

“I'm right here.”

Keeping his eye on the man who called himself Edea's SeeD, Squall stepped back and allowed his headmaster to approach. He only got more tense, however, as the old man moved in closer. Squall didn't like the idea of his headmaster so close to an unknown.

Xu, just a step behind the headmaster, appeared to share his misgivings. Her hand was twitching, like she was resisting the urge to pull out a weapon and she stayed right on the headmaster's feet. Close enough to block any attack that came towards him.

“Headmaster,” the leader bowed his head slightly, respectfully. “We've come for Ellone. It's too dangerous here now to allow her to remain.”

Ellone? That little girl from Winhill? No...

Headmaster Cid looked quite sad but he nodded in agreement. “You're right. I'm afraid I'm failing quite often lately, I can't even protect her.”

“Please, sir, we didn't mean it like that,” the leader looked disturbed at the interpretation of his words.

Headmaster Cid cut him off by holding up his hand with a gentle smile. “It's quite alright. Squall?”

“Yes, sir?” He straightened, looking to him.

“You know who she is.” He did? “Please, go find her and bring her here. She's somewhere in the garden, I know.”

He didn't know her though. Not so far as the headmaster knew anyway. Squall would definitely remember seeing that tiny girl after those dreams. Who were these people anyway? How were they connected to Ellone? Was it even the same Ellone?

“Squall?” The headmaster called, frowning at his lack of reaction.

Squall snapped himself out of it and nodded once. “Yes, sir.”

Obedient, Squall turned to run back into the garden. Zell and Rinoa followed him, leaving Xu behind to defend the headmaster against the three SeeDs if necessary. Squall felt more than a little confident that she could still handle herself.

As the three of them hit the second floor hallway, Zell turned to Squall, his face lit up.

“Squall, Ellone's that girl, huh? Y'know, that little girl Laguna was taking care of. Right?”

Was she? Could it be someone different.

“Maybe,” Squall said, his fingers numb.

Zell made a face. “What's she look like? Uh, I didn't actually get to see her. I was kind of in the prison for that dream.”

“Right...She was about this big. Brown hair, pale skin.” She looked like a pixie.

“So she's in the garden?” Zell looked around eagerly like the tiny tot might jump out from one of the classrooms. “You'd think you would have recognized her. Well, maybe not if she's an underclassmen, especially a really young one. Let's split up and find her. I'll cover the second floor.”

“Rinoa and I will split up the first,” Squall said.

Zell nodded and ran off. Rinoa fell in step beside Squall as they headed back towards the elevator.

“Hey, Squall,” she started cautiously. “Who's Ellone?”

“She's a person in the dream world. A child. Laguna was taking care of her in Winhill.”

Rinoa hummed thoughtfully but kept to herself as they stepped into the elevator. They rode down in silence and when they stepped out, Rinoa pointed right.

“I'll cover the infirmary to the quad. You go over that half. Meet you at the dorms.”

Squall nodded and watched as Rinoa ran off.

Was it the same Ellone? Could it possibly be her? Why would he not have noticed the tiny, pixie faced girl running around the garden. He had _just_ been watching Angelo play with the underclassmen. There weren't many that remained when the garden had gone up in chaos. Surely if she was here, he would have noticed her already. It was hard to hide a pixie girl that haunted his...

The numbness in Squall's hands started spreading as he stepped forward. Moving slowly, like he was afraid to reach his destination, Squall walked towards the library.

The girl with no fashion sense hadn't moved from earlier this morning. She was even reading the same book, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She heard him approaching and looked up. A smile, partly sad, partly happy, broke out over her face as she turned to face him.

A pixie face. The same pert nose. Identical hair color. Older now, but she still looked like a perfect cross between the parents Squall had seen a picture of in his dream.

Her hands folded in her lap as the pixie girl, who had to be well past twenty years old now, smiled at him like she had been waiting a long time just for this moment.

“Yes, Squall?” She asked, his name coming from her lips like she knew him well.

“Are you...Ellone?” He asked, his whole body numb.

“Yes.” Her smile started to widen. She had wanted him to remember her. She was waiting for it. He still didn't.

“You're _Ellone_?” He pressed, his heart skipping a beat. “ _The_ Ellone?”

“Yes, of course,” she laughed at his reaction. Then frowned as she realized he wasn't recognizing her at all. He only knew her from the dream.

Her smile turned sad, her eyes swimming with emotions he didn't want to recognize.

What was going on? This couldn't be her. Yet she looked just like her. She didn't deny it.

“You know...Laguna, don't you?”

She smiled, looking off into the carpet. “I do. I really love Uncle Laguna. It's been a while since I've seen him...”

There it was. That title. She couldn't have known that unless she had been in the dreams...

Or she had been there when they weren't dreams.

“Then tell me!” He stepped forward. “What is this?! What are we experiencing?”

Ellone made a face, like he had asked her to describe the technicalities of making a gunblade. “I'm sorry, Squall. It's... _hard_ to explain.”

Squall growled, turning away in anger. Ellone looked saddened by his reaction as she stood up. Squall didn't move as she walked past him, stopping just a few feet away.

“But...one thing...It's about the past.”

So they _were_ viewing the past. Her past. Laguna's past. And she knew about it. He hadn't even needed to specify what he was talking about. So she knew about the dreams. About something the SeeDs had not even yet told Headmaster Cid about. She had something to do with it...Or maybe...

Ellone sighed as her head leaned back, tilting her head to look up at the elegant filigree designs inlaid in the ceiling. She answered the question so obviously on his mind without him needing to ask it. She made a face before turning to face him. Face the back he kept to her.

“People say you can't change the past. But even still, if there's a possibility, it's worth a try, right?”

Change the past? Was the she serious? That was ridiculous. You couldn't change the past. What had already happened was set in stone. Nothing could change it.

“Are you the one responsible?” Squall demanded, turning with blazing eyes, finding himself getting angry. “Are you the one taking us to that 'dream world'?! Why?!”

Ellone looked down at her hands. “I'm sorry. I have to. I can't...” She floundered, unsure of how to express herself.

“Why me?! I have enough problems as it is! Don't get me involved in this! I don't even know you!”

Ellone flinched like he had hit her. The guilt was resting heavy on her frame, but she stood resolute before her decision.

He was angry. She supposed he had the right to be. But she couldn't stop. Not now. Not when she might still have an opportunity to make things right. For Squall, for Uncle Laguna, for everyone...

“I'm sorry,” she breathed, tears gathering in her eyes, wishing she could explain it to him. Wishing she had the courage to tell him.

But his words were ringing painfully in her ears. He wouldn't listen right now if she tried to tell him the truth. Looking into his face, seeing the distance he had put between them since the last time they met, she knew she couldn't even try. What reason would he have to believe her? More than that, what would it even accomplish?

“Don't...” Squall breathed, stepping away. That emotion was back in her eyes. It was beating at his heart in a way that filled him with abject and total fear. His legs, numb, were giving out on him as he backed away from her. “Don't depend on me...”

His knees hit the chair she had just vacated and he found himself slumping down into it. Turning his back towards her once again.

Ellone had to fight back her sobs.

Squall didn't want to help her. He didn't want to change her past. With every confusing, nonsensical thing already in his life, he didn't need her adding this. He didn't need her problems on top of everything else.

“Squall...” she looked at him sadly.

“Squall!”

Ellone looked over. Squall hadn't even flinched. Xu walked into the library, frowning at him.

“Did you find Ellone?”

“Um,” the girl in question held up her hand slightly. “I'm Ellone.”

Xu nodded, smiling at her. Then she looked back at Squall and frowned. “Are you alright?”

No.

Ellone frowned at him. At the sight he made with his back to her. He wouldn't turn around to face her and that was a different kind of pain. Calm and sad, she walked over to him. Her hand on his shoulder was warm, her voice in her ear was trembling in desperation.

She walked away with Xu, leaving Squall behind. Leaving him alone.

What she said under breath:

“ _You're my only hope..._ ”

Ellone followed Xu up to the second floor balcony. She was rather certain she knew what she was going to find there before Xu finished explaining about the unknown ship.

Why do people depend on each other?

The SeeDs, Edea's SeeDs, looked relieved to see Ellone alive and well. She smiled at them, familiar with each of their faces. She called out to them by name as Xu led her out onto the deck.

In the end, you're on your own.

Headmaster Cid took Ellone's hands and he found himself apologizing. For his own weakness. For his inability to promise her safety here at the garden.

I've made in this far by myself. Sure, I couldn't do a thing when I was a kid, but...

Ellone shook her head and threw her arms about the elder man. He hugged her back after a second and Xu looked surprised at the familiarity.

I've depended on others...

Ellone moved towards the SeeDs and she smiled as the leader took her by the hand. He asked if she was ready to go and she looked back one more time at the garden.

I'll be the first to admit that I'm here because of other people.

The leader, carrying Ellone, jumped her down to their ship. She waved at Headmaster Cid with a bright smile as they pulled away. The helpless garden was an immobile rock in comparison to the speed of the ship as it hauled Ellone away.

I'm fine by myself now.

Squall looked up at the ceiling of his bed. Shiva, tucked away in her capsule, was sitting on his desk so his thoughts were his own. In the darkness of the ocean nights, there was nothing to distract his own mind from plaguing his sanity.

I have all the skills I need to survive. I'm not a child anymore.

He turned over, nearly curling in on himself.

That's a lie. I don't know anything. I'm confused. I don't want to depend on anyone. How can I do that? Someone just tell me...

Squall's body unfolded as the irony of the statement hit him and he laughed at himself without any real humor.

Someone? So I'll end up depending on others after all...

***

It was a dream. Not one of Ellone's dreams. His own dream.

The rain poured down all around him, soaking his body through. Back when he felt cold. The constant dripping was running down his back, soaking into his shoes. He was shivering, his fingers were burning in their numbness.

Yet he couldn't bring himself to go back inside.

The stone building behind him, with warmth seeping from the walls, was no place for him. What he wanted, what he needed, couldn't be found inside.

“...Sis...I'm...all alone...”

The voice of a child. The stubby limbs of youth. His voice was high. Only his stormy gray eyes, so off putting in such a young face, remained the same.

“But I'm doing my best,” he continued, wiping his running nose. He was going to get sick standing out in this rain. He didn't care.

“I'll be okay without you, sis. I'll be able to take care of myself...”

***

Rinoa made no efforts to be quiet this time. She didn't want to nearly get punched in the face again for disturbing a sleeping SeeD, so she made her footsteps just a little bit more deliberate this morning when she walked into Squall's room.

His eyes snapped open and she saw his limb twitch like he was reaching for a weapon. He didn't attack her this time. Though he did swing his feet out of bed rather quickly. Wakefulness returned to him in full force rather quickly as he looked to her.

“Hey, again,” she beamed, waving.

“Do you ever knock?”

“When the mood strikes me. Do you ever wear a shirt to bed?” Hyne, please say no.

“I like the cold.”

She grinned. “I know you do.”

“And it's not like people regularly see me at night. They usually don't just walk into my room. Or they knock if they need my attention.”

Rinoa smiled. She was going to take that as a no and be grateful.

“So, am I going to have to steal your jacket again this morning to make you come out with me?”

“I'm not letting it happen a second time. What do you mean 'come out'?”

“I want to go for a walk.”

“Again?”

“That was a guided tour! This time, it's a walk,” she beamed.

He resisted the urge to sigh. He really wasn't in the mood this morning. That had been a very restless night. He was still tired. He felt weirdly detached from his body right now. He wouldn't make a good companion today.

“Just go by yourself. You're safe here.”

“It's not that I want a guard with me,” Rinoa frowned, stepping in close to him. “You know, you're always too deep in thought. Why don't you lighten up a little? It's not good to think too much.”

“I really just want to be alone.”

“Hm,” her head tilted curiously. “Why?”

Why? What kind of question was that? He just did.

“Why don't you talk to me instead?” Rinoa smiled gently, reaching out to put her hands on his shoulders.

Squall jumped slightly. He hadn't realized, with his eyes down on the floor, just how close she had gotten. He could feel her body warmth as she smiled at him. She reached down and stroked back his hair like she had that day on the train when he had rested on her lap.

Talk to her. Yeah, right. There was no point in talking to anyone. What could she even do? There was nothing that could be resolved or absolved by speaking with Rinoa. It would be no different than talking to a wall.

A wall with big brown eyes and a smile that made his heart beat just a little faster. In comparison, the idea of talking to a wall was just...

“You might feel better,” Rinoa pressed. She grabbed his head and forced him to look up at her. “If you unload all those thoughts in here on me, it could lighten the burden a bit.”

“It won't change anything,” he said softly.

“Maybe not. But I want to know what you think.”

“Why?”

“Because I do. I don't need a reason.” Yes she did. It made no sense to him. “I guess what I'm trying to say is...”

Grinning, Rinoa stepped back. She grabbed the edges of her duster like a dress and curtsied to him quite gracefully. When she spoke, she had elevated her voice haughtily. “It would be my honor to have your company, your highness, in the hopes that I may get your mind off of things. For a little while. How about it, your highness?”

She lifted her eyes back up, still deep in her curtsy. And damn if she wasn't adorable. How did she always know exactly what to do to make his heart beat faster and his head feel lighter? The laughter in her brown eyes was almost infectious. The grace of her body as she dipped into the move made him want to grab hold of her.

Damn. Even now, when it felt like he had never felt worse, she got to him.

“Fine,” he said, standing up.

“Oh, thank you, your highness!” Rinoa dipped lower into the curtsy before standing up again, smiling at him happily.

“Where do you want to go?”

Rinoa thought for a moment. She didn't really have a destination in mind, but she couldn't imagine that Squall was the type to meander around meaninglessly. He needed a place to get to. A point 'B' for his point 'A'.

“Take me...somewhere you wouldn't take anyone else.”

Squall stared, confused. What did that even mean?

She smiled, putting her hands behind her back. “I want you to give me something special. Something you wouldn't give to anyone but me.”

His first impression of this girl, that she oozed difficulty, only proved more true each day. She wanted him to make concessions for her. To put her above everyone else. She was going to demand more from him than anyone ever had.

And Hyne damn him if he didn't want to give her exactly that.

He had no problem giving her what she wanted. He was already casting his mind around, trying to figure out a place that would suit.

“You know this is a public garden, right? The only place I've never taken anyone else is the sub-levels and if you really want to go there again...”

Rinoa laughed. “It doesn't have to be completely unique. It just has to be special. I'll let you get dressed. Don't leave me waiting too long.”

When Squall walked back out of his room after a few minutes, Rinoa frowned because he had put his jacket back on. He adjusted the collar, giving her a look. She hadn't demanded he didn't wear it this time. The look on her face told him that she knew that very well.

That didn't stop her from grabbing onto his arm. It was a little more awkward this time because of the thick leather of his jacket and her own weapon. She was never leaving it behind again. She had learned her lesson yesterday.

Squall grinned at the sight of it.

Together, the two of them walked into the garden. There were more people around to stare today because someone had seen Rinoa walking towards Squall's dorm and alerted everyone else about the potential show. Those that missed it yesterday, those that couldn't believe it yesterday, wanted to see a girl hanging from his side.

They still couldn't quite believe it.

Squall had never minded their staring before. It was really getting annoying now. What were they acting so surprised about? It was kind of insulting.

Squall aimed himself for the training center and Rinoa frowned. She didn't say anything until they were walking down the hallway, without a doubt heading that way.

“You know, when I said I could see you taking someone here on a first date, I didn't think you'd actually go through with it.”

“I thought this was a second date.”

Rinoa grinned to herself. That meant he was acknowledging yesterday as a first date. Well, if this is what made him happy, she was here to get his mind off of things. She'd play with the monsters with him until he got tired of it.

The two of them moved at almost the same time to junction their GFs. Squall pulled his gunblade from his inventory and attached it to his hip. Rinoa unfolded the edge from her blaster. Then he hit the release on the doors and they stepped inside.

The artificial forest that the SeeDs had created to train was actually quite a beautiful place. While the marks of battle where apparent everywhere, and the path beneath their feet was partially metal, the place was still rather lovely.

There was even a pond with a waterfall that served as a waterhole to the monsters. The plant life that grew here was flourishing and the monsters were tough. The weak ones were always killed off, so that left only the strongest of the monsters behind to train the cadets.

Though a couple times, as they were walking through, Rinoa could hear T-rexaurs moving out in the trees, they only saw grats. Which she could take care of easily at this point. Which was handy since they attacked in pairs, in threes, against the two of them.

It wasn't until halfway through that she realized Squall was walking with purpose. He wasn't just wondering around looking for fights. He had a destination in mind.

At the very back of the training center, there was a walkway to a door that was too small for any of the monsters here to fit through. Squall walked past it easily, Rinoa a step behind him. She looked around curiously at the thin staircase that they took upwards.

The door of the observation deck, of the 'secret' area, had been damaged slightly when the garden began moving. Squall had to jam his shoulder against it a few times to push his way through. Then he pulled back the door from the other side so Rinoa could step out.

She took in an awed breath.

From up here she could see over the entirety of the forest. She could see the garden, so beautiful, at the other end. She could look back and see the water surrounding them just behind the tower.

“What is this?” She asked breathlessly, stepping forward to the rails as Squall released the door. It closed partially back into place.

“It's an old observation deck the clones used to use,” Squall said, watching her carefully. “They didn't like having to fight monsters to get out here though, so they stopped. Then people used it as a meeting area for some...illicit PDA since the faculty couldn't stop them here. Since they betrayed us though, they lost their power and people haven't needed to hide. And mostly they've started going to the quad since it's less of a hassle.”

“So...” Rinoa turned at the rails and looked back at him, grinning. “This is like a make out point?”

Squall shrugged. She had asked for some place special. This was the only place in the garden that he knew of that served a meeting point for couples. He didn't know if that's what she meant though. He was just trying to fulfill her request. He wasn't sure how well he did.

“You've never taken anyone here before?” Rinoa asked, tilting her head at him.

“No. Well, Quistis brought me here once.”

“She did?” Rinoa looked surprised.

“She wanted to talk. Will it serve?”

Rinoa grinned. The place was empty. The new hot spot had considerably less monsters. So they were finally alone. What she had wanted all along. She felt almost silly for doubting her SeeD's ability to give her what she requested of him.

“It's perfect. If you would stop standing over there and come join me, that is.”

Squall hesitated only a moment before stepping up beside her. He leaned against the rails and she turned back around. She smiled over the forest.

“So? What's on your mind, Squall?”

What wasn't on his mind lately? He couldn't find any answers to his questions so they just buzzed around in his brain driving him insane.

Rinoa looked at him when he didn't respond. Maybe talking it out wouldn't help him. If he couldn't answer his questions, then they couldn't be put to rest. Which, for him, would be the only thing to give him peace. So she tried to a new tactic.

“Squall, what's your favorite color?”

He started, confused. “What?”

“Your favorite color. You have one, don't you? What is it?”

“Brown.” The word came from his mouth immediately and Rinoa frowned.

“Brown? Well, that's kind of...boring. Why brown?”

Because it was the color of her eyes. He wasn't answering that.

“What's _your_ favorite color?” He returned, trying to change the topic from him.

“Blue,” she laughed, touching her duster. “The color of the sky. The color of the water. It's such a pretty, calming color. But it's also happy.”

She had put a lot more thought into her favorite color than he did. He wasn't taking it back though. The bright brown of her eyes was the only color he found interesting at the moment.

Rinoa looked over and caught his eye. She grinned, her cheeks flushing under his gaze. Even just talking about colors, he was still ON.

“You're so serious,” she laughed.

“Do not call me cute.”

“But you _are_ ,” Rinoa snuggled closer to him and he let out a sigh. “Okay, I won't say it. Have you ever considered not taking every subject so life-and-death seriously though? You're starting to remind me of my father.”

“Don't.”

“Hm?” Rinoa looked up, surprised by the firmness of his voice. “Don't what?”

“Don't compare me to him. I'm not your father.”

“I'm aware.” Rinoa tilted her head as he continued to stare at her. “Why do you not want me to though?”

Because she hated her father...

Squall didn't say it, but he didn't really need to. Rinoa could see it in his eyes as he quickly looked away from her. She smiled and leaned over to rest her head on his shoulder.

“You want me to tell you what my father did wrong?”

He didn't say anything, which she took as 'yes'. If he hadn't wanted to know, he would have told her as much. That he was silent was more telling than his words.

“He wouldn't stop working,” she said, frowning out into the distance. “Back when I was little and my mother was around, he was around more often too. But I found out after my mother died that he only spent so much time around us because she would threaten to leave him if he didn't. Since I couldn't leave him, he didn't have to try to stay around me. He would start working for weeks at a time. He ignored me. He didn't care what I did so long as I always did exactly what he wanted. For a long while, I obeyed, because I thought if I was good, he would pay attention to me again. When he never did, I started rebelling. He still didn't pay attention to me, but he got even more strict. So I left.”

Rinoa smiled up at him and wasn't surprised to see him already looking down at her, absorbing everything that she said. Squall always listened. He was always right there.

“You're a lot like him. You're both military men, very stiff and dutiful. But, you don't expect me to fall into a perfect mold. You accept me as I am. And you don't tune me out when I talk. You take everything a little but too seriously. It's kind of c-...” She cleared her throat. “It's nice. I'm not asking for you to dote on me all day, every day. I just want some attention every now and again”

“That doesn't seem like such an unreasonable request,” Squall agreed neutrally.

Rinoa smiled and reached up to stroke his cheek. To touch the edge of the scar that was imprinted across the bridge of his nose.

He reached up suddenly and caught her hand in his before she could, surprising her. He held onto her fingers, his thumb pressing against her palm as those stormy gray eyes of his washed over her.

Rinoa's heart started racing in her chest. Her lips parted slightly at their closeness and his eyes tracked the movement, lingering there for a long moment.

Squall could feel her heartbeat in the pulse of her wrist. He could see it in the blush across her cheeks as she looked at him. Those big brown eyes tempting him forward.

His body turned just slightly, more directly facing her. And, without thinking, she took a small step forward to close that gap between them.

The cold coming off of his skin was ticking her flesh in a titillating sort of way. Conversely, the heat coming off of Rinoa's skin felt almost like it was burning along Squall's nerves.

His other hand reached out, wanting to take her waist as she moved in closer. He could make out each of her individual eyelashes from this distance. His own heart started to race. From her nearness. From her scent. From realizing what he was about to let himself do.

The happy chiming of the intercom system shattered the spell over them neatly. The two jumped apart as Headmaster Cid's voice came over the air, like he might have walked in on them.

“ _Hello, everyone,_ ” he greeted cheerfully as Squall and Rinoa looked away from each other. “ _This is the headmaster speaking. I'm happy to report that the lines have finally been fixed and I'm back on the air. Hurrah! Um...WHOA!_ ”

Squall and Rinoa shared a worried look.

“ _Squall! This is the headmaster speaking! Please come to my office. I repeat, please come to my office right away!_ ”

***

The sun was beaming down pretty hot today. Even a master fisherman like himself, tanned from years out on the water, would quickly find himself drying up in this heat. If it hadn't been for his trusty umbrella over his head.

It was nice though. Made him feel rather sleepy. Apparently made the fish rather sleepy too. Frowning at their lack of activity, the fisherman pulled back his line and threw it out again. Usually there were plenty of fish out here near the wind turbine columns. This old support beam was one of his favorite spots to fish from. He had his chair, his umbrella, and his bucket of bait all set up in preparation for the haul he would bring.

If he _could_ bring anything in. As good as he was, he couldn't magically make the sea give up her bounty if she wasn't already inclined to do so. Like any good woman, she required him to stroke and cajole and love her until she opened herself up to him.

“Boy, it's been a slow day,” he said. “Come on, baby. Give me a big one.”

It was the rushing of the water that first alerted him that something was wrong. He had been staring at these waters for years. He knew their ripple patterns. The sudden, strange, large waves that echoed around the turbine columns was unusual. The sort of thing he would see around an incredibly large vessel. But if something so huge was coming for them, surely he would have been alerted to its arrival earlier.

The fisherman looked over, following the ripples and jumped to his feet.

Balamb Garden, so massive in relation to everything around it that it made him feel like a flea, was bearing down on him. The water rushed out of its path. The wind turbines that had seemed so large just moments ago shattered against the hull of the garden as it rushed through the area.

Then his mistress decided to be funny. As he stared, frozen with fear at the monolith bearing down on him and his post, he felt a jerk against his fishing pole. Then another. The steady yanking of a fish caught on his hook pulled him from his open mouthed staring.

Automatically, he grabbed for the reel and started trying to pull the fish in. All the while, he stared at the enormous garden that crept steadily forward.

More turbines crumbled. The momentum of the garden kept it going. The fisherman yanked on the large fish dangling from the end of his pole.

Too close. The entirety of his vision was filled with the vessel. He had to get out of here! The fish tempted him again. Survival instincts barely won out.

He dropped the pole and started sprinting back up the girder. The garden hit multiple turbines in a row and they cracked and bent and crumbled. It slammed against the outer edges of the ocean town of Fisherman's Horizon and there was a great explosion of water up around the girder that the master fisherman had barely abandoned in time.


	23. Fisherman's Horizon

Squall left Rinoa down below in the headmaster's old office as he rode the lift up alone to respond to the intercom call. As he reached the top, he could hear the headmaster both over the intercom and in person speaking.

“Everybody, please remain calm. Also, please do not leave the garden under any circumstances until you are permitted to do so by myself. We will try to get things back in order A.S.A.P. Thank you for your cooperation.”

The intercom dinged happily again as Cid put the microphone down on the console that someone had since torn the access panel off of to gain access to the wiring. He turned around to Squall and nodded at him.

“Thank you for coming so quickly. Here are your orders: We've landed, to use the term a bit liberally, on Fisherman's Horizon. I want you to go ashore with Rinoa and Zell. Find the local mayor and apologize for this accident. Tell them that we come and peace. You may explain our situation if you need to. Take a look around while you're there, too. I hear that Fisherman's has some of the best engineering this side of Esthar.”

“...Yes, sir.”

And why was he the one that had to go, Squall thought grumpily.

Cid tilted his head and must have seen something on his face. “Is there a problem?”

“No, sir.” So many. Too many to list.

Cid smiled at him. “SeeD is not just a special force for combat. I want you to see the world. To broaden your horizons, so to speak. There is more to the world than fighting. I have high expectations for you, Squall.”

Hyne, why?

“Now go. The longer we wait, the worse it looks on us,” the headmaster smiled.

Oh, whatever. At least with these orders he was no longer sitting around letting his own thoughts eat at him. He spared a single thought for the moment missed with Rinoa as he turned and hit the return switch on the platform.

She was smiling at him as he came back down again. Zell, despite not having been called, had invited himself up as he had before when he heard Squall being summoned.

“So?” Rinoa asked, smiling. “Do we have new orders?”

There goes that 'we' stuff again. She knew she wasn't SeeD, right? Well, it wasn't like the headmaster hadn't included her in his instructions.

“Yeah, what's up?” Zell asked. “We heading down to Fisherman's?”

Squall nodded once. “We're to go ashore here and find the mayor. We're to make an official apology then observe the town.”

“How exciting!” Rinoa clapped. “I've always wanted to see Fisherman's Horizon. I hear they get the best view of the sunrise and sunset here. And its a town in the middle of the ocean!”

“It's pretty cool,” Zell agreed. “Yo, Squall, we gotta use the second floor deck to get outta here though. The front gates are kinda halfway underwater at the moment.”

Squall nodded and stepped forward. He already felt more comfortable now that he had a list of things he needed to do. Find the mayor. Apologize. Observe. Report. It was a rather simple mission as missions went, but at least it would keep his mind off of things.

The memory of Rinoa so close he could almost taste her hit him again regretfully. Observing a town wasn't the only way to keep his mind off of things.

She was practically humming beside him though as they made their way to the deck. Honestly, she was just happy that she was making such progress with Squall. He had almost kissed her! AH! She could feel her toes curling already in anticipation.

The garden had done a great deal of damage in its 'landing'. There was a lot more debris littering the ocean floor now. And the metal girders and support beams that made up the outer edges of the town had collapsed against the second floor deck forming a handy bridge.

When Squall stepped out, it was to see that representatives for the town had already come forward to meet whoever would come out. They were standing on the debris, trying to make it easier to cross as they waited.

“Here they come,” the biggest man in front said as Squall stepped down.

He moved forward and stopped just short of the makeshift bridge. The two groups looked each other over critically for a long moment.

A second man behind the big one in front spoke up. “Hey, we've come to warn you before you go ashore. You're Balamb Garden, aren't you? So you must be fighters. SeeD, maybe. In that case, you need to know the law around here. Do not engage in any type of armed conflict within the city. We are a peaceful people and we do not tolerate belligerence here.”

“Do you understand?” The man in front asked, his voice hard.

Squall nodded once, accepting their rules gracefully. “Yes. We are representatives of the garden and we've come in peace.”

The men exchanged a glance and looked over Squall once more.

“Your weapons,” they said.

Squall's eyes moved down to his gunblade, still attached to his hip from running through the training center earlier. Wordlessly, he reached down and lifted it. He returned it to the inside of his inventory. Behind him, Zell took off his gauntlets and slipped them into one of the large pockets on his shorts. Squall turned back and looked as Rinoa removed her blaster edge regretfully. He reached out and took it from her. Her eyes were a bit surprised as he put that into his inventory after the gunblade. But then she looked grateful because she wouldn't have to leave it behind.

Squall turned back and held out his hands to show that the weapons were put away. They still held them, but they were out of sight. Which was as far as Squall wanted to go. The men of Fisherman's nodded once, accepting that compromise.

“Welcome to Fisherman's Horizon,” the second man smiled at him peacefully. “We just call it FH.”

The man in front pointed over his shoulder. “You should go visit the mayor. His house is in the middle of the city.”

“He's the head of FH,” a third guy, in the back, spoke up.

“We'll do just that,” Squall nodded once.

“Good,” the man in front nodded. “Looks like we understand each other.”

Two of the men turned back. The largest one in front though clicked his tongue as he looked over the large garden and the destruction it had made.

“Man, this is a hell of a mess.”

“I'm terribly sorry,” Squall said formally. “It was inevitable. I'm afraid we lost control of our garden.”

“Nah, don't worry about it,” the man smiled. “What's important is that nobody got hurt. We love fixing stuff around here anyway. So you just kick back and enjoy your stay.”

Squall nodded once as the man turned to start back.

“Nice people,” Rinoa smiled as they moved forward.

“Yeah, real pacifists,” Zell agreed. “I read that this town has a really strict 'no violence' policy. They're the only town in the entire world that's never hired SeeD before. Well, them and Esthar, but Esthar doesn't really count.”

“No way,” Rinoa laughed.

The garden had crashed into the outer limits of FH. The people had already started coming out of the town though, rushing around to the damaged areas like ants on a disturbed hill. Squall found that, almost immediately after the makeshift bridge, the three of them began walking down paths that had been created by cranes and ladders to get the people out to the garden. The metal was rusted from their position on the sea, and it all looked rather slapped together, but a SeeD always appreciated function over form and there was no denying it worked.

They crossed under the shadow of an enormous silo that housed fresh water that had been purified from the ocean. On the other side, they were greeted by one of the men that had been waiting for them who was operating a lift that led from the silo to the city proper.

“So, you guys going to Esthar?” He asked, hitting some buttons on the lift, attempting to make friendly conversation.

“Esthar?” Squall repeated, one eyebrow going up in surprise. How could they possibly get to Esthar from here?

The man didn't get the unspoken question and assumed Squall didn't know what he meant. “Yeah, you know, that high-tech city in the east? It's just beyond the train tracks. A lot of people who stop here go there. The trains are down at the moment though, so the best way to get there is to walk from here. What a joke, huh? Well, anyway, you guys only got here by accident, right? I guess I shouldn't keep you.”

The lift he was calling from below locked into place and he reached out to grab the gate. “Okay, go ahead and get on.”

“Woh!” Rinoa ran to the front of the lift and looked out over the town.

It wasn't just the makeshift bridge to the garden. The entirety of FH looked like it had been cobbled together using scrap metal. Everything was covered in a film of rust because of the salty sea air. All except one place.

The center of town was not hard to find. It was surrounded on all sides by an enormous dish that was was filled to the brim with bright solar panels that provided energy to the town. Set in deliberate, ever expanding circles, and reflecting the great expanse of the blue sky above, it was breathtaking to behold.

The lift lowered them down towards the city and Rinoa laughed.

“What's up?” Zell asked.

“I just can't believe I'm here,” she breathed.

“At FH? This isn't exactly a tourist trap. Or even that hard to get to.”

“Yeah, but...” But her father would never have let his daughter come here. She would never have been in Balamb Garden, for that matter. Squall wasn't the only one who got to expand his horizons. Rinoa had never felt so free in her life.

At the base of the lift, it was almost a straight shot down towards the mayor's house, which they could make out faintly in the center of all the solar panels.

Though the mayor's house took pride of place in the city, it was rather common looking. Squall stepped up the stairs leading to the front door, thinking that it was probably the most humble house he'd ever seen for a leader of any kind. Though, actually, when he compared it to the other ramshackle houses in the area, it was actually more of a palace.

The door was unlocked – why wasn't he surprised? – and fell open easily when he tried to knock.

“Oops,” Zell said as Rinoa laughed.

“Hello?” Squall called, sticking his head in and looking around.

“Upstairs!” Came the response from a male throat.

Squall shared a look with the others as they stepped inside. Who invited someone into their house without knowing who it was?

On the second floor, Squall was greeted by frowning man wearing shorts and a yellow shirt covered in flowers. Behind him, a woman who looked like she had just smelled something unpleasant watched them as they stepped up to the pair. Hanging from the ceiling all around them were what looked like miniature flying machines.

“Please, have a seat,” the mayor said, gesturing before him.

Squall took a knee. Rinoa and Zell actually sat down.

“I am Mayor Dobe. Allow me to get to the point: When are you leaving?” The man asked shortly.

Well, that was blunt. He certainly wasn't waiting any time.

“We'll leave as soon as the garden is capable of moving,” Squall said, thinking that moment couldn't get here fast enough.

“Any idea when?” Mayor Dobe brought the end of a long pipe to his mouth and took a drag. The smoke he expelled smelled like a mixture of lighter fluid and cement paste.

“I'm afraid not,” Squall said, resisting the urge to cough in the cloud of smoke. “We only discovered that our garden was mobile a short while ago and the engine died before we were able to figure out how to pilot it. We're still in the process of trying to understand everything.”

The mayor nodded once, accepting that. “Our technicians will assist you. They should be able to repair and service everything. We won't even charge you for labor, only supplies. How does that sound?”

Squall frowned. That would mean they would need to let outsiders into the garden. They would need to let them play around with an engine that none of them understood. He didn't have the authority to make this decision on his own.

He told the mayor as such and he nodded again.

“Go consult with your leader then. If he wishes to talk about the cost, I'll be willing to go over it with him. Though I can't imagine Balamb Garden is hurting for your dirty blood money.”

Squall's eyebrow raised at the disgust in his tone. Blood money? Well, he supposed the garden did run because of SeeD but he hadn't heard it referred to as blood money before. Kind of evocative imagery for something that Squall thought was merely a service to the world.

He stood up to leave, fully prepared to get out of this smoke.

“S'cuse me,” Rinoa spoke up, frowning at him. “Why do you want us to leave so badly?”

Please, just keep your mouth shut, Squall frowned at her. They must have their reasons. Who really cared anyway?

It was too late. The mayor was already blowing out another puff of smoke.

“We don't want military organizations in FH. SeeDs especially. You rely on force to solve problems. That is in direct defiance of our principles.”

Her voice squeaky and thready, his wife spoke up from behind him. “We believe that any problem can be settled by discussion. If you reach a mutual understanding, there is no need to fight.”

No argument there, Squall agreed. Trite and dull as hell though.

“Violence only leads to more violence,” the mayor continued sagely. “We believe your presence here will attract violence. That's why we want you to leave as soon as possible.”

Squall nodded to the others. “Let's go back to garden.”

Rinoa and Zell stood and hastened after him down the stairs and out of the building. The fresh air, scented by metal and the sea was a welcome relief from whatever the mayor had in that pipe. Squall took in a deep breath gratefully as he started back up through the solar panels.

“Man, that geezer pissed me off!” Zell growled, stomping his foot. Honestly, Squall was just happy he hadn't done something in the mayor's home. “Squall, why didn't you tell him off?!”

“Forget it,” Squall called back to him, refusing to stop. “You can't expect everyone to welcome us.”

“He could have been a little less rude though,” Rinoa agreed with Zell. “He treated us like common criminals he was trying to bribe out of his house.”

As Zell and Rinoa took turns bashing the mayor and his unpleasant wife, Squall's eyes narrowed at the top of the rim of the bowl housing the panels. There was a man there. He was running right towards them. He caught sight of them and started screaming.

“G-G-G-Galbadian soldiers!”

Squall and Rinoa shared a look as they started running. They rushed up out of the bowl and towards the town. They looked around quickly and Squall frowned to see that the peaceful streets of FH were now being filled with mechs and soldiers.

“They're coming from that way,” Zell pointed down the street.

“We should report this to the headmaster,” Squall said.

“Wait!”

They turned around to see the mayor's wife, out of breath and panting, coming up from behind them. She glared at Squall hatefully.

“The Galbadian's are here because of you, right? They're after you!”

Well, maybe. Probably not him specifically, but the garden more likely.

“You'd better take full responsibility,” she leveled a finger at Squall's chest. “It's your fault.”

Squall rolled his eyes. Fine, they'd take care of them. He didn't much like the sound of her tone when she 'asked' though.

“No, Flo,” Mayor Dobe sneered, coming from behind his wife. “We mustn't rely on them. They won't be able to do anything without resorting to violence.”

Wait, Squall frowned. Please don't say he was going to try to reason with them...

“I'll go talk to them,” Mayor Dobe said, his voice smug and superior as he started walking away.

Well, he's dead, Squall thought to himself.

Flo continued to look at them with a disgusted grimace.

“What?” Rinoa asked her, getting angry at that expression.

“A blood peddler like you would never understand,” Flo sneered.

Zell growled at her and Rinoa stepped around Squall to stop in front of the woman.

“You know, maybe we won't go save your husband.”

“We won't?” Zell raised an eyebrow at Squall who shrugged.

“You two are still under my command, right?” Rinoa looked back at them. “And my ordering you back to the garden doesn't fly in the face of Cid's orders, right? So if I wanted, I could keep them from helping your husband at all, old woman.”

“When did you get vindictive?” Squall asked, almost grinning. It was a hollow threat. Rinoa would never do it. She was just trying to get under the woman's skin. Squall found it amusing to watch.

The threat didn't touch the woman at all.

“Go ahead. At least my husband will have died with honor! I can rest easy at night knowing that we never stooped to your level. How about you, girl? Can you say you have a clear conscious hanging off of a blood bringer's arm? You're a mercenary's whore! Does it feel good?”

Rinoa cried out in anger and tried to jump at the old woman. Squall's arm shot out so quickly and took her by the waist that it surprised both women. Rinoa struggled to get out of his grasp and reach the old woman who had fallen backwards almost on her butt against the metal ground. Squall pulled Rinoa back against himself, his arm tight around her. She was still growling.

“Take that back, old woman!” She was yelling, trying to grab for her with one hand and uselessly pulling at Squall's iron grip with the other. “You take that back!”

“Come on, Zell,” Squall said calmly, jerking his head forward. “We have to catch up with the mayor before he gets himself into trouble.”

Zell, who was growling at Flo, nodded in compliance with the order. It obviously took some force of will for him to turn around though.

Rinoa and the old women continued throwing vitriol at each other – “Blood whore!” “Sanctimonious witch!” – as Squall jerked Rinoa up bodily. He rested her on his hip so that she was now able to kick back against the old woman who maintained a strong distance. Rinoa's strength couldn't be compared to Squall's though and he walked away almost normally, even carrying her one handed, struggling in the air.

As they were walking after the mayor, Flo sent Rinoa an obscene gesture. In return, Rinoa lifted her voice and screamed out over the distance: “AND YES! IT FEEL'S _GREAT_ TO BE HIS WHORE!”

“Woh,” Zell was taken aback as Rinoa continued to growl in Squall's grasp. “Um, have you two really-”

“No,” Squall cut him off. “She's just talking. Rinoa, can I put you down now or will you try to attack her again?”

Squall's arm was cutting rather painfully into her abdomen, making it hard to breath. So she nodded and he paused so he could put her back on her feet. She threw one last glare at Flo who had already turned to go back to her house.

“Delusional sea hag,” she hissed venomously. “What right does she have to judge you anyway?”

Squall frowned. “Wait, is that why you got mad? Because she called me a blood bringer?”

“Of course! How dare she?” Rinoa cursed, straightening her clothes angrily. “She acts all holier-than-thou, but she doesn't know a thing about you! It's not like you take _joy_ in killing people. You provide a necessary service for the world that no one else is willing to do.”

Squall and Zell stared at her as they walked. She noticed their silence and turned.

“What?”

“Nothing,” Zell looked away quickly.

Squall continued to look at her, feeling somehow pleased at the stance she had taken on his profession and lifestyle.

“You called yourself a whore,” he finally said softly.

Rinoa's face turned bright red and she jerked her gaze forward. “Yeah...Well, I didn't mean it like...I wasn't just going to let her...Ugh! You know what I meant!”

Yeah, he did. He wasn't sure what he thought about the proclamation. Or the fact that Zell, who couldn't be trusted to keep a secret, had been the one to hear it.

“And now we have to go save her ungrateful husband,” she continued grumbling. “And you know he thinks the same way she does. I don't like either of them.”

She was angry for him. More than that, she had made a spectacle of herself in public for him. She didn't appear to regret it either. Squall knew he should be mortified or even just embarrassed at what she had yelled, but he felt only a strange, possessive joy at the implications of the proclamation.

“Yo, Squall,” Zell pointed. “G-amy thugs. Can we pull out our weapons now?”

“Might as well,” Squall shrugged.

He reached into his jacket and pulled out first Rinoa's weapon, then his own. The three of them strapped their weapons in place and Zell grinned as the first soldiers and their mechs reached them. The smoke coming from his nostrils curled up in the air.

“Oh, yeah,” he laughed as more soldiers, a whole platoon, came forward.

It took them a little while to fight their way across the city. They didn't know where Dobe went when he walked away. However, they figured that following the steady stream of Galbadian soldiers and mechs that fell easily under their weapons would lead them.

In the town square at the base of the steps of the train station, the commander of the Galbadian force was meeting with Dobe. He was picking at something on his gun arm while the mayor looked at him beseechingly. But they were still talking.

Why were they talking to him if they were after the garden? What were they talking about?

On the path up to the square, Squall kneeled down below some scrap metal without a word. Rinoa and Zell followed suit not a moment later, looking to him as he listened over the distance.

“I already told you,” Mayor Dobe said, his tone desperate. “I've never heard of this girl named Ellone. There is nobody here by that name.”

Ellone?!

“Fine,” the leader shrugged carelessly. “We'll just have to torch this city.”

“W-Wait a minute!” Dobe grabbed for his arm. “I'm telling the truth! I've never seen this girl!”

The soldier laughed at him derisively. “It doesn't matter, old man. We were gonna burn this place down anyway. Edea's orders.” He threw back his head and guffawed loudly.

“No, please!” Mayor Dobe dropped to his knees, grasping at his belt. “I beg of you! Don't!”

The Galbadian was grinning as he reached forward and closed his large hand around the mayor's neck and lifted. Dobe's legs kicked in the air as he struggled for breath. The Galbadian soldier held him aloft easily, laughing at the sight he made struggling. Like a worm on a hook.

Well, that was probably their cue to step in there and help.

Squall stood up, Zell and Rinoa followed suit. Laughing, Zell tightened his gloves.

“Alright! Let's get it on!”

“Rinoa,” Squall said, pulling his gunblade out. “Drop him.”

Grinning, Rinoa lifted up her blaster and took aim. Her Valkyrie was no less deadly for being all scratched up and scarred. It flew through the air and sliced down through the Galbadian's arm, just past his glove and into the meat.

He cried out and dropped the mayor and Rinoa caught the blade neatly.

Squall stepped forward and the Galbadian soldier glared at him while Mayor Dobe tried to crawl away, coughing and grabbing for his throat in the process.

“Who the hell are you?” The G-army thug asked angrily.

“We're SeeDs,” Squall said simply, knowing that would be enough.

“SeeDs?!” He took a step back in surprise. Then, instead of fighting them himself, he turned and called out to his subordinates. “Get the Iron Clad over here!”

A loud rumbling started blasting through the air. Squall leaned down over Dobe who was glaring at all of them equally.

“I'm sorry,” he said genuinely. “But we have no choice.”

“Squall!” Zell cried out in warning.

Squall stood up again and turned to see that some soldiers had come up from the rear. Then from behind, the leader from the front. That left one for each of them.

“Wretched SeeDs!” one of the soldiers growled, baring his sword.

Squall watched the captain take aim. He could feel Rinoa and Zell tensing behind him. Waiting for his word.

“Now,” Squall said calmly.

The captain fired. Squall, Rinoa, and Zell dropped and moved at the same moment.

Zell, laughing, charged his soldier down. The G-soldier swiped down with his saber. Zell put his hand on the flat of the blade and hefted himself up and over. His foot slammed into the soldier's face. The force sent the man flying, falling from the platform. His body splashed down into the water as Zell hit the ground again, crouching with a grin.

Squall ran under and around the bullets. He curved in from the side and as he got in too close he brought up a wall of ice that caught the gunfire. He jumped out from behind it and swung his blade up and around. Squall turned back neatly towards the others as the soldier dropped behind him. His eyes immediately went to Rinoa.

Crying out, she slid in under the soldier's slash and came in close. He reared his fist back. Rinoa dodged it sloppily, but she dodged it. She slammed her fist into the soldier's abdomen. Her punch did no damage. But she hit the release on her blaster edge and the Valkyrie slammed into his midsection at full speed. His body dropped and Rinoa jumped back, breathing hard.

She turned, beaming at Squall and he nodded in approval.

The rumbling that began earlier continued on unabated. If anything, it was getting stronger. Rinoa looked around, frowning as she tried to follow the sound.

“I think...Something's coming,” she took some steps back, holding her weapon.

The rumbling continued to grow. And, as it got louder, they were more easily able to place it. They all turned and looked _up_ at a train track that ran over their heads.

The massive mech that dropped down on them landed nearly on top of the soldiers who's orders it was supposed to obey. Squall and the others barely jumped out of the way in time. All three of them rolled and came back up again to face the mech.

It looked like someone had already gone at it. The blue paint was covered with a thick layer of ash and dust where it wasn't scratched off altogether. There were two generators on its head, and places for four others that were missing. The parts were sparking where the wiring was exposed.

Zell laughed, pulling at his gloves. “Looks like we got a big one on our hands!”

“Let's destroy this thing,” Squall said, facing it confidently.

“Thunder!” He shouted, throwing out the spell.

The mech shuddered. Then a front hatch fell open and it started shooting. Erratically. Squall and Rinoa hit the deck as Zell ran away.

“Zell, hit that panel!” Rinoa ordered, pointing forward.

“Done!” Zell sprinted.

“What are you doing?” Squall asked. He didn't much care that she had given an order, but he was curious where it was coming from.

“I know that thing!” Rinoa laughed. “I know how to fight that thing!”

“Seriously?” Squall looked surprised.

“Caraway designed the Iron Clad series himself. If I can get into the access panel, I can hijack the engine.”

“Back!” Squall snapped.

The two of them jumped apart and canon fire aimed at their torsos zoomed past.

Zell came around the side, then, laughing, he pulled back his fist. Burning nearly white hot, the appendage slammed into the front of the Iron Clad, just off center. The heat wasn't enough to break the panel, but his strength was enough to dent it inwards. The corners of the panel bent outwards and Zell had to jump away as the mech tried to body slam him.

“We need to rip that panel off,” Rinoa said, pointing to the bent corners. “The access console is under there. Squall?”

“Alright. Zell, you play keep away. I'll go for the panel. Rinoa, you get ready.”

“Right!” Rinoa and Zell cried at the same time as they began moving.

“Hey, big boy!” Zell yelled running in front of it, in front of it's sensors. “Right this way!”

The autolock mechanism started tracing him as he danced in front of it.

“Ifrit, fire!” Zell called, throwing out his fists. The fire balls burst forth with his punches and burst against the Iron Clad. The heat of the spell did little against the tough hull of the mech except mess with the sensors slightly.

Rinoa ran out of the way and fired a thunder spell back at the mech to stall it. While it was twitching and trying to reset from the magic blast, Squall ran forward.

He brought up his gunblade and slammed it point first down through the small opening created by the corner beginning to peel up. The force of his blade forced it back further. Squall put one boot against the Iron Clad and pushed back with his body weight.

The screeching of metal on metal hurt his ears as he peeled the panel like a fruit. He dropped the gunblade when it couldn't pull any further and it fell to the ground. He grabbed the panel with both hands and pulled with his own strength. He made slight progress.

Then the Iron Clad let off a volley of shots that Zell narrowly avoided but rocked the mech violently back and forth, dislodging Squall. He hit the ground and rolled away before it could crush him. He cursed to see the panel was only half off.

“Zell, finish it!”

He sprinted around to the side, in front of the mech's sensors. He and Zell traded places and the machine gun fire started following Squall as he hurdled over debris that now littered the ground because of the Galbadian's.

“Woo!” Zell slammed his fist into his palm, setting off sparks. He jumped forward and grabbed hold of the panel with one hand. The other, he slammed against the body and turned up the heat.

The metal under his hand got red quickly as Ifrit's magic burned through it. The weakened, liquefying metal gave up much easier under Zell's heated grasp.

With a loud cry of effort, he ripped it free. It tore from his hands and skidded away. Rinoa jumped over it neatly as she took Zell's place. Being careful not to touch the still red hot metal, Rinoa put her feet on the bottom of the mech and held onto the top of the panel.

With her free hand, she reached inside and started pushing the wiring around.

Behind her, Squall ran past Zell, turning the machine's guns on him. He scooped his gunblade off of the ground and looked back to see Rinoa nearly fall off by the Iron Clad jerking around.

“Blizzard!” He shouted, throwing out the ice spell.

The crystals sprang forth and caught against one end of the mech. They grabbed hold of it and it vibrated angrily in one place. But it held mostly still so Rinoa could focus.

She ripped out the weapon control cords first. The gun died abruptly.

Then she grabbed for the video feed that showed the inside what was going on. The machine broke free of the ice but could not do nothing but twist around.

There! Just past the hover control mechanism was the emergency stop. Rinoa slammed her fist down against the lever, flipping it forcefully.

She released the mech and fell down onto the ground. She cried out but wasn't down long. Squall ran by, picking her up by the arm and pulled her out of the way as the mech nearly ran her over while it vibrated out of control.

The three of them turned back to see the Iron Clad rocking towards the edge of the platform. It would only take a little more...

The emergency exit at the top of the mech broke open just as it was falling over. The three of them were breathing hard as they heard the Iron Clad splash against the surface. A tower of ocean water burst forth and splashed back against the deck.

Shaking, a hand reached up over the edge of the platform.

Squall grabbed for his hilt.

Selphie, crying out in relief, lifted herself up over the edge.

“Selphie!” Zell gasped.

Beside her, Quistis forced herself up and over. Just a moment later, Irvine was throwing his leg over the side. He rolled onto his back, panting as Selphie crawled forward. All of them were breathing hard, their limbs shaking like they were grateful to be back on dry land.

Selphie lifted her head and her eyes brightened. “Squall!”

The smile that broke out over Squall's face in that moment was the first any of them had ever seen.

Yes! They're alright! He couldn't imagine what they were doing here or why, but it didn't matter because they were alive!

Automatically, it was as affectionate as he knew how to be, he saluted them.

“Hey, Selphie,” he said, his voice almost still calm. “Quistis. Irvine.”

She laughed at him as she stood and returned his salute. The others followed suit, greeting each other as fellow SeeDs, even Rinoa and Irvine.

“It's great to see you guys,” Squall said, lowering his hand again. He frowned. “Wait, were you inside that mech?”

“Yeah,” Selphie laughed sheepishly. “Sorry. I swear, we weren't trying to shoot you. We were just trying to get out. It's not our fault the explosion damaged most of the control systems.”

“Explosion?” Rinoa repeated, frowning.

“Say,” Irvine looked at them, frowning, “what happened to the garden? We couldn't stop the missiles. What are you guys doing all the way out here? Don't tell me we couldn't...”

Squall opened his mouth then paused. A lot had happened. He wasn't sure that it was something he could explain without just showing them.

“The garden is safe,” he settled for, figuring that was the best answer for now.

“Really?!” Selphie's eyes lit up as Quistis and Irvine cried out in relief. “Whoo-hoo!” Selphie jumped up and down, nearly crying.

“What happened to you guys?” Squall asked, looking between them, confused.

“Dude, we've been hiding in that mech forever,” Irvine said, letting out a long breath. “When the base went up...well, Selphie's a pretty quick thinker.”

“We were lucky that thing was so tough,” Quistis agreed, looking back to the water almost affectionately. “The shock wave of the blast knocked us out, but it didn't kill us. By the time we woke up, Galbadia had already returned and were taking the Iron Clad to salvage. We were constantly under surveillance, we couldn't escape.”

“You spent almost five days locked in the same mech together?” Zell asked, surprised. “How did you not kill Irvine?”

“Hey!”

“Well, we came close,” Quistis admitted. “On that note, can we delay the rest of the report for later? We've been locked in the same mech for five days with little food, little water, and no ability to shower. We're not exactly suitable for company right now.”

Squall nodded, figuring she was probably right. Headmaster Cid would need to know more than him anyway. “Zell, Rinoa, why don't you two take them back to the garden? I'll see you guys there after I take a look around the town.”

Selphie more than Quistis and Irvine looked grateful. Then Quistis looked confused.

“Take us back to the garden? That will take us all the way back through Timber from here.”

“Uh, not really,” Rinoa giggled.

“Come on,” Zell waved them forward. “It's honestly just easier to see it.”

The three of them followed after Zell. Rinoa took a couple steps after them then stopped. Biting her lip insecurely, she turned back to Squall. His brow raised curiously and she smiled.

“You know, you just surprised me. You looked and sounded so happy to see them.” He had actually smiled. Not a grin, not a smirk, she had seen teeth. Sure, it was brief, but it was there. Knowing the others were alive and well had affected him and that actually made her happy.

Squall looked confused.

“It was the first time I've seen you so honest,” she clarified, her cheeks turning pink. “It was...really sweet.”

Squall wasn't sure that he liked being called 'sweet' anymore than he had being called 'cute'. Her eyes looked up at him, shining, and he felt the need to clear his throat and look away. Damn. What was he supposed to say in this situation?

“It's not a big deal,” he finally settled on. “I was just relieved to see they were alright. What's so surprising about that? Is there something wrong?”

“No!” She hastened to say, stepping closer to him. “There's nothing wrong at all. They're your comrades, yes, but, moreover, they're your friends.”

Friends, huh? He had never thought of them that way before.

Rinoa bit her lip again and she looked down at her feet as she twisted gently, her hands behind her back, her cheeks pink again. Damn, but she was cute.

“Hey, Squall, would you have been worried about me, too? Y'know, if I were with them instead?”

What? Why was she asking that? What kind of question was that? He didn't know. He hadn't even considered sending her on that mission.

“I...ah...” he dithered, turning away from her as he thought about it.

Rinoa, trapped in a mech just a breath away from death. Not knowing how she fared. Five long days of not being able to see her. To hear her. They wouldn't have toured the garden. They wouldn't have almost kissed out in the 'secret' area.

It was...kind of a sad thought.

“I don't know,” he managed to get out. “Um, maybe? I don't know...”

“Oh, my gosh!” Rinoa's hands went to her mouth in surprise. Her big brown eyes widened as she looked at him. “You're turning red!”

What? No he wasn't.

Squall quickly looked away from her, willing his heart to calm down.

“You're so cute!” She nearly squealed. “Taking it so seriously!”

Squall made a face. What the heck? Why was she toying with him. More than that...

“Rinoa, you promised.”

“Oops!” She covered her mouth again, giggling at her mistake in calling him 'cute' again. “I'm sorry. I promise, no more after today. Even if you are.”

He crossed his arms.

“How about adorable? Can I call you that instead?”

His eye twitched and she laughed.

“Is handsome any better?”

“Marginally.”

“Well, then, what would you prefer I call you?”

“My name.”

“Hm,” Rinoa grinned. “But Squall is such a dark name. Who named you after a storm anyway?”

Squall blinked. Surprised. Because, truthfully, he didn't know. And he had never given a thought before to where his name had come from. Honestly, he had been an underclassman before he had even learned what it meant. But it had always just been his name. He never really stopped to consider the implications of it or why someone would name a child that.

“Oh...” Rinoa frowned. “Right. Sorry.”

“For what?”

Rinoa shook her head. She had kind of forgotten that Squall didn't have a family. Even though she had lost really the only good part of it rather young, Rinoa had at least had one.

“I'm gonna head back,” she said, taking some steps backwards. “Thanks for the date, today. I had a lot fun. Even if it began and ended with a fight.”

Squall thought back to that almost kiss and he was inclined to agree. He wondered if she made him take her on a third date if he would get a full kiss.

Rinoa grinned like she could read his thoughts. “By the way, after the third date, I'm going to officially consider us a couple, whether you ask me or not.”

“What?” Squall blinked.

“With that in mind, I'm not going to ask you for another date,” she grinned. “If you want another one, you're going to have to come to me. Catch you later, Squall!”

Laughing, she turned and ran off, chasing after the others.

Girlfriend, huh? Squall had never really given much thought to that before. Even as he was wanting to kiss Rinoa, he didn't know if he wanted to apply that title to her. Not because he objected to her as a partner, but more because he rejected the idea of a partner at all.

Shuffling against the stone of the platform caught Squall's attention and he turned to look. Mayor Dobe had crawled over to some rubble that had been knocked down. Squall watched as he reached out and took hold of two pieces of stone that had broken apart upon impact with the ground.

With their biggest guns and their captain both gone, the Galbadian's were pulling out. They wouldn't stay when they couldn't be the biggest boys on campus. Squall bet if he walked to the station, he would be able to see them sprinting back towards the Galbadian Continent. Because the trains were down they would have no choice. It was kind of funny.

But they were leaving behind a smoking town and a mayor with the bruises of a soldier's hands blossoming around his thin neck.

Dobe looked up from the stone pieces in his hand and gave Squall a look that wasn't exactly hostile, but nor would he call it friendly.

“I guess you saved my life,” he said, his voice soft.

“Sorry for butting in,” Squall said, slipping his gunblade back in its sheath. “And sorry for breaking your law.”

“No, you won't be tried or anything...but I'm not thanking you."

“You don't have to,” Squall shrugged. He wasn't in this for gratitude. “It's just that...”

He trailed off and the mayor looked up. What was he trying to say here...?

“Your people are all about understanding to prevent violence, yet you don't try to understand us. We're not just a bunch of warmongers for hire.”

“Oh?” Dobe's question didn't sound encouraging.

Squall let out a breath and cast his mind around for what he was trying to say. To make the mayor understand what they were and why. And why they weren't just blood bringers.

“It's hard for me to explain...I wish...” Squall let out a breath. “I wish everything could be settled without resorting to violence...and there would be no need for battles.”

Or torture. Or pain. Or gardens that existed only to train young people to fight in a world filled with monsters that ate the weak. He wished that the opposing opinions that caused people to clash weren't so polarizing, or that people wouldn't cling to them quite so obsessively. Sure, SeeD was a group that fought for money, but, more than anything, they were neutral. While Squall had been fighting the sorceress, there were SeeDs working for Galbadia on the other side. SeeD held no political stance, had no agenda to further. They put themselves at risk so others wouldn't.

But how nice would it be if they didn't have to? Wouldn't it be great if Squall could have taken Rinoa to the Balamb Beach and spent the day with her under the sun? If the monster's lair wasn't his only idea of a date location? If they could be normal teenagers...

“Like you've been preaching, it would be wonderful if things could be settled by discussion,” Squall continued, thinking of everything he had been through. “The only problem with that is that it takes too much time. Especially if the others are not willing to listen. If they refuse to meet an understanding, then what choice are you left with? If they want to destroy your homes, your lives, and nothing you say could stop them. So I believe that fighting is inevitable at times. It's really...rather sad.”

He cleared his throat, wondering if he sounded as awkward as he felt. “That's all I have to say. I hope you understand us someday, too. I think the world needs both people like you and people like us. Thank you for all your help. Good bye.”

Squall bowed his head slightly to the mayor. To the man that existed as far on the other side of the spectrum from Squall as could possibly be. A man that he could probably never see eye-to-eye with, yet he dearly wished to.

Mayor Dobe was an ideal that Squall couldn't allow himself to dream of.

***

FH had suffered little from the attack. Or maybe they had suffered a lot. Honestly, the town was built of scrap metal and recycled everything. It was always rusty and scuffed. It was hard to see, through eyes that didn't know the town, if the place had suffered over much.

Squall looked around and observed the people that began rebuilding almost immediately as he had been told, but he kept mostly to himself. He was fully prepared to find a junk shop in the town that loved to make repairs. He was kind of thrown off to find out that they did weapon repairs and upgrades.

Down a long plank out of the water, Squall saw a flash of blue and immediately moved towards it. His heart knew it was Rinoa even as his head was insisting she had gone back to the garden.

“...did a real number on it, missy,” the old junk shop owner was saying, laughing over the state of her abused Valkyrie. “What _did_ you do?”

“I shot it into the flight mechanisms of a mech,” Rinoa said, leaning against his counter with a sigh. “It stopped the mech, but now my poor Valkyrie...”

Squall stopped walking at the entrance and leaned against the support pole holding up the roof of the open air junk shop. Rinoa didn't hear him and didn't turn around. So he got to watch her as the junk shop owner clicked his tongue over her weapon.

“Hm...I don't know that I can fix this, honey.”

“What?” Rinoa cried out, dismayed. “But it's just cosmetic damage!”

“Nope. See this crack here on the wing?”

“It's a hair crack.”

“No, it goes all the way through. See? It won't take much force to snap this outta place. Then it won't fly right, if at all. And lookie, here. This crack is just waiting to expand. And this dent here is going to seriously mess with the aerodynamics. Sorry, missy. You're better off just buying a new blade.”

Rinoa cried out, dropping her forehead on the counter. “I don't want to use the pinwheel again. I really liked this one.”

“Now, there, there,” the old man pat her head. “If its got an edge, I can handle it. You've come to the right place.”

“The Valkyrie is top of the line for manufactured blades on the Blaster Edge series,” Rinoa said, repeating what the last guy had told her.

“Of course it is, but serious weapon collectors, and fighters, all customize their gear.”

“Customize?” Rinoa lifted her head.

“Oh, aye. You know, I've got an idea for a new Blaster Edge blade that I've been meaning to try, but I haven't had the parts to do it. Thin, deadly, and fast. The only thing I need to make it is a few screws to adjust your blaster and a saw blade from a Belhelmel.”

“A saw blade...” Rinoa's face fell. “Well, I don't actually have any parts. Squall keeps all those and-”

“Here.”

She jumped in surprise when Squall dropped the part onto the counter. She looked over to him with big eyes as the junk shop owner looked over the piece.

“Squall!” she started.

“Upgrading your weapon, too?” He asked, grinning at her.

She smiled. “My poor baby was really banged up. It flew kind of wonky against those grats.”

“Very good,” he nodded, proud she had noticed. She was getting better at this.

Rinoa's face heated up as the junk shop owner nodded.

“This will be perfect. Just leave your blaster with me. I should have it ready by morning. What about you, young man?”

“You upgrade gunblades?” Squall asked, setting his blade and sheath on the counter.

“My, this is a fine weapon...” the junk shop owner nearly drooled, reaching out to touch the souped up revolver on the blade. He pulled it from the sheath delicately and gave a cry.

“Squall!” Rinoa frowned in dismay.

The formerly pristine blade had been scratched and deformed almost as badly as her Valkyrie. The memory of him slamming it into the Iron Clad and jerking back against the metal panel hit her and she felt awash with guilt.

“Oh, Squall...” she looked at him.

“It's fine. I've been meaning to get a new blade anyway. I already know what I want, old man, if you can make it for me.”

Squall reached into his inventory and swiped through the list of options. He deposited first a hard turtle shell from the armadodos they had fought. Then a bright red blade.

Rinoa gasped. It looked like it had been crafted from fire. The metal twisted and swirled at the blade on both ends creating a dual edged sword that would rip and render flesh rather than slice. It even came with an arm guard that extended below the hilt.

“A betrayal sword,” Squall said. “I had it custom made in Balamb before we left. I want a Flame Saber.”

“That's high level, boy,” the old man said, now irreverently touching the betrayal sword. “You sure you can handle a blade like that?”

“You sure Shiva will let you have something called a Flame Saber?” Rinoa asked, grinning.

“It's just called that because of the shape and color. It doesn't inherently have fire powers. Well, old man? Can you handle the upgrade?”

“Need some new screws. The ones on your old blade are too damaged. Shall we talk prices?”

Squall and the old man haggled for a moment before they came to an agreement not just on his blade but Rinoa's. She tried to protest, but he had already paid for it.

“Thanks much for your custom,” the old man smiled.

“Hey, those aren't collectors items,” Squall said deliberately, pointing to them. “They need to be able to fight. We're not peaceful FH people.”

The old man laughed. “Relax your butt, kid. I know that. I'm old, not stupid. Trust me, you'll never have had a weapon of better quality. I'll have them delivered to your garden tomorrow morning. Or you can come down to get them directly if you want.”

Squall nodded and thanked him before turning to leave with Rinoa.

“Finished observing the town yet?” She asked, feeling naked without her weapon. She had to resist the urge to scratch her arm where it should be resting.

“Not yet. I still have some shopping to do at the item store.”

“Alright. Thanks again for my weapon. You know you didn't have to.”

He shrugged. “I wanted to.”

Rinoa grinned. “Is that your version of jewelry and flowers?”

“What?”

She shook her head. “No. Nothing. Weapons are far more useful anyway. See you back at the garden, Squall.”

He watched her go, trying not to be affected by what she had said. Or the implications. He did not want a girlfriend, he repeated to himself. He did _not_ want a girlfriend.

He just wanted _her_.

Squall shook his head forcefully and looked away. He was too attached. This was too dangerous. He needed to take a step back away from her.

As the day wore on and he ran out of places to walk around to, Squall started back towards the garden. It was starting to get late in the day and he was hungry. He supposed he could have found something to eat here in FH, but he didn't really feel like it.

After listening to the man at the lift near the water silo talk – and struggling to remember his face – he started back around the large metal tank. He almost missed Irvine. His clothes blended in rather well with the rustic, rusty silo behind him.

He grinned as Squall walked around. He had shaved and showered since returning to garden. He had probably eaten as well, but he still looked a little gaunt. That would probably wear off in a few days as he had more proper access to food and water.

“Hey,” he said as Squall came in closer. “The headmaster gave the okay to the let the technicians into the garden. Which, by the way, _moves_! I'm still trying to get my head around that one. It just kind of looks weird to see a floating garden. Anyway, the techs are in there now.”

“Okay,” Squall nodded, wondering why Irvine had felt the need to come all the way out here to tell him something that he could probably have seen on his own.

In fact, as they got in closer, Squall could start to pick out machines and people running around in and outside of the garden even from here. He hadn't needed the update.

Irvine fell into step behind Squall since walking abreast with him wasn't an option on these high, narrow walkways.

“Say,” he called up.

“Yeah?” Squall didn't look back.

“Uh, I was kind of wondering...” Irvine trailed off and Squall stopped to turn to him. “Those technicians seem pretty handy. So like...would it be alright if I asked them to fix some other stuff?”

Squall's eyebrow raised curiously. But it wasn't really an unreasonable request. So long as the the technicians didn't mind. And...

“As long as it doesn't slowdown the work on the garden, go ahead,” Squall shrugged. “Just try not to ask for too much.”

“Oh, yeah, of course,” Irvine nodded quickly.

The two of them started walking again. Irvine was silent but Squall could just feel him waiting to say something else. He took a breath, paused, then hesitated.

Squall resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “What?”

Irvine grinned when Squall turned to face him. “Uh... It's Selphie. She's feeling down right now. I thought I should let you know. Since you're...kind of like everybody's leader and everything.”

Squall's eye twitched. Here they went with that leader crap again.

“I think you should go talk to her,” Irvine continued. “I know you're a klutz when it comes to these things so I'll back you up.”

Squall resisted the urge to sigh. Whatever. It was a leader's duty to see to the safety and health of those under him. Even if it was mental health. And even if he didn't want to be leader.

“Where is she?” He asked.

“She's hanging out at the stage by the quad,” Irvine said quickly, grinning.

Squall nodded and turned to continue walking. Irvine stayed behind him, practically humming in satisfaction. Until they turned up to the crane that was reaching out to the garden and they got a proper view of the long tubes of wires and oil and supplies connected to the hull in the garden. A hull that had already been pried open. They could see people moving on the outside of the garden from here. It was all rather impressive.

“Wow...” Irvine breathed, stopping to take it all in. “I didn't expect all this heavy machinery.”

Squall turned back, looking at him like he was fool. He kind of was. “How else were they going to repair it? With hammers and nails?”

“Hey, hey, hey,” Irvine chuckled, holding up his hands to fend off the verbal attack. “This isn't exactly my department you know.”

“Then what is?” Squall asked, regretting the question immediately as it came from his mouth.

Irvine smirked. “Guns and women, of course.”

Squall resisted the urge to groan. Should have seen that one coming.

***

Selphie had also showered since she had made it back to the garden. Her hair was still wet, yet miraculously still doing that flippy thing as she knelt down in in the quad. She was munching without much enthusiasm on what looked like her third nutrition bar from the cafeteria. In one hand was what looked like a piece of the stage. The people that had started populating the quad were leaving her alone because she looked so dejected.

As Squall and Irvine came in closer, her eyes darted to them then back to her stage.

“Whew...This is so bad.”

“Yeah,” Squall agreed, looking at it. “It's been pretty crazy what with the garden moving and crashing into FH. A lot has happened. It's kind of hard to believe.”

Selphie hummed sadly, standing up with a sigh. “Y'know, I really wanted to see a band perform on this stage. I even had my eyes set on a few people, too. Oh, well...”

The dejected sigh that came from her was probably Squall's cue. He cleared his throat and tried to do his best comforting leader impression.

“Come on. I'm sure you can still do...something.” Nailed it.

Selphie balked in surprise, looking to him with raised eyebrows. The attempt had been kind of sad, but it was far more than anyone else had gotten from him. “Squall...being sensitive? That's weird. You're the last person I expected to try to cheer me up. I must really look depressed. That's kind of depressing.” She sighed again.

Squall frowned. And what was so weird about looking after her well being? He cared. He was as human as anyone else. It's just that there were too many things that couldn't be helped. There as no point in talking over those things.

A broken stage though? That could be helped. That could be worked around. No point in worrying, but that didn't mean it was a hopeless situation.

“Uh-oh,” Selphie grinned at him. “There you go again into your own little world. And you're not gonna share it with us, huh? Didn't think so.”

What was this? Why was she teasing him? He had just being trying to help. “Yeah, whatever...”

Selphie smiled sadly. “Well, I think I'm feeling better. Don't worry about me, Squall. I'll be fine.”

Squall opened his mouth to continue, because that was a lie if he had ever heard one. Then he hesitated because he realized he had nothing else. That there was about as much as he could do.

He turned to Irvine who was grinning at Selphie.

“Irvine, you help her. I'm out of here.”

“Alrighty,” Irvine's grin widened. Squall had the sneaking suspicion that being given control of the situation was what he had wanted all along.

Squall started back out of the quad, letting out a long breath as he ran his hand through his hair. He just wanted to go train for a while. Relax a bit.

He knew almost as soon as he had that thought that he wouldn't be able to.

The intercom dinged happily over his head and he felt strangely precognizant about what was going to be called out over it.

“ _Squall, this is the headmaster speaking,_ ” Cid called out predictably. “ _Please come to my office._ ”

What now?

Squall straightened his back and started towards the nexus.

Selphie sighed again, kicking at some of the rubble. “I guess there's no point feeling blue.”

“That's right!” Irvine grinned, flicking back his hat to beam at her. “It's no time to feel down. It's time to get the fun started.”

“Fun?” Selphie repeated, looking at him. “What fun?”

Irvine grinned, patting himself on the back mentally. He was so good.

“So like...first, we'll ask the FH technicians if they can fix the stage. Squall already said I could. And if they can fix the garden, this should be a piece of cake for them.”

Selphie bit her lip, trying not to look too excited. “Do you think they'll do it?”

“Don't worry. I'll back you up. I'm sure they'll agree.”

“Then, that means...” Selphie trailed off excitedly.

“Yup!” Irvine beamed. “You can have your band perform on the stage.”

“Whoo-hoo!” Selphie jumped up and down eagerly. “Alrighty! Let's get this show on the road!”

And score, Irvine grinned. He was all set up to make his move. Selphie was practically eating out of his hand already.

***  
“That about covers my report on FH, sir,” Squall said, standing at attention before the headmaster on the deck.

“I see...” Cid nodded. “I just got Selphie and Quistis's reports a moment ago as well. I'm quite relieved that everyone is back safe and sound. A little worse for the wear, but nothing that can't be fixed with some time and a few good meals.”

“Oh, there is one more thing, sir,” Squall recalled. “It appeared that the Galbadians were searching for Ellone. That seemed to be their main objective in FH. I believe that Sorceress Edea is behind this.”

His voice stopped as he tried to think of why the sorceress would want Ellone.

Ellone had the ability to allow people to experience the past. That was really the only special thing about her. She wasn't SeeD. So the sorceress had to want her for that ability, right? What other reason could there be?

“So now the Galbadians are working for the sorceress,” Cid sighed, his face suddenly appearing very aged and sad. “And they were searching for Ellone.”

“And regardless of whether they found her or not, they had orders to burn the city down.”

“That would help reduce the number of potential places where she could hide.”

Squall nodded in agreement. “Why Ellone though? What does the sorceress want her for?”

“That, I cannot guess. But, if she is after her, then I doubt it's anything good. Most likely, the sorceress will not stop this onslaught until Ellone is found. She will continued to hunt her and burn everything in her path.” Cid sighed. “In that case, we can't wait any longer.”

Squall nodded again. That meant the headmaster was finally going official. It was about time. It wasn't in Squall's nature to sit around and wait for things to happen.

The intercom dinged happily and the headmaster brought the mic to his lips. He hesitated and that beat of silence probably did more to capture the attention of the garden than the dings.

“ _This is Headmaster Cid. I have an announcement to make._ ”

Irvine and Selphie, out in the quad talking to the FH technicians, stopped and looked up at the seriousness of the headmaster's tone.

“ _I have important news that I must share with all of you. The garden is being repaired right now. We'll leave FH immediately after it's finished. We're going on a journey._ ”

Quistis, who had been laughing with Dr. Kadowaki, turned with her to look up at the intercom.

“ _This is a journey a long time in the making. One I have trained you, my SeeDs and cadets alike, for since the moment of garden's conception. We are going to face the sorceress. The garden will now be used as our mobile base._ ”

Zell, back in the hot dog line, growled in anticipation. He knocked into someone as he ran away, for once his mind not on food.

“ _The administration of the garden will be run by myself and the staff as usual. The underclassman and the trainees shall continue their education under our guidance. However, this journey will involve many battles._ ”

Rinoa looked up from the bookshelf she had been perusing.

“ _A well-qualified leader is needed to guide us. Someone who's integrity is unquestioned and who's skills are unmatched. Therefore, I am appointing Squall Leonhart as your new leader._ ”

Rinoa gasped. Not because she was excited, not because she was proud – though she was – but because she could just see Squall's face. There was no way he had agreed to this. She turned from the bookshelf and ran.

“ _From now on, Squall will be in charge. He will decide our destination and battle plans as best suited for the needs of fighting the sorceress._ ”

Squall was lucky the headmaster's back was turned, because he couldn't keep the slack-jawed look of disbelief off of his face.

Was he serious?!

“Everyone,” Cid continued into the mic, “please do your best to follow his orders to the best of your abilities.”

Squall shook his head. He couldn't believe it...

“If there are any objections, please come see me in person.”

Yeah, Squall had an objection! He didn't even get a choice!?

The intercom dinged happily again and the headmaster turned back to Squall with a smile.

“Squall, we're under your command from now on. This is your fate. It is your destiny to lead the way in defeating the sorceress.”

“Don't talk about this like it's been decided since my birth!” Squall snapped, shouting as he threw out his arm.

Headmaster Cid started, surprised. Squall turned away from him and quickly hit the descend button on the lift. He thought the headmaster calling out to him, but he couldn't hear it over the rushing of blood in his own ears.

He jumped off of the platform before it fully reached the bottom and walked quickly towards the elevator. He really wasn't thinking. He just knew that he had to get out of here.

The doors slid open and there was Rinoa. She caught site of him and her hand immediately came up as though reaching out for him.

Squall stepped into the elevator. One hand reached out and slammed against the panel. His other hand closed around Rinoa's. Without looking, he had accidentally hit against the emergency stop button and the elevator locked down.

He didn't much care though. He had brought up Rinoa's hand to his face and he was breathing in her scent as he resisted the urge to just collapse around her.

He was stronger than this, he chanted in his head. He didn't need to hold her. He didn't need to seek her comfort. He didn't need anyone.

Yet he remained there, in the silence of the elevator, refusing to lift his eyes from where he had lowered them over Rinoa's hand.

“Squall...” Her voice was soft, a beacon in the darkness. He was drawn to it even as something in him screamed that he should back away quickly.

He didn't respond. He remained standing there for a few long tense minutes that could have been hours. Time was just stretching on. He didn't want to move forward or back. He didn't actually know what it was that he wanted.

Finally, calmly, Rinoa reached out and started the elevator up again.

She wanted to hold him. She wanted to take his head in hand and kiss away his troubles. She wanted to let him release some of that pent up stress and frustration with her body.

But he wasn't ready for that yet. That kind of intimacy, for a man who was still actively trying to avoid such intimacy, wouldn't be welcome.

So she did the only thing she could do. She let him hold onto her as the elevator lowered itself down to the first floor. Then, when they stepped out, she grabbed onto him so it wasn't so obvious that he needed the crutch. She walked him to his dorm and sat him on his bed.

“I'm sorry, Squall,” she said, brushing his hair from his face as she stroked his cheek. “But, for what it's worth, I think you are a _great_ leader.”

Squall heard her voice echoing in his head as she left him alone. Which was exactly what he wanted and the exact opposite of what he wanted.

He wanted her. He wanted to hold onto her. He wanted to lay his head next to hers and just draw in the sweetness of her scent while having her soft body in hand. Then he wanted to kiss her until he couldn't think anymore. Drown his sorrows in her.

And, at the exact same time, the thought of it made him want to run. To hide. It made him, there was no other word for it, scared.

Why was everything in his life blowing up at the same time? It was all supposed to be so easy after he made SeeD. Go on his missions. Follow his orders. Live or die by his sword. Then either retire to a small house on the edge of Balamb or the grave.

Now he was leader of every SeeD, cadet, and student in this garden. Now he was being forced to face a sorceress in combat. The headmaster's wife.

Well, it wasn't like he minded fighting the sorceress. Right?

Garden trains SeeDs. SeeDs defeat the sorceress.

So, the battle against her would be inevitable as long as he was a SeeD.

As long as he was a SeeD?

What if he quit?

Just leave...

Then what? What did he have left? Would Rinoa come with him? Would the others try to stop him? Did he even have skills that could translate into a normal life outside of the garden? He supposed he could hire himself out as a mercenary. But how would that be any different? He just would no longer have the backing of garden.

He didn't even want to think about it. Just...

Just, for once in your life, _stop thinking_...


	24. Burdens

Nighttime was beautiful on the ocean. The sky and the sea seemed to blend together in a single mass with the water reflecting the twinkling stars above. It was a perfectly still night. So quiet and calm. The seamless expanse almost gave one the feeling of floating out in space.

Squall sat just above his headboard, in the windowsill, staring out into that expanse. He could still hear people moving around in the dorms because lights out was still an hour or so away. But the darkness and the silence outside made Squall feel like he was in a bubble.

He had almost worked everything out in his head. Almost.

He would just have to do as he was told. Just like any other order. Command the garden. Kill the sorceress. Simple, easy directives, that just had some rather complicated implementation steps. That was all.

Yet...

How did the headmaster expect him to take care of everyone? That was a huge responsibility and Squall could feel it pulling down on his shoulders like the weight of the world. Even if the headmaster and the staff were dealing with administrative issues, that still left him in charge of combat and deployment.

Meaning he was also in charge of everyone's safety. He was in charge of determining if a battle had a reasonable chance of success. Then, of course, the battle plans that had to be made and performed to make that reasonable chance a reasonable certainty.

All the lives he was now suddenly in charge of. All the hopes suddenly pinned on him. He had to make sure no one died. He had to make sure that no one was maimed or injured. All of this for a SeeD that was barely a full month removed from his exam.

And he had just gotten a message through his PDA that told him that his SeeD rank had just risen dramatically. Now he could no longer claim that such a position wouldn't be appropriate for a SeeD that hadn't yet breached rank 20.

No, that wasn't a concern at all. Because come to find out that the headmaster had just cheated the system and created a whole new SeeD rank just for Squall. He was now SeeD rank A. A thing that, before a couple minutes ago, didn't even exist. He had blown right past the roof of rank 30 and landed in a place that paid him an exorbitant amount of gil for his new responsibility.

It would just be best to fight the sorceress soon and end this nonsense. He would just kill her, hand the title back in with the mission completed, and go back to his normal life.

Of course...

Wasn't she the headmaster's wife? Cid wanted Squall to kill his wife?!

What does it even feel like to give an order like that?

Unbidden, Rinoa's face popped into his mind. And he couldn't help but imagine wondering what it would be like to order someone to...

He couldn't even think it.

Squall closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead. He wished he could junction Shiva and get her to cool him down, but he would rather not have her thoughts in his head too. It was already crammed enough in there with his own incessant ramblings.

***

“Woh...” Selphie admired as she came around the half finished stage. When she had asked the FH technicians if they would build a performance area for her, she had been expecting like a raised platform with maybe some lights.

She hadn't expected the artisan here to take her simple request and blow it completely out of the depthless water.

The stage she had wanted was becoming a massive, show stopping performance arena. It was built right on Mayor Dobe's front lawn and the solar panels all around them were reflecting so brightly in the morning sun that it was blinding. At night, she was promised, when the stars were out, it would look like they were dancing through the solar system.

The show she had planned was also snowballing. A small concert for those interested in the garden was now a massive show that people were treating like a global celebration. The students at the garden were pulling out formal wear and talking about dates. The people of FH were all chipping in so they could say they had a part while listening to the music.

It all just meant that now Selphie had an even bigger reason not to fail this. So she had to do her utmost to make this the best concert that had ever been held in this area.

Footsteps from behind her made her turn to see Irvine leading the others down through the panels. All but Squall. Their exalted leader had holed himself up in his room and refused to come out. When people would go to bother them, Rinoa would ask them to leave him alone if it wasn't an emergency or time sensitive. And when she couldn't be there, she usually had Angelo standing guard in her place, though the pup didn't look too thrilled about it.

Squall seemed to be enjoying the self imposed isolation. At least he was making no attempts to leave again. Well, what with the bomb the headmaster had dropped on him, Selphie couldn't really blame him for wanting some time for himself. The dorms were pretty much the only place that could promise such a thing.

Selphie beamed as the others stopped. All except Irvine, he continued forward and gestured to Selphie grandly.

“Everyone, here is our producer: Selphie!”

Laughing at the theatrics, Selphie cleared her throat.

“Thank you all for coming. As you no doubt know, the FH techs have estimated that the garden should be completely finished in approximately three days time. That night, we are having a concert to celebrate the garden's completion and to thank FH for their hard work. This concert isn't just for us though. It's also for Squall. Y'know, to congratulate him on his recent, and much deserved promotion.”

“Sounds fun,” Quistis nodded.

“So, who's gonna perform?” Zell asked eagerly.

“We are,” Irvine grinned.

“Yeah, right,” Zell snorted.

“You're kidding,” Quistis stated simply. Then she looked between them and neither one seemed to be willing to give up the joke. “Oh, no way. You can count me out. I have no musical aptitude.”

“Oh, really?” Rinoa grinned. Something Perfect Quistis the Prodigy wasn't good at? “I gotta see this.”

“Let's just give it a try,” Selphie said, grinning. “SeeDs can do anything, right? And you only need to learn a handful of songs. It's not like I'm asking you to master the instrument.”

Quistis sighed and Zell made a face.

“Yeah, I don't know of any mission before that's required musical skills.”

“Well, first time for everything. The stage is almost finished, the evening is all planned. All we need is four people.”

“This is gonna be fun,” Rinoa laughed. Those music classes she had taken as a child weren't going to go to waste after all!

Selphie looked at her apologetically. “Oh, sorry, Rinoa. But you're not gonna be in the band.”

Rinoa's face fell, genuinely hurt. “You're leaving me out?”

“Uh-uh,” Selphie grinned at her, shaking her head. “We have something more important for you to do.”

“That sounds like something you'd say to appease someone being left out,” Rinoa frowned.

“So, wait,” Zell looked between them. “What are we supposed to do? I mean, basically, we're all amateurs, right? Even if you hand us instruments, we won't be able to do anything.”

“We have three days to practice,” Selphie pointed out. “Irvy and I already know how to play an instrument, so we're all set.”

“Irvy?” Quistis repeated.

“So that just leaves you two. This is totally doable!”

“And exactly how is this 'doable'?” Quistis asked dryly.

“First, I wanna ask you guys something,” she grinned. “Okay, you know I took over this event after I transferred to Balamb, right? Well, I have the composition that the last producer recommended to me. But everything got all messed up after the garden started moving. There's supposed to be only four scores to go with the composition, but I got eight scores here.”

“So?” Zell shrugged. “What does that mean?”

“It's pretty simple,” Irvine smiled. “Four other scores from a different composition got mixed up with the four scores that Selphie had. So we just have to find the four original scores to perform the composition that Selphie wants. Only way to find them is to play all eight scores and see.”

“Why wasn't the music labeled?” Rino frowned.

Selphie ignored her. “And we still need to decide instruments. Irvy and I already know what we're playing, pretty much. So we just have to find something for you guys. So you're each going to pick up an instrument and try to start playing it. Irvy knows the song really well, so he can tell you which song is right or not.”

“So like, let's get started,” Irvine grinned.

“Wait, what are you two playing?” Quistis asked, backing up a little as Rinoa took a seat in front of the stage on top of the instrument cases that had been laid out.

“I play guitar,” Selphie declared, beaming.

“What about you, Irvine?” Rinoa asked.

“Well, originally I played the fiddle. Handy, since the song requires a violin.”

“Is that the same thing?” Quistis asked, frowning in confusion.

“Oh, yeah. They're pretty much the same instrument. They only really differ in what musical styles they play. It's not a problem. Now stop stalling. Quistis, pick up that bass and Zell go for the sax. Let's make some magic!”

Something was made. Rinoa didn't know if she'd call it 'magic'. It certainly wasn't music. The weird noises that Quistis managed to coax from the base had probably never been heard in the history of the world outside of maybe some weird monster mating calls. Zell straight up broke the sax. Which made Selphie cry. Which made Irvine angry. Which turned into a shouting match that only ended when Quistis nearly threw the bass in frustration.

“Okay, okay, let's not lose our heads,” Irvine tried to calm down. “Let's try something else. Zell, here. Can I trust you with this one?”

“I'm going to go with no. What is that, a toothpick?”

“It is quite obviously a flute, you barbarian,” Irvine rolled his eyes.

Zell looked more than a little silly trying to figure out the flute. His strong, big, calloused hands wrapped around the tiny, thin metal instrument was comical in a way. He handled it like it was made of glass. And, for his grip strength, it might as well have been.

But Selphie beamed when she saw that he knew how to place his lips correctly on the mouthpiece on the first try. He didn't know how to move his fingers – or even _where_ to put his fingers – but he had accomplished the hardest part to teach.

While Selphie instructed him on that, Irvine continued trying to find an instrument for Quistis to struggle her way through.

He tried a guitar, the piano, he even gave her his violin. She broke the strings on the guitar, couldn't work out the piano, and nearly broke the violin. She only managed to avoid doing so by Irvine jerking it from her grasp before she had a chance.

“Man, you're really not musically inclined, are you?” he asked, frowning at her efforts.

“I _told_ you,” Quistis groaned, exasperated as Rinoa laughed.

Grumbling about her being difficult, Irvine moved back over to the instrument pile. He gently set his violin down before working through the others.

“I don't know why she won't just allow someone else to play,” Quistis sighed, standing next to Rinoa.

“Well, I think she just wants all of us to be involved,” she said, grinning. “It's kind of fun, don't you think?”

Quistis grinned reluctantly. “Yeah, it kind of is. I'm starting to feel bad about it. Irvine's getting annoyed and I can't really contribute.”

“Contribute to what?”

The two of them jumped at Xu's question. The girl was walking towards them completely silently.

“When did you get there?” Rinoa asked, grabbing for her heart.

“Quistis asked me to come,” she smiled.

“I didn't tell you to scare us to death,” Quistis sighed. “Thanks anyway.”

“So? What did you need? Just so you know, I'm not playing an instrument. Don't ask.”

“No, that's not it,” Quistis assured her. “Rinoa needs your help.”

“Oh? What's up?”

“Well, it's about the concert. I've been given a bit of a...different job. And I don't really have the things I need to do it.”

“And we don't have time to help her get them,” Quistis shrugged. “Not if we're going to be able to play all the songs in time for the concert.”

“Hey, Quistis!” Irvine came over, something in his hands. “I get it. You can't play anything. So, new question: Can you dance?”

“Dance?” Quistis frowned. “Well, yeah, I guess, but-”

“Here!” Irvine pushed a pair of shoes in her face and Quistis frowned.

She took them and frowned at the piece of metal at the bottom that clinked softly when she did so. “Um what's this?”

“They're tap shoes. No musical talent needed.”

“You want me to tap?” Quistis frowned.

“Yes. Put them on and move around a bit. I think I might be able to adjust the baseline to suit the tap sound. It's better than not having one at all.”

“Uh, okay...” Quistis frowned as she sat next to Rinoa and reached for her boots.

“So, what exactly did you need from me?” Xu asked, frowning.

Rinoa stood and moved over to her. “Well, actually, it's a bit of a big favor. The train tracks here lead right to the Galbadian Continent. It actually puts you out right near Timber.”

“Yeah, so?”

“Well, I need some of my stuff from the old rebel base train.”

“Stuff?” Xu's eyebrow raised.

“Yeah. I told them that I didn't really have to do it, but they insisted. So, I was wondering if you could escort me down to Timber to get them.”

“Why don't you just ask Squall?”

“Because we want it to be a surprise!” Selphie declared, coming up to them with a smile. “Please, Xu? I really want Squall to not see it coming. And if Rinoa goes with him, he'll figure it out.”

Xu sighed. “Alright, fine. I'll do it, but you owe me.”

“Yay!” Selphie jumped up and down as Quistis got to her feet.

She frowned at the way the tap shoes clicked under her. They wore differently than other shoes. It felt kind of awkward wearing them.

“Great!” Irvine smiled. “Now jig around a bit. I want to hear you rock it.”

Tap. Quistis frowned. Then sighed. Tap...Tap...Tap, tap, tap...

She was much better at moving than she was at playing. While it wasn't exactly polished, she was actually making musically related sounds. It was as close as she had gotten thus far.

“Okay! Done!” Irvine let out a long breath of relief. “I am not pressing it and letting you break anything else. Go practice with Selphie. I have to re-write your part of the piece.”

Rinoa laughed, Xu shook her head.

“Hey, Quistis,” she said, jerking her head to the side. “Can I talk to you a minute?”

“Hm? Sure.” Walking awkwardly due to the plates on her toes and heels, Quistis followed Xu to stand a little ways away from the others.

Rinoa watched them go before turning back to her friends. It was fun watching them practice. She was almost sad that she had to miss out on it. Almost. She couldn't deny that the job Selphie had picked for her was indeed a little more important.

And, she thought with a smile, she wouldn't mind doing it.

In a few minutes, Quistis and Xu came back.

“Ready to go, Rinoa?” Xu asked.

“Yeah,” she got to her feet and frowned. “Uh, Quistis? You okay?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah. Of course. W-Why do you ask?”

Because your face looks like Squall's Flame Saber, Rinoa thought, raising an eyebrow at Quistis's cheeks. She looked over to Xu who was carefully looking away and she grinned.

“Oh, okay.”

“N-No!” Quistis held up her hands. “I-It's not what you think.”

“I didn't say anything,” Rinoa laughed. “The others are waiting. You want to leave now, Xu?”

“Yeah, might as well. See you around, Quistis. Remember what I said.”

Quistis said something noncommittal in the back of her throat. Xu smiled at her as she and Rinoa started back up through the solar panels. Quistis had to let out a long breath as she looked over Xu. She didn't intend to be caught, but Xu looked back and smirked.

Quistis turned away quickly, trying to calm her heartbeat.

One drunken night and you just couldn't escape it.

If she even _wanted_ to escape it...

***

Three days later, the garden was a little too quiet. It wasn't until all the work on the engines had stopped that Squall realized just how accustomed he had become to the loud sounds echoing up from the very bowels of the garden.

It was also the lack of the sound that made him realize just how long he had been shutting himself up in his room.

He berated himself as he got dressed as night started to fall. He was acting like a child instead of the leader that he had been ordered to become. It wasn't so bad as all that. He just had to do as he was told and get it all over with. It was just like being a squad leader. With a really big squad.

Wondering what the others were doing, feeling pretty bored, he stepped out of his room-

-and almost right on Angelo's tail.

“Woh,” he stepped back quickly.

The dog, hearing the door open, turned back. He growled low. It almost sounded like he was grumbling in protest.

“What are you doing out here?” Squall asked.

Angelo gave a little bark that almost sounded like a cough before standing up and walking away. For lack of anything better to do, Squall followed him.

It was sunset about now. Lights out wasn't for a few hours. Where was everybody?

Squall walked out of the dorms and into the hallway. Zell and Quistis were there talking to someone who had their back turned to him.

Quistis whispered something and Zell gave the person a thumbs up before the two of them turned and ran off back into the garden proper.

Then the person they were talking to turned.

Squall felt like his own memories were coming back to hit him in the face. That same dress, like someone had dripped her in cream, was draped over Rinoa's body. When she turned, her hair flipped around her face before settling down just behind her shoulders.

Rinoa had put more effort into dressing tonight than she had at the SeeD ball. She wasn't just using the party as an excuse to meet the headmaster this time. Now she had a genuine reason to dress up and she had gone all out with it.

She had done something to her face. She had put on some kind of makeup that looked like magic on her cheeks and eyes. It highlighted her already stunning brown eyes and emphasized the sweet pink of her lips. The sheer chiffon over the skirt of her dress swished about her thighs, caressing the creamy skin there temptingly.

As Squall came in closer, he could detect the subtle scent of her perfume again. He hadn't gotten to experience it since Timber and he didn't realize until he caught whiff of it again just how much he had missed it. She smelled like flowers and dreams. An enchanting mix of blossoms that was somehow familiar and still exciting.

She turned on her heels, grinning at him from a higher perspective than usual.

“Hey,” she waved at him. “What's up?”

Tired...

“You look so down,” Rinoa frowned, stepping in closer when he did not. “Come on, Squall, how old are you? You're still a teenager, right? Why don't you act like one for a change?”

He was just tired...

“Come on,” Rinoa reached out and snagged his hand. “Let's go to the concert.”

“Concert?” He frowned. “What concert?”

“Selphie's concert, of course. Everyone's going.”

Well, that at least explained where all the people were. But...

“Does that count as the third date?” he asked, his eyebrow raising.

Rinoa laughed. “We'll call this one a continuation of the first date, since it had been so rudely interrupted. Besides, you're going to ask _me_ on the third date, remember?”

“Sorry,” Squall shook his head. “I'm really not in the mood.”

Rinoa frowned. “How come?”

“I'd...rather not talk about it.”

Rinoa started laughing and he frowned. “Quistis was right. You're so predictable.”

Squall gave her a look and she smiled, laying her head against his arm.

“Okay, I'm sorry. I can understand why you wouldn't be in the mood. You're probably still thinking about what the headmaster did. He put a lot on your shoulders. It all happened so fast. So we thought it'd be good for you to come and unwind a little. Plus, I have something important that I want to talk to you about.”

“Who's we?” Squall frowned.

“Who else? Quistis, Selphie, Zell, Irvine, and, of course, me.”

She smiled up at him but he didn't didn't look all that enthused. It almost looked like he would rather return to his room and not leave until he was forced to by his duty.

“Please,” Rinoa squeezed onto his arm tighter. Pressing her breasts against his skin. She probably didn't even realize she was doing it. Squall did. “For me? There's no point if you don't show up.”

Damn. Damn. Damn! Hyne, when did he become so weak? She was practically leading him around by the hand and he was _still_ letting her! How could one person smile at him so sweetly like that and make him want to move the world for her?

Oh, well. A little music never hurt anyone. And it's not like he was having any better of a time in his room.

“Why not?” He finally said.

“YES!” Rinoa laughed, hugging his arm tight before stepping back. He thought she was going to walk beside him normally, but she reached down and took hold of his hand instead. He was wearing his gloves, but it still felt so intimate to do so. She pulled on him with a grin.

“Okay, let's go! We don't want to miss it.”

Squall wasn't dressed up, and Rinoa didn't want to let him go back to his room to change into something formal. Mostly because she felt like the only thing he would have would be his SeeD uniform and she didn't want to give him reminders of duty tonight.

Besides, he could rock leather better than anyone else anyway.

The air was kind of cool out tonight. The temperature dropped surprisingly low out here in the middle of the ocean. Rinoa almost shivered as she followed Squall across the bridge to FH. She stood close to him as they rode down the lift, grateful he had decided to forego Shiva tonight.

As they approached the entrance to the solar panel bowl, they caught sight of some of the garden girls milling about, talking and laughing. Irvine was there, standing behind Selphie. He turned as they came towards them and grinned.

“So she convinced you, eh?” He grinned at Squall. “Well, with a babe like that, who wouldn't be convinced?”

Squall's eyebrow raised, not sure he liked Rinoa being referred to as a 'babe'.

He didn't get a chance to voice his complaint. Irvine indicated his head off to the side and Squall followed him just out of earshot of the girls.

“Looking good together,” he whispered, nudging Squall lightly in the chest.

“Really? Do you guys have nothing better to do?”

“Nope. Not at all. Is this your first date? I bet your nervous, huh? Don't be. Want me to check your breath? I'm here for you, man.”

“Irvine. Just stop.”

He chuckled. “So, like, I found this place. It's perfect for you guys to have a little...privacy. Away from the crowd.”

Squall groaned, rolling his eyes up.

“It's by the stage, a little off the path, but you really can't miss it. I left an old magazine of mine there. You can thank me later. Have fun. Just let it all out tonight. And I do mean all. That girl back there is practically dripping in anticipation. Just give her a good one, two, and take her downtown. If you know what I mean.”

“I don't. I don't want to. Please. Stop.”

Irvine grinned at him. “Squall, did you ever get the bird and the bees talk? Is that part of the curriculum here? See, what happens is, when a mommy chocobo and a daddy chocobo love each other very much-”

“Irvine. I am going to stab you.”

He laughed and hit him on the shoulder. “You'll do fine. Probably. Pro tip: Don't go for the butt first. They hate that. You have to work your way up there.”

“Are you finished?” Squall's voice was frosty.

It went right over Irvine's head. “I might be there later with a special someone, myself. Wish me luck.”

With a wink, Irvine turned and walked back towards Selphie. Rinoa watched him go and stepped back to Squall's side.

“So? What did you talk about? Man business?”

“He told me not to grope your butt first and that you were dripping ready for me to take you 'downtown',” Squall said, totally deadpan and without mercy.

Rinoa's face turned beat red as she squeaked in surprise. She looked over to see Irvine grinning at Selphie's backside that was nearly in his face at the height she was standing. Rinoa looked back at Squall with wide eyes.

“Can you hurt him for me?”

“ _Please_ give me the order,” Squall begged.

He turned back, figuring he might as well get this over with. Rinoa still wanted to talk to him. Even if Irvine was a pig.

Squall walked up behind him just as Irvine was lifting his arm to put it around Selphie's waist from behind. Squall loudly and deliberately coughed.

Selphie turned. Irvine jumped and hid his hand behind his back.

“What's up?” Selphie asked sweetly.

“Oh, nothing. Think I inhaled a bit of rust,” Squall said, indicating to the air around him.

Selphie smiled and turned to run down to the stage. Irvine glared.

“Come on, man. I was about to make my move.”

“Oh, well...” Squall said calmly as Rinoa laughed behind him.

“Geez, thanks a lot,” Irvine rolled his eyes before going after her.

Rinoa continued to laugh and Squall sent her a grin.

“Feel any better?” He asked.

“Slightly. Though I'm still thinking a quick stab is in order. Nothing vital, just to make a point.”

“I am at your command,” Squall reminded her.

She laughed as she reached up to take his hand in hers again. The two of them walked down together towards the stage. Going deeper into the bowl though, Rinoa shivered. The breeze was somehow colder down here.

“What's wrong?” Squall asked.

“Just a little chilly,” Rinoa grinned. “It's okay. I like the cold.”

Squall released her hand and she opened her mouth to protest. Then he slipped his jacket from his shoulders and held it out for her.

“Here.”

“What...I can't take that,” she said, surprised at the move.

“I like the cold. I'm used to it. And I'm also wearing pants. Here.”

Rinoa smiled and thanked him as she reached for the soft fur lined leather jacket. It was like she was putting his SeeD jacket on again, but better.

His scent had fully absorbed into the comfortable leather of this jacket. It felt almost like he had his arms around her when she put it on. And since Shiva wasn't making him cold, it contained his residual body head. Rinoa smiled into the fur of the collar as she reached down to take Squall's hand again. Her cheeks were tinged pink as he deliberately looked away.

Hyne, but she looked so good in his clothes. And that dress she was wearing was almost the same creamy color of her skin giving the illusion that she wore nothing else under his jacket.

Damn, tonight was not the night to leave Shiva behind.

The FH technicians had built a grand, multi leveled stage that would probably be more suited to a big city venue than this place in the center of the bowl. Squall raised an eyebrow, actually impressed at the craftsmanship.

Added to that, Selphie had gone all out when she had decorated. You couldn't even see the mayor's house anymore behind everything. Brightly colored lights of many colors pierced the sky. People were milling about, talking, laughing and having fun. Someone had brought out a food cart and was making a load of gil beside the guy selling drinks.

More than just Rinoa had dressed up. SeeDs and cadets got so few opportunities to do so, making even a small concert like this was a big event. Near the stage, the guitar guy from the quad was entertaining a few people as Selphie and the others got set up on stage.

“Elaborate,” Squall said, looking around. He was not the only one to not dress up either. So there was an assortment of plain clothes, uniforms, and dress clothes mixed with FH citizens that had dusted off their best garb all intermingling together. Instead of appearing messy, it all just looked like it had fallen together rather naturally.

“You SeeDs really know how to party,” Rinoa agreed, chuckling.

“Where did you get that dress?” Squall asked. She hadn't brought it with them when they had escaped Timber. He would have noticed her carrying a suitcase.

“Xu and I went down the tracks to get it,” she grinned, smoothing down the front. “Do you like it?”

“It's fine,” Squall shrugged. He looked down when she punched his chest. It hadn't hurt, but she was pouting. “What?”

“You said that word again.”

“I didn't say ' _I'm_ fine'.”

“It counts.”

He sighed and looked away. He didn't want to try to say anything else about it. Everything in his head was either sappy, corny, or probably qualified as sexual harassment.

Rinoa smiled at the way he was looking up and away from her. Trying to hide the way his cheeks were getting just a bit red. The big, bad mercenary leader was shy. It was cute and she didn't care if he didn't like the label.

Smiling, she leaned her head against his shoulder again. “It's okay. That will do. For now.”

They fell silent as the others finished setting up and Selphie motioned for the guitar guy to stop. Then she beamed at the gathered crowd.

“Booyaka!” She yelled into the mic to catch everyone's attention. Laughing, she waved at everyone, an acoustic guitar hanging from a strap on her shoulder. “Hey, everyone! Thanks for coming out! Let's give it up to the fine people of FH for our beautiful stage and this wonderful night!”

A loud cheer went up and Selphie nodded enthusiastically. When it died down, she started again.

“We're here to celebrate the garden's completion and to thank FH for such a job well done. However, we're also here to celebrate our new leader!

Squall groaned making Rinoa giggle as he suddenly felt so many eyes on him.

“Squall, you big stud,” Selphie winked at him. “This is all for you! Congratulations! Enjoy the show! Rinoa, don't let him get away.”

Everyone laughed and clapped as Selphie put the mic down. Whatever...

“Ready?!” He heard her yell to the others without the mic. “A-one, two, three...”

The music they had chosen for the night was happy, upbeat, and exciting. Everyone cried out as they reached for the nearest person to pull them into a dance. All except Rinoa. She was content standing there with Squall, just appreciating the sound.

“They're not bad, huh?” she asked over the music, smiling.

“Yeah...” he agreed. Who knew that they could all play an instrument. Selphie he could see knowing, the others not so much. And was Quistis tapping?

“What's with them?” Rinoa asked, pointing to a group near the stage. A group of guys and girls that were all practically melting right near where Quistis was performing.

“That's her fan club,” Squall said.

“Her what?!” Rinoa drew back. “Quistis has a _fan club_?”

“That's what I said,” he shrugged. “They seem happy though, so whatever...”

Rinoa giggled. “They actually kind of look rabid. I had no idea Quistis was so popular.”

As the music continued, Squall started pulling Rinoa away from the stage. He was only out here because she wanted to talk. They weren't going to be able to do that standing right in front of the stage with the rest of the garden dancing around them.

He tugged on her hand gently and led her away. She didn't try to fight him. They worked their way around the stage and out of the sight of others. From this side, the sound of the music and the laughter died down slightly.

At the edge of the platform above the bowl of solar panels, there was a magazine that had been flipped open a few pages by the wind.

And a totally nude woman laid out along a divan with a red silk sheet covering absolutely nothing of importance was staring up at him. Squall quickly lifted his gaze, grumbling to himself. He had honestly thought Irvine had been kidding.

“Ohh, a naughty magazine,” Rinoa laughed, bending over it. “My, Squall. I find it interesting that I keep finding you around these things.”

“You know that's Irvine's,” Squall said, annoyed.

Rinoa laughed. “I'm joking. I'm joking.”

“You wanted to talk about something, right?” Squall said pointedly, taking a seat on the rim of the platform. He deliberately closed the magazine and pushed it away. “What is it?”

“Um, well, it's about your promotion,” Rinoa crouched down next to him. “Things are gonna get real tough for you, huh?”

Squall deliberately looked away. He didn't want to think about it.

Rinoa smiled at the side of his head. “Squall, I'm sure there'll be a lot of difficult things that you'll have to deal with from now on. We were talking about that and saying how you'll probably try to handle everything on your own.”

Yeah, he probably would.

“They know you too well,” Rinoa smiled. “I do too, although I haven't been around you that long. Y'know, when you start thinking too hard, you tend to frown like this...”

Squall looked up slowly to find Rinoa looking up slowly, having mimicked his movement and even his position to a 'T'.

Squall reached out to grab her. Rinoa dropped back, rolled away, and came up neatly on her feet in a move that would have been impossible for her before she met Squall. He gave her a dull look and she had to hold her stomach as she laughed.

“I'm out of here.”

“Oh, come on!” Rinoa ran forward quickly to stop him from getting up. “I'm sorry! But, really, we were saying that...well, you can't handle everything on your own.”

Rinoa bit her lip as she pulled back her hands. Squall was staring off into the reflection of the stars in the solar panels. Rinoa pushed him suddenly and he had only enough time to get his feet under him instead of falling to his knees.

Squall landed against the mirrored surface of one of the solar panels. He stumbled forward a few steps before turning back to see Rinoa jumping down after him. He growled at her angrily.

“That's it!” Rinoa beamed at his annoyance. “Just let out anything! Anything...”

Rinoa reached up and took hold of her necklace, trying to gather her courage. It was scary opening up to Squall just because he was so closed off. But she had to if she ever wanted to hope that he would do the same to her.

“We want you to talk to us a little more. That's all.”

Squall was staring at her, his expression unreadable. But she knew that face. That was the look he gave someone when they were saying something he didn't quite understand. She pressed forward, trying to explain herself.

“Y'know, if there's anything you want to tell us, or anything we can do, don't hesitate to let us know. I know it's not easy, but I wish you would trust us and rely on us a little more.”

Squall blinked because Rinoa looked sad when she said it. Was he that untrusting? He had to look away from her face then. Those eyes that threatened to drown them in their depths. He found himself instead looking up at the stars, up at the moon.

Maybe he was that way because he was scared. Nothing lasts in this world. If feels great to have friends who believe in you and adults you can rely on. A girl with bright eyes that made your heart race and mind stop. It was wonderful.

That's why it was so dangerous. Especially if you became used to it. Someday, you were bound to lose everything. Everyone around you would be gone. Then what were you left with?

Nothing.

Nobody.

It's so miserable. And it's inevitable. It was so hard to recover from something like that. Squall never wanted to deal with that again. He couldn't. The pain of it would destroy him. And if that meant being alone, then...

“What a night,” Rinoa sighed dreamily capturing his attention again. He turned to see her walking in a slow circle around the solar panel, a smile on her face, her hands clasped behind her back. Each deliberate footstep clicked against the panel, her eyes turned from him.

“Great music...Good-looking guy...Not only is he good-looking. He's the _sweetest_ guy. A great listener. Right now, he's seriously thinking about what I said.” Rinoa smiled as she caught Squall staring at her with a raised eyebrow, but she just continued on. “He's shy. Doesn't say much. But I know him. I know that he would never dismiss me outright.”

Rinoa finally stopped, her circle having brought her around to land right in front of him. Her eyes danced in the pale moonlight. His jacket was starting to slip from her shoulders slightly, but that only made her look better.

Squall didn't realize until this moment, until he saw her wearing it so casually, that the jacket was more than just a way of keeping her warm. It was his mark on her. A claim.

And that sent an electric shock of emotion up his spine that he didn't care to analyze too carefully.

“So, what do you think?” Rinoa asked gently raising an eyebrow. “None of our business?”

Now even she was mocking him.

He shook his head. “I appreciate your concern, but-”

“No 'buts'!” Rinoa held up her hand over his mouth, cutting him off. His eyes looked down at her hand then back up to her eyes.

When exactly had she become so comfortable touching him? And when had he become so comfortable allowing her to do so?

“Just think about this,” Rinoa told him firmly. “This might be the only time we'll all be together. So, as long as we _are_ together, we might as well enjoy each other's company and...just talk, right?”

Squall pulled his face out from under her hand as he made a face. Just for the moment. Then everything would be gone. And that moment would be meaningless.

“Just for now, huh?” He asked angrily, taking her wrists to push her back. “Forget it. I don't want friends who won't be around tomorrow.”

“Gosh, you're such a pessimist,” Rinoa grimaced then smiled. She turned her hands around and twisted her fingers with his. “There are no guarantees in the future. That's why today, the time we have now, is important. Squall, we want to help you, as much as we can, for as long as we can. We're not trying to leave, but we can't promise that we'll always be there either. Things happen. Circumstances change. And what we want isn't always what we get.”

“Yeah, that's my point,” he grumbled, trying to pull his hands back, but she wouldn't let him.

“We all love you Squall,” she said firmly, surprising him. Her face was blazing red but she didn't look away from him. “There, I said it. Please don't freak out. We just wanna live, y'know. Live through this time _with_ you. Together.”

“...Together...?” he repeated softly. That sounded so good coming from her lips. She was breaking him again. Making him do things he normally wouldn't.

“Keep it in the back of your mind,” Rinoa smiled, lowering their hands. “Call on us whenever you need to. We'll be waiting.”

She released his hands and they felt suddenly colder, emptier without her. She smiled as she held her hands behind her back again. She shrugged.

“Like I said, who knows what's gonna happen in the future...But, I have a feeling we'll be together for a while. That's what you want, right?”

“Yeah...” The word fell from Squall's lips without him even realizing he had given it permission to do so. Rinoa smiled at hearing it as she turned to walk around the panel again.

“So, what's on your mind?” She asked, stepping around the stars under her feet. “Do you have any dreams, Squall? Anything you want to do with your life?”

Aside from SeeD? He had never really thought about it. He didn't even know if there was a good answer for it. He shrugged.

“That's something I'd rather not talk about. What about you?”

Rinoa thought for a moment before shrugging herself. “I don't know. I guess I'd rather not talk about the future, either. Right now...I just wanna stay right here...like this.”

She turned to smile at him and Squall looked back at her. He didn't exactly smile, but his face was as open as she had ever seen it.

“What about you? What do you want right now?”

Squall looked up at the stars, thinking. What he wanted right now...

Rinoa. He wanted Rinoa. To hold her. To have her. To kiss her breathless.

He closed his eyes and lowered his head back down. When they opened up again Rinoa found her mouth falling open slightly at the swirling emotions she saw there. The strength of them, how they looked glowing in the darkness of the night, made her take in a staggered breath.

Suddenly, her dress felt too thin. She could feel his eyes on her as he looked down her body, tracking the strip of creamy dress under his leather jacket.

She turned to face him fully, biting her bottom lip. Because she wasn't at all opposed to giving him what his eyes said he wanted. She knew him though. He wasn't going to reach out to take it. So she had to come to him.

Her heels were strangely loud as she moved closer. His eyes followed her, his expression almost hungry. Rinoa could feel the heat of his desire washing over her like waves on a shore. She stood just in front of him, their bodies almost touching, but not quite. The heat moved between them as Rinoa looked to his lips then back up to his eyes.

Slowly, like she was afraid she might startle him, she reached up and took his face in hand. He didn't pull away and she licked her lips in anticipation.

She took another step closer, her foot moving between his thighs as she leaned up to close that distance that stretched out between them. Reaching out for him. Pulling him closer.

Squall didn't resist her grasp. Her perfume was driving him mad. His fingers itched with the desire to reach out and just grab her. Yank her body against his and slam his mouth down on hers. He wanted to hear her moan as he ran his tongue over her lips. He wanted her body to squirm under his hands as he caressed the willowy curved of her hips and waist.

The crowd cheered behind them as the song finished. The sounds were distant. It didn't touch either of them, lost as they were in their own world.

So close. She was so close. Rinoa could feel the heat of breath. Nearly taste his lips. Her eyes were already closing in anticipation. How would he kiss? Would it be as devastating as his eyes promised? It would be as intense as he was, she was sure.

Just as her mouth hovered over his, his hands caught her wrists. And he pushed her back.

Hurt, Rinoa's eyes snapped open on him. Confused, rejected, and suddenly uncertain of herself, she searched his face for an explanation.

“Not here,” he said, his voice low and growling with his own disappointment.

“What's wrong with right here?” Rinoa whined.

“For one thing, there's a large group of people right there just waiting for their new leader to give them something to gossip about.”

“Let them talk, I don't care,” Rinoa pouted.

Squall grinned at her. “For another thing, I don't want an audience.” He didn't want anyone else to see Rinoa like this. This was for him alone and he refused to share a moment that would be so special with a giggling group of cadets and SeeDs.

“Who asked you to be so damn proper anyway?” Rinoa continued to pout but she stepped back away from him. “Okay, fine. I guess that's fair. Shall we go back to the concert then?”

Squall nodded and held out his hand for her to take, anticipating it by now. She smiled and grabbed hold of him. Neither let go as they started making their way across the panels back to the concert.

That night, Squall was plagued with nightmares and slept rather fitfully.

“ _...Sis...I'm...all alone...But I'm doing my best. I'll be okay without you, sis. I'll be able to take care of myself..._ ”

***

The chiming of the intercom the next morning stirred Squall gently from slumber. His name being called officially by a voice he didn't recognize brought him out the rest of the way.

“ _Squall. Squall, please report to the bridge immediately._ ”

He groaned as he sat up. What was it now?

It wasn't too early in the morning, Squall had slept in a bit. He hastily pulled on his clothes, junctioned Shiva, and strapped on his gunblade before heading out.

Up on deck, everything was completely different from when he had first pulled the machinery out of the bowels of the garden. Gone were the clunky, rusty old control systems with flickering green screens and a control knob that was hard to understand.

In its place now, shining white and gold, there was a new platform built over the old one. Spearing up from underground, like an enormous joystick, a gold filigree emblazoned pillar stood proud. Quistis was standing on the left of the platform, Xu to the right. And Nida, of all people, was standing in front of the pillar in full uniform and a smile on his face.

As Squall's head appeared over the edge of the platform, all three of them started applauding.

“Greetings commander,” Quistis beamed at him.

Squall's eye twitched. “Don't call me that.”

Xu smiled at his reaction. “We thought you should have a title. So Quistis and I decided on 'commander'. We figured it was fitting.”

“Sorry to carry things out on our own, but Xu and I have assigned duties,” Quistis said.

Xu picked up. “I'll take care of all the supplies needed in the garden-”

“-and I'll help take care of the students with Dr. Kadowaki. Xu will deal with the administration-”

“-and Quistis will deal with education.”

“That leaves you to focus on our destination and battle plans. Should be more than enough for your plate. If either of us need your input, we'll come to you immediately.”

Squall nodded, accepting the actions as the most logical and efficient.

“Oh, and, uh,” Quistis grimaced. “Will you let Selphie rest a while? I think she's exhausted from the missile base mission and the concert. She could use some time off. Is that alright, commander?”

“Fine,” Squall nodded, already fed up with being called 'commander'.

“Alright,” Xu clapped her hands together. “I have some reports for you already. Nida?”

“Hey, commander,” he nodded formally.

“Stop it.”

“So, I'm glad to officially report, that the FH technicians finished fixing the garden last night. And, as of this morning, everything is back in place and the garden is ready to go anytime. Oh, yeah, and I'll be piloting the garden. The FH technicians taught me everything about controlling this thing. Let me know where we're going.”

“Any suggestions?” Quistis asked.

“Why don't we go back to Balamb?” Xu asked immediately. “We don't know what's happened since we left. Besides, Balamb may be their next target. It's a harbor town, just like FH and they'll know by now that we aren't there to protect the town any longer.”

“You're right,” Quistis frowned. “Squall, what do you think?”

He nodded and turned to Nida. “Set course back to Balamb. Announce the departure.”

“Roger, commander,” Nida turned and pulled down from the ceiling the mic for the intercom system. When had the techs put it up there? “Preparing take off procedures.”

The intercom dinged and Nida spoke officially through the speakers and Squall recognized the voice that had woken him up.

“ _May I have your attention please. This is the bridge._ ”

Rinoa looked up from the desk she was reading at in the library.

“ _The garden will be leaving FH soon. Please prepare for departure. I will now hand the mic over to our leader, Squall._ ”

Rinoa made a face as she heard Squall suddenly talking not quite into the mic.

“ _A speech...? Forget it._ ”

She started laughing as she heard what sounded like Squall hitting the speaker.

“ _Cut the mic._ ”

She wasn't the only one laughing good naturedly as the intercom dinged again. Their leader wasn't exactly personable, but no one seemed to mind. While he wasn't overly friendly, no one could doubt his capabilities.

And SeeD always appreciated function over form.


	25. Yes, Captain

“Ugh!” Rinoa threw herself backwards on the garden bench. “I don't _get_ it!”

“You're doing fine,” Squall said, picking up the cards. “Triple Triad isn't so difficult. You're just not thinking through your steps.”

Rinoa mimicked him unhappily as she forced herself up. She had lost every game she had played with Squall thus far. He had agreed to teach her this, as he had taught her many other things. And because he considered this training, they weren't trading cards between them as she lost. Which was a good thing because she would probably be out of cards by this point if they were.

“How did _that_ card flip _that_ one! Mine is so much stronger!”

“Only on the one side. And we aren't using plus rules, so there's no way that card would have flipped mine."  
“Plus rules?” Rinoa frowned. “I don't want to know. I don't. Don't tell me...Okay, tell me.”

Two minutes later, Rinoa was groaning again, her head reeling. “I don't _get it_!”

Squall grinned at her as he put his cards back in his deck. “Want to keep going or are you done?”

“No way!” Rinoa sat up quickly. “I swear I am beating you at least once before this day is over!”

An hour later, Rinoa still hadn't won a hand. She was practically crying, accusing Squall of cheating, and hating all of her cards.

He never once tried to throw the game for her. He didn't go easy on her. And, somehow, she appreciated that more than anything. He was still holding her on the same level as himself. Which, while probably unfair, made her feel good. She disliked being coddled.

And then, at long last.

“AH!” Rinoa nearly cried in relief. “A tie! We tied!”

“Good job,” Squall said, gathering his cards up. “Want to keep going?”

“No way! I'm taking that as a victory and I'm going to be happy with it. I'll beat you at cards some other time. When you're not cheating.”

“I wasn't cheating.”

Rinoa sighed and put her deck back together. “How are you so good at everything?”

“I'm not.” Squall stood from the bench and stretched.

The garden was moving quickly. Much more quickly, in fact, than Squall would have believed given how slowly it had drifted at sea for three days straight. They had left FH just this morning and, as the evening was approaching, Nida had announced over the intercom that they would be landing on the beach at Balamb shortly.

Rinoa stood up after him, putting her cards in her pocket. “Well, it's past lunch. You wanna grab something to eat?”

Squall shrugged and was about to ask if she wanted to chance the cafeteria or the guy fishing in the quad when the intercom dinged above them.

“ _Squall, this is Nida speaking. You're needed on the deck._ ”

Rinoa groaned, putting her head on her hand. “Duty calls. Again. I don't think we're ever going to get to actually _eat_ together.”

Squall frowned and remembered what she had said about her father. About how he had worked his way right out of her good graces. He didn't want to end up in that same position.

“Hey, when we land in Balamb, I'll take you somewhere.”

“Huh? Really?” Rinoa lifted her head, her eyes shining.

He shrugged. “Sure. Balamb has the best seafood anywhere. I've been told you have to try it if you go.”

“Okay,” Rinoa beamed.

“It's not a date though,” Squall said quickly, making sure she understood.

Rinoa chuckled and nodded. “You should go, commander. You're needed on deck.”

“Ugh. Don't call me that,” he rolled his eyes as he turned to leave.

“Hey, Squall!” Rinoa called out after him making him stop and turn. “Why do you not like being called 'commander'? You didn't like 'squad leader' either, now that I think about it.”

“Why do you ca-...” Squall trailed off as he remembered his promise to talk more. “I...don't like the assumed sense of responsibility and expectation that comes with it.”

Rinoa smiled gratefully and nodded. He turned to leave, wondering if that was the answer she was looking for. She had been asking him questions like that all day.

Why don't you try to order hot dogs like everyone else? Why did you pick the gunblade? Why did you pick Shiva as a GF? Why did she pick you? Why did you decide to be a SeeD?

Just one thing after another. Curiosity that seemed only to grow stronger the more he appeased it.

He didn't care what food tasted like as long as it had the nutrition he wanted. Because he couldn't resist a challenge and the gunblade was a big one. He didn't choose Shiva, Shiva chose him. Reasons that she kept to herself. It just seemed natural since he went here.

With each question, Rinoa would smile. She just wanted him to answer, apparently. It felt awkward for Squall, who usually tried to keep such things to himself. Yet that smile...

That was such a reward in and of itself. And she seemed to get closer to him each time that he gave her an honest response. Like all she wanted was for him to talk to her. As if such a simple thing was the greatest thing in the world.

And now, finally, they were heading back to Balamb. They wanted to check on the town, to make sure everything was alright. And, once they had, he would take her to eat. Then he would show her the famed Balamb beaches. She seemed really excited about it.

The look on Nida's face when he rode up to the deck gave him a sinking feeling about those plans.

“What is it?” He asked, stepping forward.

“We're coming up towards Balamb.”

“And?”

“Well...check it out,” Nida jerked his head forward.

Squall stepped up onto the platform and cursed under his breath.

The island of Balamb wasn't exactly large. It wasn't all that far from the beach to the town. In some parts, it was right on it. The garden was already starting up said beach. Squall could already make out the glow of the garden ring under the surface of the water as it traveled up. From here, Squall could also see the wall that surrounded the town.

And the enormous, red, floating building parked near it.

“Galbadia Garden was remolded from an old shelter, too,” Nida said, making a face. “Do you think they copied us after they saw our garden or we just happened upon the same mechanism at the same time?”

“What are the odds of it happening randomly twice?” Squall sneered, putting his hand to his waist as he tried to decide what to do.

Nida continued on course, waiting for his orders patiently.

“Alright,” Squall nodded once. “Change direction. I want you to go towards the old garden location. I don't want to get too close to them.”

“Roger, changing course,” Nida responded, adjusting himself at the stick. “They're awful close to Balamb. You think they've already made their way in?”

“Yeah, I do,” Squall let out a long breath. Meaning they were probably going to have to break their way into the town. “Alright. Call Quistis and Zell to come up to the bridge to meet me.”

“Aye.” Nida pulled down the intercom and let out the announcement as Squall returned to the platform and rode it down.

It only took a few moments. Quistis arrived first. Zell a few moments later.

“What's up?” He asked, grinning. “We home yet?”

“Yeah, and we have a problem,” Squall frowned. He explained what Nida had spotted and let them infer what it meant. They came to the same conclusion he had.

“Then Balamb is under the sorceress's occupation,” Quistis bit her lip. “General Caraway did say that she was going to use their garden as a base. I guess she has.”

“Dammit. My ma is there!” Zell yelled loudly. “Squall, let me go down, please!”

“That's why I called you two up here. The three of us are from Balamb, after a fashion. I want us to go in first, scope things out. See if we can get them out on our own or at least get some information. Zell.”

“Yeah?” Zell growled, clearly angry.

“I am taking you with me because I know your mother is in Balamb. However, I expect you not to mess up like you did in Timber. Understand me?”

Zell's face hardened and he nodded. “You got it. I won't screw up twice, Squall. Guarantee it.”

“Good.”

“Squall!” Nida called out.

“You two go get ready,” Squall backed up towards the lift again. “I'll meet you down by the front gates in a few minutes to make our way inside.”

He rode up and walked over to see Nida pointing down. “Look.”

Squall did so and frowned.

The place where the garden had once stood was now a wide, rather deep crater. The garden unearthing itself following by the missile blast had dug a scar deep into the earth. It was daunting to see, but not the sort of thing that Squall needed to be updated about.

He was just opening his mouth to ask Nida what was wrong when he spotted it.

There. On the edge of the crater in a shanty town that had been built of tents and whatever else could be salvaged were a group of people that were all gathering together. Squall grabbed the binoculars that Nida was holding out to him and he lifted them to his eyes.

Garden students. Garden SeeDs. Some in uniform, others not. They were all waving at the garden, bright smiles on their faces. A few of them were crying in relief.

“Those evacuated during the fighting?” Nida asked curiously.

“Probably,” Squall nodded. “Okay, I'm going out with Quistis and Zell. Nida, alert everyone in the garden that we're going to be taking on those people. Have Xu handle checking them all in and gathering reports. I'll deal with it when I get back.”

“Roger,” Nida reached for the intercom again.

Squall heard him relaying the instructions as he made his way down through the garden. By the time he got to the gates, many people had already gathered there. Dr. Kadowaki was on sight prepared to deal with the injured, someone had brought out food and drink for the weary, and Xu was already on scene giving orders to a few other SeeDs she had recruited to get a record of those incoming.

Quistis and Zell were standing apart from the hubbub with Rinoa.

“Hey,” she waved as he came in closer. “They told me what happened. Galbadia Garden is moving too?”

“Apparently so.” Squall took her by the arm and walked her a few steps away from the others. Zell and Quistis shared a grin when he did so.

“What's up?” Rinoa asked when he stopped and looked back at her.

“I'm sorry,” he made a face. “I might have to cancel those dinner plans.”

Rinoa's eyes went wide.

“What?” He frowned.

She shook her head. “Nothing. It's just...I'm surprised. You kind of have more important things to worry about right now.”

“I don't want to turn into your father,” he admitted unhappily.

“Oh, Squall...” Rinoa smiled softly. “Hey, you are _not_ turning into my father. Trust me. If you start, I'll let you know immediately. That man made excuses to get away from me. You're apologizing over something that's not your fault. And we did play cards all morning. It's fine. In fact, is there anything that I can help with? Make it easier?”

Squall looked at her, gratitude shifting across his face for a brief moment before he looked over. “Dr. Kadowaki could probably use some help. The people we're getting in are evacuees. They'll be tired and ready for the comforts of garden. Just see what you can do around here.”

“You got it,” Rinoa nodded. “And you be careful.”

“Huh?”

“Be careful,” she repeated. “I may forgive you for canceling dinner, but I won't forgive you for coming back injured or worse. You understand me?”

Squall had never had someone worry over him before. It was a slightly...novel experience. Just the act of someone telling him 'be careful' instead of 'good luck' was new. That she was saying it though meant that she was waiting for him to come back. That she was worrying about him while he was gone. And that was the first time Squall could ever say someone had felt that way about him.

“Alright,” he nodded. “If I'm not back by tonight, I'll be back tomorrow morning.”

Rinoa smiled. “I'll be waiting.”

Squall reached out and touched her hand gently as he walked past her back towards Quistis and Zell. It was a brief stroke, soft and quick. But Rinoa's heart raced when she felt it because Squall had reached out for her, not the other way around.

She turned and smiled as he joined with the others and they walked forward.

Getting out of the garden was a bit of a hassle. The front gates now just led to a drop off that hung out fairly close to the revolving rings that kept the garden up. The FH technicians, however, had taken that into account when performing repairs. And though the front gate had been buried underwater, they had still built a lift that could be quickly installed to serve as a departure point. The old gatekeeper now was in charge of operating the lift.

Squall, Quistis, and Zell stepped aboard and were treated to the maiden voyage down. It moved at a decent pace, but the garden was high off of the ground. The lift hit the grass more than a few seconds later and they were immediately descended up on by students and SeeDs.

Squall paused then to explain that they would be debriefed by Xu once they had been checked into the garden. He fielded fast reports about Galbadia Garden floating near Balamb. Quistis saw fit to alert them all that Headmaster Cid had promoted Squall to commander before he could stop her. Then he had to deal with cheering and congratulations.

It took a longer than he would have preferred to escape the crowd. By the time they left, two groups had already been hauled up the lift to the garden above. Injured and ill first. There were many of them that the headmaster had forced out when the fighting began. With them all returning, the garden would finally feel full again.

***

The town of Balamb wasn't under siege. Not anymore. It was officially occupied and taken over. Without Balamb Garden and its SeeDs to offer protection, the peaceful harbor town had fallen only too easy to Gabladia's military might.

When Squall stepped through the gates of the town, it was too see some town folk already milling about and a Galbadian soldier standing guard at the entrance that had been mostly blocked by Galbadian army vehicles.

“What the hell!?” Zell yelled, running up to the soldier. “What's goin' on here?!”

The solder growled at them. “This town us under the control of Sorceress Edea! The town is off limits while we conduct an investigation for a wanted criminal. It will last for several days. Once we're through with our investigation, you're to be questioned. So just stay out and stay put!”

Squall reached out and pulled Zell away from the soldier. Mostly because it looked like Zell was about to deck him and Squall didn't want to start a commotion. Not yet, at least.

“An investigation?” Quistis repeated as the three of them stood back. “What wanted criminal? You don't think they're after us, do you?”

“No, I think they're after Ellone,” Squall said. “Wanted criminal just sounds better.”

“Great, so what do we do?” Zell grumbled. “We need to get inside, don't we?”

Squall made a thoughtful sound as he considered their options. They could sneak in. Try to find a way past the guard. And there was always the option of just busting in old fashioned style...

“Hey,” the guard called out to them, putting his hand to his belt where his saber rested. “You guys look suspicious. What are you doing here?”

Squall looked back at him evenly, wondering if he should just kill him...

Let's see what info he could find first. Violence could always be taken as a later option.

“What's Galbadia doing in a town like this?”

The soldier looked mad that he dared question him back. “You tell me what you're doing here now, punk! Are you residents here?”

“Yeah, that's right!” Zell jumped in eagerly. “At least residents should be allowed in!”

“It's _off-limits_!” The soldier snapped, the tone of his voice made it sound like he had been repeating that phrase for a while now. “You cannot enter or leave. Do you understand?!”

“Oh, yeah?!” Zell stepped up to the guard, his temper riled. Squall frowned because his gauntlets had started smoking. “Who do you think you're talkin' to?”

The guard glared at him, at the smoke coming from his gauntlets. Squall moved quickly and grabbed Zell by the shoulder. Shiva hissed because his body was too hot, but Squall's cold affect naturally canceled it out. He pushed Zell back, towards Quistis, and stepped forward in his place.

“What? You gotta problem, too, punk?” The soldier asked him, his hand twitching on his saber.

Squall regarded him carefully then made a chance decision. “You said the town was off-limits...Does that mean we can't deliver a message, either?”

The G-soldier looked at him, confused and Squall shrugged nonchalantly.

“That's too bad. We have some info on Ellone...”

“W-What?! Ello...” The soldier gaped like a fish for a moment. He turned quickly to see if Squall had been overheard. He came in closer and whispered, “Okay, just wait a minute! Tell me everything you know about her! Do you actually know who she is?”

“Kind of...” Squall said noncommittally. “But we came to Balamb because we needed to confirm something about her before we could hand it in as truth. We wouldn't want to give the sorceress false information and waste her time.”

The soldier opened his mouth a couple times like he wanted to say something. Like maybe he wanted to demand the information. Squall's words had been carefully chosen though. He had given him an offer he couldn't refuse. Turn them away and they could lose info on Ellone and be punished. Demand it now without confirmation and it could prove false and they could be punished.

The soldier weighed the pros of being the one to hand in the info against the cons of the punishment he would receive if it were false and came to a decision.

“If you have any information at all, go talk to the commander. She's staying at the hotel. You will be rewarded.”

Squall grinned and nodded as the soldier stepped aside to let them through. Who needed force when you could just fib your way through?

The three of them walked into the occupied town. There were Galbadian soldiers everywhere and the few townspeople still around had been confined to their homes.

Zell charged straight towards his house without waiting. Squall and Quistis stayed behind him as he raced down the front steps and through the door.

“Ma, I'm home!” Zell cried out, looking around. His mother, who he could usually find in the kitchen, was no where to be seen. He looked around, worried, as Quistis shut the door and locked it.

Zell ran into the next room, Squall on his tail.

“Ma!” He yelled in relief to see his mother and their neighbor with her son in the back room. “You're safe!”

“Zell!” The round, sweet older woman gasped. “How on earth did you get into town?!”

“It's all in the brains, ma,” Zell bragged smugly, conveniently leaving out Squall was the one who had come up with the lie. “We just said we had some info on Ellone. Piece o'cake.”

Ma Dincht let out a sigh. “What a relief. I was worried you might have beaten up one of the guards. The soldiers have threatened that the sorceress will burn the town to the ground should there be any disturbance of their investigation.”

Squall was suddenly grateful he had opted not to kill the soldier. Discretion was a good choice here. “Is the sorceress here?”

“I did notice a woman with the Galbadian Army, not in uniform,” Ma Dincht nodded. “Gray hair, patch over one eye, doesn't really talk much...”

Squall frowned. “That sounds an awful lot like Fujin. I guess they finally found Seifer.” Now that he thought about it, he hadn't seen them since Balamb Garden had been a missile target. They must have evacuated themselves before the garden began moving.

“Leave it to me!” Zell pounded his chest. “I'll get rid of those jokers!”

Could Seifer be with them, Squall couldn't help but wonder...

Hot hatred poured through his veins, impervious to Shiva's power. The last smug look Squall had seen of him, about to launch missiles at their home as he tortured Squall, was still burned into the back of his eyelids.

He hoped Seifer was here. He wanted the pleasure.

“Let's go to the hotel,” Squall announced, forcing his dark emotions under control. “If we can deal with the commander, we can lift the siege on Balamb. Come on.”

Deciding not to waste time, they moved quickly towards the hotel. It was being guarded by two soldiers who glared at them as they approached.

“What do you want?!” One of them asked angrily. “If you're looking for the commander, I have strict orders not to let anyone through.”

“Not even if we have info on Ellone?” Squall asked immediately.

The soldiers were taken aback by that simple question.

They turned to each other to confer quickly. Whispering so loudly that Squall and the others had no problems hearing them.

“More rumors, you think?” The first guy asked.

“You know that we'll get a salary cut if we let'em through without confirmation,” the second guy grimaced.

“Yeah, I know,” the other guy made the same face. “But in this army your salary gets cut based just on how the boss is feeling...It goes with the territory when you can't choose your own boss and you're forced to work, I guess.”

Zell growled in impatience and slammed his foot down, getting their attention back. “Yo, listen! We have top secret info on Ellone! Bring your commander out here!”

…

The first guy turned back. “These guys are...kind suspicious, huh?”

“Yeah, totally!” The second guy said like he was grateful the first guy had said it first.

Then their voices got quiet as they learned how to whisper and conferred again. The second guy turned back again, apparently relieved.

“Have some respect for the captain! The captain is currently on patrol!”

“The captain?” Squall repeated.

“The captain will take full responsibility,” the first one agreed, also smiling in relief.

Damn this army and their inability to function correctly, Squall rolled his eyes.

“Where is the captain?” He asked.

“On patrol,” the first one repeated which Squall took to mean that he didn't know.

“Now what?” Quistis asked as they walked away.

“What else? We start looking for the captain,” Squall shrugged.

They were lucky that Balamb wasn't that big. They were also lucky that there were no red wearing superior officers around to confuse things. That made searching for the captain easier. But also more annoying because there were _no red wearing SOs_.

They started at the hotel and worked their way down to the docks. All the parking spots had been taken up by Galbadian vehicles. Near the water, they found a soldier kneeling down and pretending to look around while a dog licked itself beside him.

“Hey, you seen the captain?” Zell asked him as they walked up.

“Huh?” The soldier looked at them, frowning. “The captain? Nah. Sorry.”

“Did you drop something?” Quistis asked as he continued to scan along the ground.

“No. I'm looking for something that belongs to Ellone.”

Squall frowned. “Here?”

“Yeah, they're making me do it,” the soldier said like he realized how sad it was. “They gave me this dog to sniff her out, but we don't have anything that belongs to her. So they ordered me to find something. So I'm just here all day...searching...”

“Well, good luck with that,” Zell grimaced as they moved onto the next soldier. “Have I mentioned lately how grateful I am not to be in the G-army?"

“Uh-huh...” Quistis agreed, nodding her head slowly.

The next soldier was standing at the pier on the docks. He was frowning down at the water, some fishing gear set up beside him.

“Hey,” Squall called out, turning him. “Have you seen the captain?”

“Oh, yeah,” the soldier nodded. “He was just fishing here. He caught a few and got really excited. Said he was gonna eat'em right away.”

“Thanks,” Squall said, stepping away from the docks. At least they were on his trail now.

“So, where to?” Quistis asked as they walked back up the docks.

“Well, if he caught some fish, he'll need to cook them,” Squall reasoned easily.

They walked back into town and the sight of smoke pouring from the front window Zell's house stopped them dead.

“Ma!” Zell yelled as he sprinted towards his front door.

They burst inside but nothing was on fire. There was a horrid stench coming from the smoke in the oven though. Quistis cried out as all three of them covered their faces. Ma Dincht, who was standing off to the side, turned to them.

“Oh, hello again, dear.”

“Ma, what happened?” Zell asked, coughing and sputtering. “It smells like someone cooked rancid thrustie meat in here.”

Ma Dincht nodded. “Just now, a man came in and asked if he could use the kitchen. I think he cooked some fish. The whole room is filled with this strange odor. I really hope he wasn't cooking badamb fish.”

Squall made a face. It certainly smelled like it. Badamb fish looked very similar to the famous Balamb fish known for their slightly sweet, deliciously savory taste. Unlike badmb fish which were known for violent dysentery and hives.

“Did the man say where he was going, ma?” Zell asked, covering his nose, his voice getting nasally as a result.

“No, he just ran out with the cooked fish,” Ma Dincht shrugged. “It's going to take forever to get this scent out.”

The three of them walked back onto the street and Zell made a face. “Oh man, this stuff reeks! It's soaked through my clothes!”

“Any thoughts, Squall?” Quistis asked, frowning at the expensive leather of her outfit. It was going to take forever to wash this out. This was fine leather, it held scents like no one's business.

Squall frowned at his own jacket. “Yeah, I got one...”

He led them back down through the town, to the docks. The soldier with the dog was now scouring an area just a little north of where he had been looking before. The dog was scratching at fleas. Squall walked up to him and kneeled in front of him.

Hoping this worked similar to how Angelo sniffed things out, he held out his arm to the dog. “Alright boy, follow the scent.”

The dog sniffed at him. Sneezed. Took another breath. Then barked at him.

Just like that, the dog ran off. Squall jumped to his feet and sprinted after him. The others followed, laughing at his cleverness for thinking of the dog.

The dog was fast. His tongue lolling in his excitement, he raced through the town. He stopped first at Zell's house, sneezed a few times, before picking up the scent again and racing on through. Squall stayed hot on his tail as the dog ran up the stairs into the train station.

Breathing hard, the three SeeDs stopped as the dog ran up the steps into the train. The conductor was standing over the bodies of two Galbadian soldiers that were laid out on the ground, grabbing their stomachs and moaning pitifully.

He looked up helplessly when Squall and the others came in closer.

“C-Captain...” one soldier cried, gagging.

Loud barking from inside the train had them looking up. Someone called out. They heard something crash from within. Then, from the other end of the car, a man jumped out. They caught a brief glimpse of baggy black pants and a short blue vest on a dark skinned, bare chested men that was running away from the dog.

“It's Raijin!” Squall cried out, unsurprised to find out he was the captain. It would only make sense that he would be Fujin's number two. It only confirmed that those two were here.

“W-Wait, captain...” the other soldier reached out for his fleeing leader.

“Oh, man...” the conductor grimaced. “That guy came and offered these soldiers fish that smelled rather off. I really hope he didn't give them badamb fish.”

“Come on,” Quistis pointed after Raijin. “Let's go!”

The three of them turned to run after the captain. Back in front of the hotel, they found the doors burst open and the soldiers trembling.

“Hey, you!” One of them yelled, throwing out his hand in terrified warning. “Stand back. This could be dangerous! The commander's just about to-”

“YEOW!” Raijin came flying out the front doors and slammed against the pavement. Groaning, he pushed himself up. “Ouch...F-Fujin...C-Control your temper, ya know.”

Panting, moving like he was sore, Raijin got to his feet. “I was patrollin', just like ya told me. I even woke up that search dog, sleepin' on the job, ya know?” He turned to the soldiers. “You guys help me out here! We've gotta calm Fujin down, ya know?!”

The doors of the hotel slammed shut and Raijin trembled. Zell stepped forward, drawing in a deep breath.

“RAI-JIN!”

“Huh?” The captain turned and his eyes went wide as a big smile burst onto his face. “Wo-o-o-ow! What are you guys doin' here?”

“We're here to liberate Balamb, ya know?!” Zell coughed, shaking his head. “I mean, uh, we're here to liberate Balamb!”

Raijin laughed, putting his hands to his waist. “Man, it's good to see you all again...I mean, wait. Hold on...”

“Raijin, what are you doing here?” Squall demanded to know.

Raijin grinned at him. “Oh, that's right. Seifer told us to give you a whoopin' if we saw you, ya know! You soldiers, help me out.”

Raijin was fast. He charged so quickly that Squall barely had time to draw his gunblade. It was such a quick blow that Squall's blade was still half buried in the sheath when he caught the end of Raijin's bi-weighted staff.

“Woo,” Raijin's eyes went wide. “Squall, your blade is red! That's so cool!”

Squall gritted his teeth against the pressure Raijin was exerting on him. The other man had a great deal of strength and his heavy staff enabled him to weild it effectively.

However, Squall wasn't the only one who had taken his time in FH to upgrade.

Zell cried out and jumped in, punching towards Raijin's jaw. Raijin leaned back so Zell's fist and his new steel plated Gauntlets only stirred his short cropped hair.

Raijin jerked his staff to the side and slammed it into Zell's flank. Squall finished drawing out his blade and sliced down. Raijin jerked his staff back and caught the blow.

The G-soldiers let out a cry as Quistis caught one by the neck and used her new, strengthened whip to slam him bodily into the other soldier. The red of the ochu tentacle flashed in the sun almost iridescently. The bronze tip at the end may not have been the strongest, but it was sharp and blood started coming from the neck of the first solider as Quistis tossed him around.

“You'll pay for this, Raijin!” Zell grunted, forcing himself up. His side was bruised and tender, but the pain was quickly fading under Ifrit's magic. His new, metal plated Gauntlets heated up a lot better than his caterchipillar ones. The metal blazed red as Zell attacked.

Squall jumped back and out of the way. Raijin lifted his staff and deflected the first blow. Then the second. His staff became a blur as he twisted it around almost artistically. Zell's blows were continuously redirected away from Raijin's body, irritating him.

Quistis jerked her hand up and the soldier trapped in her whip flipped up over her head then down to the surf below. She jerked the whip back down again and the bronze tip slammed expertly through the neck of the other soldier, killing him instantly.

She jerked her whip back, curling it up in her hand, and turned to Zell.

Raijin and Zell were both strength based warriors. While Zell was a lot more hands on than Raijin, Raijin was so good with his staff that it may as well have been part of him. He kept his eyes forward, a grin on his face, as he focused on Zell's movements. His body twisted as he swung the staff around and deflected.

Until he stabbed forward. The blunt end of the staff slammed into Zell's gut and he coughed. Raijin jerked up and bashed Zell's chin. Blood burst from his lip as he fell backwards. Raijin twisted and brought the staff up to bring down on Zell's head.

Quistis's whip cracked as it encircled the end of the staff from behind. She jerked harshly, pulling Raijin off balance. He fell backwards, grunting.

The end of his staff hit the ground. Raijin stepped onto her whip. Quistis jerked back but Raijin was much heavier than the other soldiers. Raijin twisted the whip around his foot and jerked back on Quistis sending her sprawling to the ground. He stepped off and twisted his staff, pulling the handle of her whip from her hand and throwing it to the side.

“How was that, instructor?” He laughed good naturedly, stepping back, helicoptering his staff above his head with one hand. “Gettin' good, huh?”

Raijin turned at the last moment and caught Squall's downward slice on the body of the staff.

“Man, that's so cool, ya know?!” Raijin declared again. “What's that made of?”

Squall attempted to knee him in the gut. Raijin bent forward, avoiding the blow. The saber slipped down the staff awkwardly because of it's strange shape and Raijin fell to the ground. He rolled quickly and Squall's slash cracked the ground where he had laid.

Using the staff, Raijin lifted himself back up. Zell was back. The blood on his lip still fresh as he attempted to strike Raijin down. Raijin was still laughing as he deflected.

“Dammit!” Zell yelled, frustrated.

Raijin stomped down, capturing Zell's foot and throwing off his balance. Raijin's fist swung forward and slammed against the other side of Zell's face. The blonde flew backwards, sliding almost to the end of the walk and over into the ocean.

“Woh!” Raijin fell backwards to avoid Quistis's punch. He was standing between her and her whip. He frowned as he ducked back to avoid another strike.

“I don't hit girls, ya know!?” Raijin said, clearly uncomfortable.

He ducked out of the way and allowed her to run past towards her weapon. He made a face and charged towards Squall instead.

Squall turned the blade up and caught the staff between the uneven, rounded edges of the blade. He twisted, jerking it and Raijing forward. Raijin fell face first into the butt of Squall's gun. He grunted as blood poured from his nose.

“Blizzard!” Squall commanded.

The spire slammed into Raijin's gut, throwing him into the air. He flew backwards and landed painfully on his shoulder. He cried out and rolled over, one trembling hand grabbing for his clearly broken shoulder. He couldn't weild his staff with that.

“Ugh...” he hissed in through his teeth. “You got me, ya know...”

“O-H-H-H YEAH-H-H!” Zell bared his teeth, grinning. “The commander's gonna get a whoopin, too!”

Squall nodded and the three of them ran past the downed Raijin and into the hotel.

Fujin turned from the window and glared at them. Her arms were crossed over her chest and she already didn't look happy before recognizing them.

“So I guess you're the commander?” Zell grinned, unsurprised as he popped his knuckles. “Pack your bags and get the hell outta Balamb!”

Fujin's glare moved between the three of them then over their heads. “RAIJIN, DEFEATED?” Was that her 'worried' face?

“That's right, _baby_!” Zell laughed, baring his fists. “Now, where's Seifer and the sorceress. You're all goin' _down_!”

“Zell, calm down,” Squall said evenly, stepping ahead of him. He gave Fujin a level look that she returned. “Fujin, looks like you're on your own. Are you still willing to fight?”

“RAGE!” Fujin snarled, reaching for the weapon on her hip.

The single sharp spike unfolded with a jerk of her hand. The multi-bladed, bright blue chakram snapped together and she lifted the deadly circle up to eye level. Clearly, the answer was 'yes'.

Squall's hand tightened on his weapon.

“Bwahahahaha! She's not alone!”

“W-Who-?” Zell turned quickly.

Squall barely jumped out of the way in time to avoid being run over by Raijin charging over to stand at Fujin's side. He grinned, rotating his shoulder.

“Major come-back, ya know! Actually, I feel a lot betta, ya know! I feel invincible, ya know!” He grinned at them, twisting his staff with his formerly broken shoulder.

“How the-?!” Zell fell back. “I thought we defeated you!”

Raijin chuckled as he held up an empty X-potion bottle. He licked his lips, drawing in the last drops of the dark purple liquid. “Like a bottled curaga spell,” he said, quoting the company's line. He tossed the bottle over his shoulder and it shattered against the wall.

“Time to get serious, ya know?!” He continued, laughing despite the statement.

Fujin pointed to Squall. “ELLONE, WHERE?”

“Don't know,” Squall said, mostly honestly. He knew who she was with, but not where.

Fujin struck. Squall lifted the blade and caught the chakram against the blade. Fujin snapped her fingers, and the electromagnetic return system, not unlike Rinoa's Blaster Edge, summoned the circular weapon back to her. Squall followed after it. After her.

Zell and Raijin were already back at it. Zell moved too fast for Raijin to get in any blows of his own, but Zell couldn't actually land any of the hits he made either.

Quistis looked between the two battles before deciding that Zell would need her help more. She drew back her whip and struck.

Raijin, so absorbed in fighting Zell, didn't notice until her whip had caught around his staff again, locking it in place above his head. She couldn't pull him out of place. However, she opened his defenses enough to allow Zell to break through.

Faster now that he could finally hit his target, Zell rained down blows against Raijin who grunted and tried to roll with them as best as possible.

Raijin jumped up and slammed both feet into Zell's chest. Zell flew back. Raijin fell down. Quistis jerked the staff from Raijin's loosened grip and back towards her. She caught it neatly.

Squall was fielding Fujin's chakram like he was playing a deadly game of baseball. She was able to recall and throw it so quickly that Squall was having trouble getting in closer to her. Not only that, but she had an almost magical control over her weapon.

No, she _did_ have magical control over her weapon. Unlike Raijin, who preferred weapons only fighting, Fujin actually had a GF. Squall tried to recall the name of the creature. He knew only that it had wind based powers. Giving Fujin beyond expert control of her weapon. She could dictate the very currents it ran on, keeping Squall on his toes.

“AERO!” Fujin threw out her hand.

Squall fell back, buffeted by a wind that seemed to cut at him like razor blades leaving no marks on his skin but causing pain nonetheless.

If he could get her GF, he could take away her ability to use magic. He would also cut her weapons ability in half, easily.

He lifted his gunblade and let off two shots that Fujin dove to avoid. As she was standing back up, Squall charged in closer. She threw her chakram from her position on her knees. It came in low and fast. Squall leapt over it neatly.

Fujin hit the return mechanism and pointed her hand at Squall's chest. He threw himself to the side, barely avoiding getting impaled from behind by the returning chakram.

Squall could only admire her skill. Hers and Raijin's both. They had the skills, the attitude, and the dedication to make SeeD. If only they hadn't latched themselves onto Seifer.

“TORNADO!” Fujin shouted.

Squall didn't have time to do anything. The sudden, strong wind caught not only him but Quistis and Zell as well and picked them up. The painful gale ripped at their skin as sand and dust threatened to blind them. The wind took them to the ceiling then threw them all outward.

Zell was slammed against the support beam, almost flying out of the large windows on either side of him. Quistis hit the stairs, crying out in pain as her spin molded unnaturally to the steps. Quetzalcoatl was already giving her a cura spell when Squall slammed bodily against the door.

He slid down, falling to his knees, and picked himself up slowly.

Raijin caught his captured staff with his foot then kicked it up into his hands. He kissed the body before twisting it around and grinning at them.

“Want a break?” He asked, laughing.

“Switch!” Squall ordered.

He lifted his gunblade and let off three shots, separating Fujin and Raijin as they jumped away from each other to avoid the bullets.

Fujin landed right in Zell's path and she had to fall back to avoid the fist he aimed at her head. Her hand caught herself as she fell and she flipped neatly back onto her feet.

Squall continued shooting at Raijin, forcing him to keep moving, until he ran out of ammo. Only then did he jump up and charge.

Raijin lifted his arm, his staff following the edge of the limb, and caught Squall's side swipe. He punched out, trying to clip Squall on the chin. Even in the close quarters, Squall was able to dodge the one handed strikes.

He reached up and caught the next fist Raijin threw at him. His fingers clenched down and Raijin cried out as freezing ice encased his hand.

“Right, you got Shiva,” Raijin managed to grimace and grin at the same time. “She's mighty strong. Seifer wanted her, ya know?”

“Yeah, I know.” Squall punched forward and used Raijin's own ice covered fist to knock him backwards. “She told me. Told me that Seifer couldn't handle her power and had to give her back or risk getting frostbite.”

Raijin made a face. “Don't like ya talkin' bad 'bout Seifer like that, ya know.”

“He earned it,” Squall growled. He was still having nightmares about unbearably hot torture chambers and free flowing electricity. Just the memory of it was enough to frost the air around him to a dangerous degree as Shiva reacted to his emotions.

“Seifer's followin' his dreams. Doin' what he wants, ya know. Not everyone is brave enough to really live that kinda life, ya know.”

Squall's blade shined as ice crystals coated it in his anger. “You call that bravery? It's not brave to follow whatever selfish whim your heart has. That's just childish.”

The two charged each other.

Across the room, Zell was jumping around acrobatically, avoiding Fujin's chakram as it followed him around with her throws, magnet, and magic.

“Dincht is running on all cylinders today!” Zell laughed, narrating himself as he leap-frogged over the check-in desk. “He's up! He's down! He's doing that flippy-thingy that the fans go nuts for! Oh, and now he's actually _up the wall_! And BAM!”

Zell flipped backwards off the wall, slammed his foot down on Fujin's chakram as he came down. He grinned back at her as she tried to use the return system to call it back. It twitched under Zell's shoe but remained in place.

“Judges: Score!”

“AERO!” Fujin threw out her arm.

Zell cried out and hunkered down as her magic beat at him. The windstorm ripped over his flesh, causing pain like lashes from a whip as he tried to shield his eyes and keep the chakram under his weight at the same time.

Quistis slammed into Fujin's back. A thunder spell erupted from her hands right into Fujin's body as Quistis's palm slammed an open Odine capsule into her spine. Fujin cried out as the electricity ran through her.

Quetzalcoatl and Fujin's wind guardian Pandemona, pulled against each other for a moment. But with Fujin feeling the pain of Quetzalcoatl's lightning, she could spare no efforts to keep her GF with her in her own head.

“Fujin!” Raijin turned from his battle at her cry.

Squall struck out against him and a long slice opened on Raijin's right arm that leaked blood as he jumped back. He went on the defensive as Squall chased after him.

The Odine capsule sealed as Pandemona's energy seeped inside. Quistis struck out a second time and the bolt of lightning she used now sent Fujin flying forward-

-directly into Zell's waiting fist. He struck her into the gut and she coughed up blood as he lowered her, rather gently, to the ground.

Quistis stepped up behind her, sparks still flickering between her fingers and off of her hands. Fujin groaned but didn't attempt to stand again.

Ice shattered as Raijin's staff slammed down against Squall's blade. He wasn't laughing any longer as the two men struggled against each other's strength.

Raijin attempted to jerk his staff to the side, but the whirls on Squall's Flame Saber had the staff trapped into the groove it had fallen into. Giving Squall all of the control.

Squall jerked back and to the side, sending Raijin to the ground. Raijin tried to roll away. Squall lifted his blade and slammed it down not where Raijin was but where he would be.

The sharp bite of the gunblade sank into Raijin's side. The freezing ice of his magic froze his blood before it could pour out. Raijin cried out in pain as Squall jerked the blade back and stepped back. He kicked Raijin's weapon away and stood at the ready.

But Raijin was down too.

Squall had deliberately not killed them. They had information he wanted. He nodded to Quistis and Zell and they each grabbed them and dragged them together. Fujin was trying to catch her breath, groaning and clutching her abdomen as Raijin used his vest to cover the hole in his side that was starting to bleed as the heat of his own body thawed the blood.

“Are the two of you taking orders from the sorceress?” Squall asked immediately.

It took a moment for Fujin to answer. She shook her head and had to work to get the breath needed for even her one of single-word responses. “NEGATIVE!”

Raijin nodded, agreeing with her. “The sorceress has nothin' to do with us, ya know? Never even seen her. We're actin' on our own plan.”

“Your own plan?” Squall frowned.

Raijin grinned. “Like we told ya, we're on Seifers side, ya know. We take orders from him. Gave us this nice army and everythin', ya know.”

Squall nodded once, accepting that. “That's up to you, but...”

He trailed off as he frowned at the memory of Seifer. Of what he had become. A torturer. A murderer. A bloodhound, in his own words.

“Enough is enough,” Squall said, his words heavy with his own pain. “This isn't an internal garden conflict. This isn't a game.”

“We can't back out now, ya know...” Raijin said, getting to his feet painfully. He grimaced and flinched as the move ripped at the hole in his abdomen.

“NEGATIVE...” Fujin agreed, getting up herself, helping support him.

“Seifer has a lot of followers, but we're his only friends,” Raijin smiled sadly. “We're a posse, ya know? The Galbadian soldiers are only listening to Seifer 'cause they fear the sorceress. Without us, Seifer wouldn't have a posse, ya know?”

Without them, he wouldn't have any friends. He would be all alone.

Zell growled, wishing he could hate them for that. But he saw Squall standing there and he knew that he felt nearly the same way about his leader. Squall was aloof and distant, but he was also dedicated and helpful and good. He had brought Zell along because he knew Zell wanted to help his mom. He tried to keep Zell straight. He was there for him.

If Zell turned away from him, if his other friends turned from him, Squall would be all alone. And that was somehow heartbreaking of a thought.

Still...

He growled and put his foot down. “If you guys stand behind him that much, then tell frickin' Seifer to stop this nonsense already!”

Zell would never be afraid to tell Squall when he was doing wrong. To critique him. He had never needed to, but he knew he could and Squall wouldn't brush him off or get angry. Because that's what friends did.

Fujin nodded, as though she had read his thoughts. “AFFIRMATIVE!”

“We ain't no sell-outs though!” Raijin added quickly. “We're still behind Seifer all the way, ya know!”

“Okay...” Squall nodded, accepting their decision. “Understood. So you want nothing to do with garden now?”

Fujin and Raijin shared a look before turning back to him and nodding slowly.

“Very well. As commander of the garden and SeeD forces, I hereby officially relieve both of you...and Seifer...from duty. You may all consider yourselves drop outs of the garden. If you return to the garden you will be treated as hostiles and handled appropriately.”

Fujin and Raijin had their eyes downcast. Not like they regretted their decision, more like they could feel the weight of their own choice pressing down on them. They would make it again in a heartbeat, without hesitation, but Balamb Garden had been their home too...

“From now on, we're not going to hold back...” Squall warned them.

They looked up and nodded again, their eyes firm with their resolution.

For the first time, Squall thought he understood what it meant to have comrades. To have people that would be there for you. No matter what. In that way, Seifer was rather lucky. Squall wondered if he even knew how lucky.

He turned around and started to leave.

“Wait a minute!” Quistis stopped him, looking between Squall and Fujin and Raijin. “That's it? You're going to let them go just like that, Squall?”

Raijin made a face, twisting uncomfortably. “Don't wanna...talk anymore, ya know...Kinda painful...ya know...”

Fujin looked from Squall over to Raijin. Her eyes were as soft as they had ever seen them. She closed her eyes and took a calming breath.

Then she opened them and kicked Raijin firmly in the shin. “WIMP!”

Whimpering, Raijin, grabbed for his new injury.

“RUN!” Fujin ordered.

Raijin made a small sound of fear as he sprinted out the door. Fujin followed him. And the Galbadians, Squall knew, would follow both of them.

Quistis sighed, watching them go. Watching old students of hers go. It wasn't bittersweet like a graduation or an inauguration. She wasn't sure what she felt.

“It's too bad...” she said finally, trying to sum it up neatly.

Squall shrugged. “Friend or foe...It all comes down to circumstance. That's how we were raised. How we were taught. It's...nothing special.”

Nothing special. Then...why did Squall feel so...

He cleared his throat. “Come on, let's go. We've got work left to do here before we can return to the garden.”

***

BANG!

Irvine grinned over the sights of his new shotgun, the Bismark, as the glass bottle he had been aiming for exploded in a hail of clear, light blue glass. The two glasses on either side of it also shattered from the spread of the shot.

“Nice,” he grinned. “And that, ladies, is how it's-”

The other four bottles lined up on the wooden plank were sliced clean in half as a bright red, incredibly sharp, saw blade razed through them. Including through the air where the three bottles Irvine had destroyed had been sitting. Counting those three in, the saw blade destroyed all seven practice bottles set up on their makeshift range at the front of the training center.

Rinoa grinned as she caught her new weapon easily. The Rising Sun. It tended to fly in a straighter line than the Valkyries, but the blades were sharp enough to cut glass. She had been warned not to shoot it again into the active machine parts of a mech, but she had also been told that, if she absolutely had to, the Rising Sun would come out in much better shape.

Irvine's new shotgun, a lot prettier than his Ulysses, clacked as he set it up against his shoulder. “Now, that just ain't right.”

“Jealous?” Rinoa grinned at him, folding her Rising Sun back into the blaster.

“You can't compare apples and paopu fruit, Rinoa,” Irvine said, dignified.

“Hey, guys!”

They turned as Selphie ran into the training center, laughing. “Guess what? I got news from Balamb! Some of the students trapped in there from the siege just got back to garden.”

“Well?” Rinoa asked eagerly. “What's going on?”

Selphie grinned. “Squall and the others have successfully pushed out the Galbadians!”

“Yes!” Rinoa fist pumped the air.

“But of course,” Irvine shrugged, like it was obvious.

Selphie nodded, agreeing with both of them. “Galbadia Garden is pulling out now. Squall said that he and the others were going to stay in Balamb for the night though to help get everything back under control. Apparently, the G-army did a number on the place.”

“So they won't be back until tomorrow?” Rinoa asked, frowning.

“Sorry,” Selphie made a face.

Rinoa sighed and shrugged. “No, it's okay. Want to have some target practice with us?”

“Sure!” Slephie laughed. “Irvy, set up new bottles! I haven't got to play with my new Crescent Wish yet.”

Rinoa smiled as Selphie stepped up next to her. Irvine walked forward happily to reset the shooting range. Rinoa rubbed at her head, groaning.

“What's wrong?” Selphie asked, frowning at her.

“Oh, nothing. It's just Diablos and Carbuncle. They're going at it again.”

“Your GF don't get along?”

“No, I guess not. I don't really know what to do about it either.”

“Well, why don't you give me Carbuncle?” Selphie suggested easily.

“Really? You'd take him?”

“If he doesn't mind me. Siren's really nice. She says that she gets along with most everyone. Except Quetzalcoatl. It probably wouldn't be good to have two singing GF's at the same time.”

“Well, okay,” Rinoa beamed and held out her hand.

Carbuncle eagerly jumped out of her head and Diablos waved goodbye sarcastically. He was not at all sad to see the tiny blue rat go.

Selphie laughed as the feeling of the new GF. She couldn't see him yet, but he _felt_ adorable! He squeaked like a newborn kitten as he bounced around in her head, looking for a place to settle down. Siren raised her song in welcome and the tiny GF seemed really happy to hear it.

“Wow!” Rinoa grabbed at her head. “That worked fast. I don't have a headache at all now.”

“Yup! That's the problem when you get GF that don't get along,” Selphie shrugged. “I've never had two GF at the same time before. Should be fun.”

“Alright, ladies!” Irvine turned from the newly set up bottles. “I'll invite myself to go first, if you don't mind.”

“Go ahead,” Rinoa smiled. “Since I dominated you so badly last round.”

Irvine grumbled as he lined up his sights again.

Selphie chuckled. It wasn't full of the life and vitality it usually held though. Rinoa gave her a look.

“Hey, what's wrong?”

“Wrong? There's nothing wrong!” Selphie fixed a smile on her face quickly. Rinoa just looked at it as it slowly melted into a sad frown. “I mean...There's nothing I can do about it. Squall would say not to worry about things you can't change.”

“I wouldn't take emotional advice from Squall,” Rinoa made a face. “Tell me.”

“It's...just...Trabia...”

“Oh...” Rinoa pulled back slightly, unsure of what to say to that.

“Yeah...” Selphie sighed. “I don't really know what to do.”

“Why not just ask Squall to go to Trabia?” Irvine suggested, lowering his shotgun.

“I can't do that! We have no reason to go to Trabia.”

“Yeah we do. You need to find out what happened,” Irvine smiled at her charmingly and Selphie had to fight to get her heart under control. She knew it was a heartbreaker's smile, but she couldn't help herself but be attracted to it. “Hey, you never know if he'll go if you don't ask.”

“I mean...maybe...” Selphie bit her lip.

She did want to know. She felt like that was the worst part. She didn't know. Well, she had a pretty good idea, but she didn't _know_. That not knowing, that uncertainty, was what really made it that much worse for her.

“Hey, it'll be okay,” Rinoa said, reaching out to touch her shoulder. “Squall's understanding. Even if he doesn't really seem like it. I'm sure he'll help if you ask.”

Selphie smiled gratefully. Still feeling rather uncertain...

***

The next morning, Rinoa was waiting at the garden gates when she saw the gatekeeper look down then reach out to lower the lift. Her heart picked up a beat as she got quickly back to her feet from where she had been sitting on the ground against the wall.

The lift was too slow as it made its way down. Then even slower as it came back up. Rinoa felt her heart speeding up the closer he got.

Squall's head appeared over the edge of the front edge and Rinoa's face broke out into a wide smile. His eyes looked surprised for a moment to see her there before he got his expression under control. Then the rest of his body appeared and she could see he was holding a brown bag in one hand.

Quistis and Zell, both of them saying how good it was to be back, walked past Rinoa. Quistis grinned back at the two of them as Squall stopped right in front of Rinoa. She deliberately turned forward again to give them their privacy.

“Welcome back,” Rinoa said, holding her hands behind her back.

“You waited?”

She smiled. “Of course. I told you I would. Are you okay?”

He nodded. He stood there for a moment, uncertain of himself. Then, as though he remembered it a bit late, he held up the brown bag for her to take.

“What's this?” Rinoa asked, reaching out for it. She opened the bag and the most delightful scent came from within. Her mouth started watering immediately.

“Balamb fish,” Squall said. “Freshly cooked.”

“You brought me breakfast?” Rinoa looked up, surprised.

“As an apology for canceling dinner.”

Rinoa closed the bag and reached out for him. The uncertainty and fear Squall had since he had purchased the food faded as Rinoa took his arm. She put her head on his shoulder and pulled him further into the garden.

“Come on. We have time to eat before you have to get back to work, right?”

“Yeah...” he nodded, checking her face to see if she was really happy.

He could only see contentment and joy there at his gesture. Making him think that maybe he had actually done something right.

***

Around noon, Squall joined Quistis, Xu, and Nida on the bridge. They had pulled Balamb Garden closer to the town and they could see for far around that Galbadia Garden was gone. Their garden was packed full of people again. It felt like they were whole once more.

“So, where are we going next?” Quistis asked him.

Squall was thinking when the platform to the bridge was called down. He turned as Selphie came back up. She was waving at him with a bright smile.

“Hello, s'cuse me. Permission to come aboard, commander?”

“What is it?” Squall asked, ignoring the formality of the question. Why did no one ever listen to him when he asked them not to give him a title?

“Have you decided on a destination?” She asked, shifting her weight awkwardly.

“Still thinking.”

“Oh, well, um, maybe we can perhaps go to Trabia Garden?” She suggested uncertainly. “It's like...in the mountains. So maybe the sorceress will leave it alone. But maybe...you know...?”

Squall frowned. The sorceress wouldn't go to Trabia Garden. It had been destroyed by missiles-

Oh. He understood. Of course she'd want to go.

“I'll keep that in mind,” Squall nodded.

Selphie's smile was radiant as she nodded. “Thanks!”

She waved at him as she sank back down the platform. Squall turned back to Nida who was grinning at him.

“What?”

“Oh, nothing. So. Where to, commander?”

“Trabia is our sister garden,” Squall told him coolly. “If there is a chance that any have survived, then it's our duty to check up on them and offer our assistance.”

“Of course,” Quistis said, grinning knowingly.

“Set course for Trabia Garden and announce the departure,” Squall ordered them calmly as he turned to leave the bridge. He wasn't needed to pilot the garden.

Quistis, Xu, and Nida shared a smile as he disappeared out of sight. Their leader was really a nice guy underneath it all.

Squall left the office, planning on a training session in the monster's lair and wondering where Rinoa was.

Because, lately, he was always wondering where Rinoa was. And what she was doing. And if she would mind very much if he went to join her doing it.


	26. Trabia Garden

Deep in the northern mountains, well and truly isolated from the rest of the world, Trabia Garden hid itself away from the general hustle and bustle of the other nations. The country of Trabia had no real cities to speak of and instead isolated, small tribes and villages were spread out across the snowy, mountainous landscape at random intervals.

It was the first time Squall had ever been so far north. Everyone in the garden had broken out their winter clothes as they reached the chilly region. But Squall, with Shiva attached in his head, couldn't get enough of it.

Standing out on the second floor balcony, he watched the mountains and forest fly past and around him as the cold northern winds whipped at his hair. He had taken off his jacket to allow his limbs to enjoy the sensations. In his head, Shiva was practically purring in delight. She didn't need to coat his body in cold magic today because the landscape was exactly to her preference.

While everyone else was wearing thick coats and trying to heat the inside of the garden, Squall had taken to spending a great portion of his day out here.

At least, the times that he could spare.

The trip to Trabia took longer than the day long return to Balamb. The distance itself was daunting, but no one had traveled this way in a long time. They had to alternate between nautical maps and ground maps and try to recognize landmarks made for people not flying on a large garden. And since Nida was the only one qualified to fly the garden – Squall was thinking of assigning him an apprentice cadet or SeeD of some sort – they could only move while he was awake and at the controls.

They had finally risen from the water this morning. They were trekking rather slowly through the area trying to locate Trabia around the mountains it was settled into.

All totaled, they had been traveling to Trabia for four days now. And that gave Squall plenty of time to be inundated into his new role as commander and all that entailed.

Squall always knew he would likely be called upon to give instruction to cadets training with the gunblade. He was the only gunblade specialist, after all. So Quistis asking him to begin demonstrations since he had little else to do now wasn't so onerous. There was an increase in gunblade perspectives now that someone had actually made it and then been promoted to commander.

That alone would have kept him busy. He wasn't a full time instructor, he didn't even have a license, but he was dedicated to whatever he was doing. However, he also got to experience the joy of being the one that received reports from the many SeeDs that they had picked up near Balamb. Xu had taken most of them as ordered, but they had still needed to be given to him.

He had also started training Rinoa in earnest. There were no opportunities for them to stumble upon monsters to fight out here, so she had been getting antsy. When she came to ask if he would take her into the training center and teach her more formally, he hadn't been able to refuse.

Added to that, Irvine had come to him asking if he could start the process to join SeeD. That hadn't been his intention when he had been at Galbadia Garden. He had merely been coasting along there, probably fated for the G-army or just being a drop out. Now that he was here, however, now that he had friends here and he could see just how useless the G-army was – not to mention not wanting to be a sorceress's puppet – he had changed his mind about career paths.

So Squall had needed to see to getting Irvine into the sharpshooter program here. Which, according to Irvine, was not only miles ahead of Galbadia Garden but filled with much nicer people. He wanted to take his written test quickly.

Which brought to Squall's attention a problem that he didn't realize being commander would entail. He supposed it should have been obvious.

As SeeD commander, he was now in charge of the SeeD exam. Xu was there to help him as the official administrator of the garden. She happily explained the normal parameters of conducting and grading the exam and examinees. Squall's mass exam was actually an exception rather than the rule of typical SeeD exams. Normally, such exams rarely involved more than one or two cadets.

The long list of cadets wanting to take the exam, however, never stopped growing. Which was a problem because, now that they were moving and not taking on hiring requests at the moment, there were no opportunities to send people on exams.

So he and Xu were considering their options. Including alternative methods for examination that wouldn't involve a real mission. Though neither of them were inclined to take that route as SeeD was a mercenary group and the importance of the exam being a real mission couldn't be overstated.

With everything going on, the 'bulk' of his free time that he spent out here on the balcony enjoying the cold was actually whittled down to about an hour or so. Maybe. Usually later in the day when it really got cold. That only made it better though.

The wind calmed his mind slightly. The beautiful scenery caught and kept his attention so he couldn't lose himself to his own nagging thoughts. And the lack of anyone else wanting to brave the cold meant he could be alone.

The groaning of metal of the door had him turning to see Rinoa stepping outside. She started shivering immediately at the cold air, despite the fact that she had winter proofed her clothes. She, or maybe someone else, had added a fur hood to her duster and fur lining to her arm sleeves. She wore black leggings now to protect her legs and the ends of her duster had been lined in fur. It was an alteration on her own clothing designed for the new terrain.

“Like it?” She asked, turning for his benefit. “Quistis and Selphie and I spent all last night making our clothes warm. It was really easy for Quistis, admittedly. I had no idea sewing was such an integral part of being SeeD.”

“Adapting your clothing to your environment is important,” Squall said. “As is making sure that, despite any alterations, you can still fight in what you wear.”

Rinoa walked to the railing and smiled at him. “Nice view.” Rinoa found it funny that _now_ was when he removed his jacket. He didn't appear the slightest bit cold either.

As she stood next to him, Rinoa felt the chill in the air elevate. Shiva's power reached out as she stood next to Squall and wrapped her up in air that pushed away the cold and let her feel warmth. Shiva couldn't make her survive in the cold, not without being in Rinoa's head, but she could keep her from freezing by removing the own cold from her.

Squall kept to himself that that's what his GF was doing. He didn't know if Rinoa knew what was going on, but she clearly understood that she was warmer than she should be. He just didn't want to break open that conversation.

Rinoa smiled and leaned her arm against his. “Do you want to be alone?”

“Not particularly.” He did, actually. Away from everyone but her. Rinoa was the exception. He didn't seem to ever mind when she was right there next to him.

What was wrong with him?

“Are we very far away now?” Rinoa asked curiously, looking down to the dark green, snow coated forest they were currently passing over.

“Hard to say. Selphie is helping Nida navigate, but there's a big difference in travel methods. She's never seen the terrain from this height.

“I thought you were training cadets this morning.”

“I was supposed to. Quistis wanted to have a special ice monster class though. She asked me yesterday to allow the cadets and SeeDs to leave the garden when we arrive to do some hunting and training around the mountain area. I said yes, so she's arranged lecture about fighting ice monsters.”

“Is she teaching it?”

“No, just organizing. Quistis lost her instructors license.”

“Oh. Well, can't you just give it back to her?”

“I'm the commander, that doesn't fall under my jurisdiction. Issuing instructors licenses falls to Xu. And she won't do it because it was Headmaster Cid that revoked the license in the first place.”

Rinoa hummed thoughtfully. “Have you ever considered getting your instructors license?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

Squall didn't answer immediately. Rinoa waited patiently. Since she had asked him to open up to her, he had answered all of her questions. However, it wasn't always immediately. There were times when he had to think about it first. He would answer eventually, she just had to wait for him to get his thoughts in order to do so.

“I guess I didn't want the responsibility.”

Rinoa laughed. “That worked out well for you.”

Squall agreed sardonically. In his efforts to escape a classroom responsibility, he had somehow walked into responsibility over everyone here.

“For what it's worth, I think you're a great teacher,” Rinoa beamed at him. “And I'm not even biased by the fact that you're really the only combat teacher I've ever had. I see how you teach the cadets. You're really good.”

Squall shrugged. “I'm probably not personable enough."

“Well, yeah. You're a bit lacking in that area. But you're attentive and you're good at explaining things. You know, I bet you'd make a really good father too.”

“W-What?” Squall started, looking over to her quickly.

Rinoa laughed. “Relax, I'm not saying you should become one now. I'm saying that, for future, reference, you'd probably be a good parent.”

“Pretty sure I'm not personable enough for that either,” Squall muttered. Kids? Yeah, no. There was no way he should be entrusted with younglings. He didn't even want to get involved with the underclassmen here.

“Yeah, but you're responsible. And understanding. And dedicated. And you don't run from your a problem no matter how hard it gets. You may resent it, but you still do it. I bet you'd be one of those parents that reads all the books and does all the research and has just _stacks_ of notes for how to raise and care for children.”

Squall opened his mouth but couldn't really deny that. He probably would. He asked instead, “Why are we having this conversation?”

Rinoa shrugged. “I think it's the cold. Makes me want to hole up inside with someone warm. Really kicks in the nesting instincts, you know?”

Squall shrugged because, honestly, he didn't.

“Relax,” she said again, leaning against his shoulder. “It's just a thought. I imagine kids, if you have any, are going to be well down the line for you.” Especially if she was the one having them, she thought to herself. There was no way she was going to get pregnant as a teenager.

Squall looked at her for a long moment. Her head on his shoulder, her eyes drifting shut, and he tried really, _really_ hard to not think about Rinoa and kids. Because that made him think about Rinoa being pregnant. And that made him think about how she would get pregnant. And if he dared open that box again he was going to need Shiva to douse him in ice.

They stayed that way, just watching the scenery and enjoying each others presence, until Nida came over the intercom to ask Squall to return to the bridge.

“Can I go down with you?” Rinoa asked, as they stepped back. “I'd like to be there...for Selphie. If I can.”

Squall nodded his permission and led her back up to the bridge. Selphie was already there, practically twitching. She had seen it coming around the mountain range on the bridge, but she had ran before she could actually see it. She felt slightly cowardly for refusing to look, but she just couldn't...

Selphie had winter proofed her dress as well. Meaning she had stolen Irvine's trench coat and had thrown it over herself. It kind of drowned her tiny frame, but she wasn't giving it back. Mostly because it was fun for her to see Irvine running around looking for it wearing that purple vest of his and nothing else to cover his arms and chest.

“Come on, Squall,” she said, rolling up the sleeves on the coat. It dragged behind her slightly, and the sleeves could not possibly allow for her to fight. But it was warm. And it felt like she was getting a really big hug from Irvine. And she felt like she would need that right now.

“Hold on,” Squall told her calmly before riding up the platform to join Nida. “Where is it?”

“There,” Nida pointed just ahead of them. Balamb Garden was already coming to a halt in front of, what could only be described as, the ruins of Trabia Garden.

“Damn,” Squall mumbled at the sight of it, trying to lower his voice so Selphie wouldn't hear. “Alright. I'm going down with Rinoa and Selphie to make contact. I want you to call for Quistis, Zell, and Irvine to come back us up. If there are survivors, they'll likely be injured. So I want you to put Dr. Kadowaki on standby.”

“If she doesn't just go down herself,” Nida grinned.

Squall nodded, agreeing. “Tell the students that they're allowed to go out to hunt the monsters in the region if they wish, but to follow the lessons they learned earlier today in the seminar. No one goes out alone. Period. And everyone must be back on the garden by sundown.”

“Aye, commander,” Nida grinned. “You know you're allowed to use the mic yourself, right?”

“Just make the announcement,” Squall grumbled, turning from Nida as he laughed.

Squall rode back down to join Rinoa and Selphie. The latter of whom looked ready to burst with restrained impatience to get out of here.

“Come _on_!” She said, motioning towards the elevator.

She continued to twitch in the elevator. However, as they started down towards the front gates, she hesitated and looked like she might be sick. Squall had to wait while Rinoa put her arms around her shoulders and gently coaxed her forward.

Selphie wanted to see. She didn't want to see. She had to know. She couldn't handle the truth. It was a war of conflicting emotions that left her feeling nauseated and confused. But she allowed Rinoa to gently guide her forward and looked to Squall's stoic facade and demeanor for strength. He was like a rock, so steady and reliable. She had to use that right now.

Selphie took deep breaths while they rode down the lift. When they hit the ground, she could no longer put it off. She finally raised her eyes to look at Trabia garden.

Pale gold, light blue, and a dusty sort of brown were the colors Trabia had chosen to use. The ring that floated over their heads, marking them as an old shelter, had used to shine brightly like sunshine on snow.

The ring had snapped in half. One half had crashed to the ground leaving the other half to remain over the garden. But the shine was gone. It was dark, dull, and dead. Selphie didn't need to know anything about the technology that moved the garden to tell that this one was beyond repair.

She ran now towards the front gates. They were lopsided from how she remembered. Everything was quiet and closed off. Those gates didn't normally close. The crumbling remains of the garden, that Selphie had always thought looked like a pretty cake, vanished as she walked under the shadow of the closed gates.

“A...direct hit?” Selphie moaned, her shoulders dropping.

Of course it was. There had been nothing to protect them. No warning. No preemptive attempts to sabotage the launch. She knew that. She had always known that. But it seemed so much more awful to actually see it.

“Terrible...” Rinoa breathed sadly.

Selphie's jaw tightened and she turned back to Squall, her eyes hard. “I'm going in.” She wasn't asking, she was telling.

Squall nodded. “Be careful.”

Selphie turned quickly and grabbed for the vines with small green leaves overlaying the closed gate. It twisted all the way to the top and Selphie started climbing. The road, tilted and broken as it was, didn't look like it would allow the gate to open anymore.

Squall heard her drop on the other side and sprint away just as Irvine cried out.

“Squall!”

He turned to see him running up. Without his coat, he looked rather cold. However, he didn't appear to miss it overly much at this moment.

“Where's Selphie?” he asked, looking around.

“I let her go on ahead,” he said.

Irvine let out a breath as he and the others looked at the garden. “I bet you she's in shock. Squall, let's go after her.”

“Do you think there are monsters around here?” Rinoa asked, worried. “Squall, I don't want to make her fight alone right now.”

Squall nodded as he walked up to the gates. He grabbed onto the vines and started pulling himself up by the fistful. The tough little winter growing plants were sturdy despite their thin size. Squall threw his leg over the top and dropped down onto the walkway.

From this side of the gate, Trabia appeared even worse off. The path looked like it had survived an earthquake. Rocks had broken and pieces were pushing up into the sky. The plant life had been razed to ash and dirt. The school looked cold and abandoned.

He heard Rinoa drop down beside him and, a moment later, Irvine joined them. He looked up and thought he could see, in the distance, Selphie running towards the school. Quistis then Zell also came around from the gate.

Squall let out a breath. “Alright, we're going after Selphie. Quistis, you and Zell scout the area. Irvine, you stay with Rinoa and I.”

Irvine nodded thankfully as Quistis and Zell moved away to check around. Squall led Irvine and Rinoa forward, closer to the school. He really hoped that they wouldn't find monsters eating the remains of those who died here. He didn't think Selphie could handle that.

“Squall...” Rinoa breathed as they came in closer.

“Yeah. I see it.” Squall's face softened in relief.

Selphie, a bright smile on her face and happy tears in her eyes, was jumping up and down, talking eagerly with a girl from Trabia garden. The school, crumbling around them, was still providing shade and shelter for the few students and staff that moved about.

Survivors. More than that, survivors that weren't in desperate need of assistance.

As they came in closer, Selphie looked to him and her happy, relieved tears spilled over. “Squall, this is my best friend. Look, she's alive.”

“Hello,” the young lady nodded to Squall. She looked a little like she hadn't had enough food lately and had lost weight, but her eyes were bright and healthy. “Nice to meet you.”

Squall nodded, returning the sentiment silently.

“I have to admit, I was worried when Selphie transferred to Balamb,” she continued. “But you look like you've been taking care of her pretty well there. Thank you for looking after her.”

Squall's eyes moved over to Selphie who was staring at her friend, just happy to see she had survived, then back again. He could feel Rinoa looking at him, waiting.

Oh, why not play along...

“Selphie's been a great help to us,” he said as warmly as he was able. It sounded a little stiff.

Selphie gasped loudly, her hands slapping over her mouth in surprise. Squall frowned at her while Rinoa giggled. Selphie's friend frown at Selphie as well.

“What's wrong?”

“That's not like Squall at all!” Selphie squealed, looking like she might cry again.

Squall sighed and rolled his eyes up. See, this is why he didn't do things like this! Rinoa's hand on the back of his arm was her way of telling him that, despite the reaction, he had done well. That would have to be enough for now.

“Squall, there's a basketball court out back,” Selphie smiled. “Can you go wait there for me? I want to check in and catch up with a few more people."

Squall nodded and turned to leave and allow her the moment. Irvine let out a breath of relief as they walked away. “I'm glad.”

“Yeah,” Rinoa nodded, agreeing happily. “Look at all the people that survived.”

“That's still not the total population of this garden,” Squall said softly. “There should be far more people here. There were loses when the missiles hit.”

Rinoa frowned as Irvine sighed. It was just the truth though and they couldn't deny it. However, that there were _any_ people was a miracle.

Despite the sadness all around them, despite the building that was crumbling behind them, the air of the garden seemed strangely...upbeat.

They passed a professor who asked them if they had done a good deed for their garden today. Then later a guy dreaming with his mouth half open about a Triple Triad game that he was apparently winning with gusto. They came around to one of the few covered parts of the building and they saw two girls going over supplies and budgets. In the corner of that same room, they saw two members of the tech squad trying to return life to the downed electrical system. They didn't appear to be doing all that bad of a job either.

Everywhere Squall looked, he saw only life and hope. The people of Trabia Garden were so different from both Balamb and Galbadia Gardens. Despite the destruction around them, these people were still doing their best to _live_.

“I like it here,” Rinoa smiled around at them all.

“It certainly explains Selphie,” Irvine grinned, tipping his hat.

As they were leaving that place, they saw Selphie tucking a sleeping guy into bed. Irvine frowned but before he could ask what was up, two underclassmen were running up to her.

“Selphie!” The boy yelled. It wasn't a happy call.

The girl, nearly in tears, stopped in front of her and sniffed. “Can you forgive us?”

Selphie started, confused. “What? Why? What do I need to forgive you for?”

The boy looked so guilty as he dropped his eyes. “That teddy bear you gave me...I couldn't save it.”

“I can hear him crying!” the girl exclaimed, tears falling from her own eyes. “He's lonely!”

Selphie beamed at them and shook her head. “My teddy bear is a lot stronger than you think! As long as you're both safe, Mr. Bear is very happy.”

Selphie paused then cocked her head to the side, listening. “H-e-e-ey! I can hear him too! Mr. Bear is watching over you secretly.”

The two kids shared a wide eyed look of amazement.

Selphie nodded to them. “So you can't be sad or naughty, okay? Just remember, Mr. Bear is watching out for you.”

The kids, tears still in their eyes, started laughing and smiling again. Selphie beamed at them then turned her smile up over their heads to the three of them. She waved and pointed over her shoulder to where she wanted them to wait.

Squall nodded and walked past the children who were promising to be good and happy.

“That was sweet,” Rinoa said, dabbing at her eyes. Sweet, but so sad. “I can't believe the sorceress would do that to a couple of innocent kids.”

“Kind of makes you wonder if what they say about sorceress power being corrupting is true,” Irvine sighed.

“Or maybe Edea was like that all along,” Rinoa frowned. “Why is it that evil people always end up being sorceresses?”

“I don't think that's true,” Irvine frowned.

“It's probably because it's easy to just steal a sorceress's power,” Squall interjected. “All you have to do is kill one and be the closest female to her when she dies. Then her power becomes yours, right?”

“Yeah...” Rinoa sighed. “Kind of makes it difficult for good people to be sorceresses. So I guess, in a way, sorceress magic really is corrupting.”

Irvine remained silent as they turned around a corner of the garden and came upon the dilapidated basketball court Selphie was talking about. The asphalt here had also been cracked and disturbed from its bed, but both hoops were still standing.

Irvine, his head lowered, walked to one end of the court, keeping strangely to himself. Squall frowned at the action, reminded a little too much of the moment when he had started freaking out instead of taking the shot at Sorceress Edea.

Rinoa smiled at Squall before moving over to the fence encircling the courtyard so she could look up at the mountains surrounding them. Though cold, Trabia really had beautiful scenery.

Squall remained in place, looking up at the cloudy sky above them. He didn't really move again until he heard two sets of footsteps coming up from behind that he identified easily as Quistis and Zell. He turned to face them.

“Hey,” Quistis smiled sadly.

“What's wrong?” Rinoa asked, frowning at her expression.

“Hm? Oh, nothing. We just...saw Selphie over by the graveyard.” Quistis forced a smile as Zell sighed sadly. “Dr. Kadowaki came down and is coordinating with their medical doctor here. They're low on supplies so we're sharing some of ours with them. Squall, Xu sent a message. She says we're running low on supplies ourselves and we need to work out a way to resupply now with the garden moving.”

Squall nodded. “Alright. We'll talk about it when we leave.”

“Which will be when?” Zell asked.

Squall crossed his arms, thinking. He really didn't want to leave the people of Trabia in this condition, but he couldn't deny that they were doing well on their own. And he had his own agenda to see to in order to ensure this kind of this didn't happen to anyone else.

“We'll get back on the garden as soon as Selphie comes back. We'll stay through the night to help the people here. We're on standby til then.”

Standby. He was actually starting to look forward to the reprieves they gave him. Did that make him old and jaded already or just accustomed to them?

Squall found himself looking up a the sky again as a host of thoughts and questions and plans ran around in his mind. Standby no longer meant twiddling his thumbs. Nowadays, it was more a chance to plan, reassess, and reconfigure.

Rinoa smiled at the sight he made, highlighted against the bruised clouds in the sky. Arms crossed, eyes faraway, the gears in his head running full speed ahead so loud she could hear them. Always ON, always responsible. Probably planning strategy in fighting the sorceress.

Then she frowned as an old memory, one she tried to repress, slammed into her.

Squall, speared by ice, falling from a float and breaking his body against the hard concrete an eternity below. His blood pooling around him. That dead look in his eyes after he had been tortured.

He was going to go fight the sorceress again. The same one that had nearly took him from Rinoa so recently.

What if she lost him for real this time?

They stayed there for a while, talking around Squall. Rinoa wasn't the only one that recognized his 'thinking face' and they didn't attempt to pull him into the conversation. Irvine was being strangely quiet – probably worried about Selphie, Rinoa figured – so she, Quistis, and Zell talked around them about everything and nothing.

The rubbery bouncing sound of a ball drew all their attention as the scuffed but still intact basketball rolled into the court. Selphie ran in after it. Her eyes were a little puffy and red telling them that she had been crying, but the relieved, happy look on her face spoke volumes. Though it had hurt her to see so many she had known and loved killed, it had also healed that broken, tired part of her that had been worn down by simply not knowing.

“Sorry to keep you waiting!” Selphie smiled brightly, her eyes focusing mostly in Squall. “Thanks so much for coming all the way out here, everyone.”

“We're just happy you cheered up, Selphie,” Irvine said, finally stepping back into the group.

“Thanks.” She smiled at him then looked back at Squall. Her eyes hardened. He was reminded of that moment when she had first seen the missiles launch. That same, determined look was written there. No longer so playful or carefree. “Take me with you when you fight the sorceress, okay? I wanna get even. I want my revenge!”

Squall nodded, accepting the request without complaint.

“Um...”

Rinoa's soft voice didn't have to be loud for Squall to hear it. Her small, almost unheard sound had his eyes focusing on hers immediately. She had reached up to grab her necklace, like she was taking comfort from the single silver ring dangling there.

“Do we...” she frowned at the ground. “Do we have to fight? Isn't there another way? Y'know, to avoid any bloodshed?”

The SeeDs in front of her stared. She made a face but didn't take it back.

“Yo?! What the...” Zell shook his head, like she had started speaking a foreign language and he couldn't understand her any longer. “What are you sayin' all of a sudden?!”

Rinoa bit her lip. “Maybe...Someone really smart can come up with a way...so we wouldn't have to fight anymore...”

Her eyes lifted slowly, looking up to Squall almost hopefully and made him frown.

What exactly was she getting at?

Well, if someone could come up with something, that'd be great. Of course. But no one was doing anything. Everyone was scared. Uneasy. All anyone does is complain. They just pretend to be thinking while all they're doing is trembling. They criticize others for the lack they find in themselves and, in the end, they can't do anything either.

Rinoa...

Why was she asking this all of a sudden. What was she expecting of him now? He grew up in Balamb Garden. He was a SeeD. A blood bringer. As much as she had hated to hear it said, the simple fact was that he fought people for money. And this was no different.

Didn't she understand that?

“Squall?” Rinoa prompted, stepping forward slightly. She was smiling at him gently, sadly. “You have to voice your feelings, or else I won't understand.”

Open up more. Talk to them. Right.

Squall cast his mind around, trying to figure out how to say what he was thinking. Rinoa waited patiently as she had been doing for days now. Waited for him to get his ever chaotic thoughts in order to provide a sufficient answer for her.

The others looked between them, wondering if that simple statement would even work...

“You were...part of a resistance movement in Timber, right?” Squall finally asked, unsure of himself but still willing to try. For her. “Unlike others who were all talk, you took to your weapons and fought. And now you're saying you don't want to fight anymore? What happened to you?”

He did. He happened. Then she had almost lost him to this very same fight.

“I guess...I'm just scared,” she blew out a long breath. He was opening up to her. It was only fair, and encouraging, if she would do the same for him. “Sometimes...when I'm with all of you...I...feel like we're on the same wavelength. You know what I mean? Like we're all friends. We're all equals. But when the battles start happening, it's different. Everyone's tempo seems to pick up and...I get left behind.”

Squall frowned. Left behind?

Rinoa shook her head, her eyes closing, trying to shut out the emotions and memories that were nagging at her. “I try to catch up, but it's no use...”

She let out a long breath and cast her eyes up to the sky. “How far is everyone going? I can't hear your voices anymore. I can't see you...”

She lowered her head back to him, the sadness of her words reflected in her eyes. “And once I catch up, I wonder...Is everyone safe? Will they welcome me with open arms?...Is everyone okay? Will we all make it back together? Or will I lose you? And when I start thinking like that, I just...”

Rinoa's voice tightened, cutting her off. Squall, dead. The others, gone. Her, all alone. Clinging desperately to all of them and trying to hold it together. Hold this improvised little SeeD family together despite the world trying to tear them apart.

“Rinoa, I understand.”

Rinoa jumped. She hadn't been expecting Irvine, of all people, to be the one to speak up. She had never heard that soft, caring tone from him before.

Irvine stepped closer and smiled, his eyes sad and distant. “You get scared that someone might not be there. Someone you love may disappear before your very eyes and you'll be helpless to do anything about it.”

“Irvine...” she breathed, surprised.

“It's tough when you live your life thinking that way. But that very reason is why I fight in the first place. To protect my future. To preserve my past.”

Irvine stopped for a moment, hesitating. His jaw moved up and down as if he was trying to move words past a numb throat. He looked over Rinoa's head for a second and she saw a decision cement in his strangely serious eyes.

“When I was a little kid...I was about four or so...I was in an orphanage.”

Irvine turned from her with a sad grin and picked up the basketball that Selphie had thrown into the court for them. He tossed it between his hands for a moment, thinking over his words. How to say what he'd been dying to say for a long time now...

“An orphanage?” Rinoa repeated, stepping up behind him.

“Yup.” Irvine drew back his hand and shot the basketball from where he stood. It swooshed neatly through the ring, though there was no net any longer to slip through. The ball bounced against the broken ground and Irvine grinned.

“I didn't know that...” Rinoa grabbed her elbows. “Why?”

“Why was I there or why am I telling you?” Irvine grinned at her.

“Both, I guess.”

He shrugged. “My parents...well, I actually don't know for certain what happened to them. Honestly, record keeping wasn't a big deal back then. It was around the end of the Sorceress War. Esthar's tyrant had suddenly been deposed, countries were scrambling to get their own stuff in order again with the sudden pulling back of all of Esthar's troops. There were plenty of kids in the orphanage like me. Some lost their parents in battles, others in raids. We were the true casualties of war, innocent lives that didn't even really understand what was going on.

“Sorry, I think I'm making it sound worse than it really was. Yeah, I was an orphan, but it wasn't all bad. I had great caretakers that really cared about us and we were in a safe place that monsters didn't tend to visit. And I had a lot of siblings. A lot of friends. And, out of all the kids there, one was very special to me...”

“ _Irvy, wanna play?_ ”

Irvine grinned, sliding his hands into his pants pockets. He could still see her face even now. Tiny, cherubic almost, yet so full of delightful mischief. He could see the way she would stand there, her hands pulled behind her back, her hair bouncing almost in defiance of gravity. In the old stone house, in the room where they all would congregate to have fun.

“I really liked this girl, and it made me so happy just talking to her.”

“ _Sefie, wa'cha playing?!_ ”

“ _Hehehe. WAR!_ ”

Selphie frowned as the echoes of the past whispered in her mind. The laughter of a boy who never told her she was too wild or out of control. The cold of the stone floor that never seemed to be able to permeate through the warmth of the air. And, more than anything, the feeling of missing parents that she knew she'd never see again.

“Was that orphanage...an old stone house?” Selphie asked him as though confused at her own question.

Irvine didn't appear at all surprised. If anything, he looked resigned. “You guessed it...”

“An old house made of stone?” They all turned to Quistis as she frowned at the ground.

That's right, there was a stone house. It used to smell like flowers. Monsters had always avoided that place for some reason and it was the only time she had been able to sleep since seeing her parents devoured by the grand mantis that destroyed her life. The curtains over the windows...The warmth of the fireplace...The bite of golden sand on her bare feet as she played in the water...

“By the ocean?” Quistis looked up, her eyes wide in her own realization.

“You guessed it...” Irvine repeated, though they both knew it was no guess at all. “The orphanage closed down...Oh, probably about ten years ago now. Maybe more. And we were all sent away to different locations. Some of us were adopted, others had no where else to go. I lost all my friends almost at the same time. I couldn't hear them, I couldn't see them. I couldn't know if they were okay. But when I saw you back in Galbadia Garden...I knew right away.”

“Hey!” Selphie glared at him. “Why didn't you tell us?!”

“Yes, why didn't you tell us?” Quistis asked almost angrily.

“'Cause you had forgotten!” Irvine exclaimed, throwing up his hands. “For a while, I thought I had just accidentally run into similar people with the same names and that I was still reaching out for a past that would never exist again. I thought I was going crazy! Then...I don't know. I guess I just kind of felt bad. It just kinda sucked that I was the only one who remembered. Spunky little Sefie and bossy little Quisty...”

“That is just so-o-o weird...” Selphie laughed. “It's like the best coincidence ever!”

“Hey,” Zell grinned, looking up suddenly. “Do you guys remember setting off fireworks?”

Selphie and Quistis's eyes went wide but Irvine nodded, once again unsurprised at all.

Zell laughed as memories of sparklers and the cool night air hit him all at once. Like the memories had just been waiting for a chance to be recalled. The fear, the guilt, the righteous sense of right and wrong that he felt almost like he had been tricked into believing.

On the beach...

“Yeah!” Selphie laughed, nearly in tears as one memory set off another set off another...

With the cool air of the night wrapped around them as they tried to hide away from their caretakers and enjoy the goods they had stolen.

“The ocean. The lighthouse!” Zell said, pointing like he could see it.

Perched delicately at the end of the rocky cape. The constant spinning of the light had always been so memorizing. Zell used to like to pretend that the light was from an all seeing eye that was watching over the house, keeping soldiers and monsters at bay.

“We did set off fireworks,” Quistis laughed, suddenly euphoric. She had been the lookout while Selphie had used Irvine as a pack mule while stealing them.

“ _Yo-o-o-o! Kids aren't suppose'ta play with fireworks! I'm tell-ing! I'm gonna tell on yoo!!_ ”

Zell frowned as he remembered his own, younger self. He had kind of been a prat...

The others used to have a song. How did it go...?

“ _Cry-ba-by Ze-ll! Go back to bed!_ ”

Oh, yeah...

He frowned as Quistis and Selphie laughed. Even Irvine, so uncharacteristically serious, was smiling between the two of them.

“We all got in big trouble,” Quistis laughed. Zell grabbed his belly to laugh along with her.

But, wait...

“If I remember this,” Zell's brow furrowed. “Does that mean I was there, too?”

Irvine nodded.

“But...Then...What about my parents in Balamb...?”

“The Dincht's must have adopted you,” Quistis said simply. “When the orphanage closed, we all had to go somewhere. I guess you were adopted out.”

“Yep,” Irvine nodded. “You and Quistis and Selphie were all adopted. Sent away to Galbadia, Trabia, and Balamb each. You were the lucky ones. I wasn't adopted. I was picked up by a military academy in Galbadia that I hated. I was one of the first ones to transfer into Galbadia Garden because I hated that place so much.”

“I...can't believe I was there too...” Zell shivered a bit from the weight of the realization. The remembrance.

“ _Yo-o-o-o! C'mon! Stop it! Matwyn, help!_ ”

“ _Cry-baby Ze-ell_ ”

Zell frowned at the new voice in his mind. The familiar voice. The one that made him want to irrationally punch something.

“Who was that...?” He asked. “There was someone else...”

“ _Nah-na-na-na-na-nah!_ ” That smug face...That insufferable attitude...

“ _Stop teasing me, Seifer!_ ”

“Ah!” Zell drew back.

“Oh, my goodness!” Quistis gasped as though the memory had hit her at the same time. “Seifer...”

Selphie gasped along with her. That's right. Seifer...

“Seifer...” Zell growled, clenching his fist in rage. “My archenemy...”

“Wow!” Selphie laughed, ecstatic now. “He was there, too!”

The others laughing. The others playing. The old stone house that was the only life he had ever known in his, admittedly, short existence. Standing back. Refusing to engage anymore. Because it was just so much safer to be alone and distant.

“Seifer was there,” Irvine nodded. “Except for Rinoa, we were all there.”

All of them. Selphie gasped, turning quickly.

“He-e-ey! Then that means...!”

Squall's arms were crossed, his eyes downcast. The past was beating at him now, coming faster and faster the more he recalled. Hiding at the top of the stairs while everyone else played with fireworks and then being spared punishment because of it. Watching the lighthouse turn from outside while the others played inside. Standing apart. Never wanting to play with them anymore. And there were so many of them. No one noticed or cared about little Squall hiding in the corners, in the shadows. He couldn't handle the loneliness anymore, but he couldn't risk getting close either.

“Yeah...” Squall breathed, uncrossing his arms and standing straight to face them, to face his past, head on. “I was there, too. I...”

“ _...Sis..._ ”

Squall frowned at the images of his dreams. The water. The rain. The _wanting_. The only person there that had treated Squall like he was special. Like he was more than just another parent-less baby dumped on the doorsteps of that old stone house. The others, at least, had memories of loving parents and warm homes. Squall had been too young when he had arrived. He knew nothing else but the stone house and that one girl who truly loved him.

“I was always waiting for her to come back,” he admitted. “For Sis.”

“ _I'm...all alone. But I'm doing my best...I'll be okay without you, Sis. I'll be able to take care of myself._ ”

He hadn't turned out okay at all, Squall realized. Back then, when she had still been there, he had been able to play and laugh with the others. Her disappearance had ripped something from him. Something that he continued to miss to this day.

“Sis...” Quistis frowned, struggling to recall. “I think I...remember her...”

“Sis...” Selphie bit her lip. “Yeah. She was bigger than me...than all of us...”

“ _Sis...Elle..._ ”

“Elle,” Squall repeated dully. He knew that nickname.

" _I would hate to think I was forgotten._ ”

“Ellone...” he finished, his voice hollow. So he had known her. He had been waiting for her. And when she had finally come back, he couldn't even recall her name. Once the most important person in his world, the only thing that kept him connected, and he had begged her not to count on him.

“Ellone?” Zell repeated, confused.

“Ellone was Sis,” Squall looked up at the others. “She was a bit older than us, and we all used to call her Sis.”

“Because _you_ called her Sis,” Irvine pointed out. “You were there before me, Squall, and I was one of the first of us to arrive. You called her Sis, so we all called her Sis.”

“So, you have a blood sister?” Selphie asked, smiling.

“I don't think so,” Irvine shook his head, frowning.

“How do you know?” Squall asked.

“Well, for one thing, you two look nothing alike. For another, if you two were from the same family, why wouldn't you have stayed together? I don't know what happened to Ellone. I just remember waking up one day and she was gone. And you, Squall...”

“Yeah.” Squall looked away. He couldn't deny it, not to Irvine. Not right now. He had changed when Ellone left.

“If you were related, wouldn't you be with her?” Irvine asked. “You were left behind. I don't know what happened to you in the end. You were the first to arrive, Squall, and you were the last to leave. No one knows where you went or why.”

Squall wasn't entirely sure either. He had very little control of the memories that were racing back to the forefront of his mind.

“So...Sis is Ellone?” Zell frowned, trying to put his mind around that. To bring into clearer focus the fuzzy memories of the pixie faced girl just a little older than them.

“She's the one that takes us back to Laguna's period,” Selphie said thoughtfully.

“She told me she wanted to change the past. I don't know why...” Squall said.

“Well, there can only be one reason for that,” Quistis pointed out.

Selphie gasped. “She must not be happy with the present!”

“If that's the case, I'm definitely up for helpin' her!” Zell declared. “She's part of our orphanage gang!”

“You didn't even remember who she was!” Selphie put her hands to her hips.

“Hey, Selphie,” Irvine gave her a look. “That goes for you, too. Of us all, I am the only one allowed to be derisively mocking about the past. Admittedly, I didn't really know much about Ellone though. She didn't talk much about where she was from. Everyone was fond of her though. But you, Squall, you kept hoggin' her for yourself. She doted on you pretty hard too, though, now that I think about it. You two might well have been real siblings.”

“You sure have a good memory,” Squall crossed his arms. He shook his head. “This is really strange. I doubt highly that I was adopted because of the way I am. Probably the same with Seifer, too. We must have been at garden by the age of five or so. Even so, he's never mentioned anything about growing up in an orphanage. And nothing about this has ever crossed my mind when I see him, either. Don't you find that odd?”

“That is strange,” Selphie agreed, nodding sagely. “In my case, I had loads and _loads_ of fun when I left my new family to go to Trabia Garden. That's probably why I forgot all about my childhood. That's what I think. But I don't know what's up with you guys! It's so odd that all of you would forget.”

“I... think I remember,” Quistis breathed, shaking her head as though to jostle the memories back into place. “Yes, I remember now. Things didn't work out too well at my new home in Galbadia. I ran away and jumped a train to Balamb. I enrolled myself in garden at the age of 10. That was when I first noticed Seifer and Squall. Seifer and Squall were always fighting.”

“Yeah...Quistis always used to break us up.” Honestly, not much difference between the years...

“Yes, that's right!” Quistis nodded, looking at him him with a wide smile as it all came back to her in a rush. “Seifer was a punk little kid who always needed to be the center of attention. But Squall always used to ignore him. And, eventually, they would end up fighting. You could have easily walked away from it, but you always took up the challenge. You should've just ignored him. But, every time, almost in tears, you'd say...'I gotta do my best by myself. Or else I won't be able to see Sis...'”

Quistis let out a long breath as so much about Squall finally clicked into place. For both of them. His taciturn personality, his determination to be alone, his inability to turn down a challenge. He had been trying to prove himself. To earn back the love of someone he thought had deserted him. And, as his memories faded, only that feeling remained.

“I guess...” Quistis sighed, staring at the ground as she looked back on her life. “I was trying to take Sis's...I mean, Ellone's place. To give Squall something back he had lost from our childhood. To no avail.”

And, just like Squall, as her childhood memories faded, it left only the feeling behind. The feeling of hoping he would turn to smile at her. The feeling of wanting to be there for him. To provide him someone strong to depend on. To confide in.

“That's probably it!” She gasped as details about herself also clicked. “Even after becoming an instructor, even when I had forgotten, I couldn't stop thinking about Squall. I thought it was...love. I thought I had to hide my feelings because I was an instructor, but it _wasn't_! It was my childhood feelings as an adopted sister that lingered...”

Quistis's shoulders dropped as it all suddenly made sense. The obsession. The favoritism. The knowing she was doing something wrong but being unable to stop. It wasn't because she had a love she couldn't control, it was because Squall was family. The people she had run away from had been abusive and manipulative, more emotionally than physically. So when she had arrived at garden, those orphanage kids had still very much been her family.

And that's what she had been feeling. Familial love. The realization was both a relief and somewhat of a letdown. She hadn't been in love after all...

“Oh, well...” she shrugged. Then, mostly to herself, she whispered. “Actually, I had completely given up when Rinoa came into the picture.”

Squall, standing closest to her, raised an eyebrow at the statement that only he heard, but didn't say anything to confirm or discredit it.

“Hey!” Quistis's came back up quickly as a new thought occurred to her. “It must be the same for, Seifer! I'm sure Seifer has forgotten his childhood, too. But, the feelings...those didn't fade. And whenever he sees Squall, those feelings came bubbling back to the surface again, and...”

“Is that why he's always pickin' fights with Squall?” Zell frowned, tilting his head. “I don't get it. I mean, I get why _I_ hate him. He always used to tease me. But Squall? Squall was always so quiet. What would Seifer have against him?”

“Seifer needed attention, and Squall wouldn't give him any,” Quistis reminded him. “And since Squall always rose to the challenge, Seifer could never be truly better than him. Which made him mad because he always needed to be the best. Right, Squall?”

He didn't know. Honestly, he didn't care. He had much bigger bones to pick with Seifer right now than anything about a childhood he barely could recall. And he had a more important problem at the moment that was bothering him more.

“Why is it that we forgot? We grew up together. Yeah, we were kids, but we weren't _that_ young. And we were together for years before we split up. Why did we all just forget?”

“I didn't,” Irvine reminded him gently. “Want my theory? How about this: The price we pay for using the GF. The GF provide us with their power, but in return, the GF make their own place inside our brain. That's common knowledge. And all of us have at least one right now. I have two crammed into one that argue like, well, siblings. They make a home in our brains. They experience the world as we do. And, in return, they take something from us.”

“Wait,” Quistis shook her head, grinning in disbelief. “You're saying that the GF are somehow erasing our memories prematurely? That they're somehow dangerous to us?”

“Well, I wouldn't say 'erase'. We obviously still have them, we just can't remember them easily any longer. And I would say the proof speaks for itself.”

“No,” Quistis shook her head simply. “No, absolutely not. That's just a rumor that the GF critics are spreading. It's totally baseless.”

“And how would we know if it was?” Irvine countered, with a grin. “We remember things when we _need_ to, or when we're reminded. So it's not like we're truly losing something permanently. It doesn't effect our lives in the slightest because they're memories we don't need access to all that often. We're only losing our past in exchange.”

“So if we keep relying on the GF,” Zell frowned, “we won't be able to remember a lot of things? We'll forget even things that are important to us?”

“No,” Quistis snapped, almost angry. “There's no way Headmaster Cid would allow such a dangerous thing!”

“Then how is it that I remember while everyone else forgot?” Irvine countered easily. “Well? I'm from Galbadia Garden, we didn't use GF there. They use Esthar technology to stock spells, so they always felt that using GF would 'weaken' us and we were told not to junction them. I'd never junctioned a GF until we picked up the brothers in the Tomb of the Unknown King. In Balamb, correct me if I'm wrong, but don't ya'll start training as soon as you become upper classmen? You start on theory in grade school. You learn GF junctioning right alongside basic math and language skills.”

Quistis's mouth moved as she tried to find a way to refute that. She turned quickly. “How about you, Selphie? Your first experience with GF was when you came to Balamb Garden, right?”

“Um, yeah...”

The others all focused on her. On the obviously uncertain statement. They stared at her and Selphie beamed at them innocently.

“Okay, I have a confession to make! When I was 12, I went on an outdoor training session. I found a GF inside one of the monsters I defeated. I juctioned that GF for a while without permission. So I kind of have experience with GF, too. At least until it was confiscated when they found out. But...But, it's really weird! I can't remember that GF's name!”

Quistis sighed as the final piece of evidence convinced her. “Then it really must be the GF's fault. So...what should we do?”

“What should we do?” Squall repeated like it was a stupid question. “Nothing.”

“What do you mean nothing!?” Zell looked shocked.

Squall gave him a cool look. “What do you _want_ to do? You wanna stop using GF now? No. As long as we continue fighting, we're indebted to the powers of our GF. Powers that make us much stronger, faster, tougher than the average person. Our magic, our affinities, our elemental mastery...If there's a price I have to pay for that, I'll gladly pay it.” In his head, he could feel Shiva grow just a bit colder. Her style of a warm blush of happiness in anyone else.

“Oh, hey, I have an idea!” Selphie giggled. “Let's all keep a diary! That way we'll always have something to remind us of what we've forgotten! Or a journal, I guess, for you manly types.”

Squall nodded, admitting that would probably be helpful. Of course, he had no idea how to write a journal, but the reminders wouldn't be a bad thing.

“Are you sure that's what you want?!” Zell looked between them all. And he considered the fact that he'd have to give up Ifrit. He'd have to feel cold again. He'd have to give up that heady rush of power and invincibility that came with anger.

It would only cost his past.

Zell sighed as he made the decision. “Maybe...that's for the best then. Yeah...I guess I don't really care if I forget about my childhood, when Seifer used to pick on me.” His back straightened again and his fist closed in determination. “What's important to me now is having the power to protect my parents in Balamb. They adopted me. They raised and loved me as their own. And I love them just as much. If I didn't have Ifrit, I couldn't have liberated Balamb for them. There's no way I'm lettin' go of that power!”

The others nodded, agreed with the sentiment if not the circumstances.

They fell silent for a moment as they continued to remember their pasts. As they, in a way, bid farewell to memories they might never get to experience again.

The stone house. The beach. The lighthouse. The laughter. The tears. The years.

“Hey...” Quistis frowned. “Do you all remember Matron?”

“ _Matwyn!_ ”

“Yeah,” Zell grinned wryly. “She was always wearin' black...”

“Let me think,” Selphie tilted her head as she sifted through her foggy memories.

Irvine stared between them all. Waiting.

“Very kind...” Quistis smiled. “Long black hair. Yes, I really admired her.”

Selphie frowned first. “Wait, I know her face. I've seen her somewhere before...”

Zell shook his head, like he was trying to shake his memories back into sense. “No. That can't be. They look just alike...”

“Look alike?” Irvine repeated. He shook his head sadly. “Nah, that's not it. Matron's name was Edea Kramer. Our Matron is Sorceress Edea.”

“Matron...Sorceress Edea...” Selphie closed her eyes tightly, trying to reconcile what her memory insisted was a loving, kind, sweet woman with the sorceress that had killed so many of her friends.

“No, that's can't...” Quistis trailed off, unable to deny what she knew was truth. “Why? Why would she...”

Irvine looked between them as they all began to recall the love and joy they had felt under the tender care of the unbelievably kind Edea Kramer. “You're wondering why Matron would take over a country or fire missiles and whatnot? Are sorceress's really inherently bad? Is the power really corrupting? Or did she just have us all fooled? At this point, we probably wouldn't comprehend it even if we talked about it for the rest of the night.”

Squall's arms crossed, agreeing with him silently.

More things that just didn't make sense...

“Guys, I didn't bring this up for no reason,” Irvine said, getting their attention again. “I just...want you to hear me out...

“SeeD and garden were all Matron's idea, right? I'm not a SeeD, but I want to be. And I share the same feelings, the same past, with you. Garden will train SeeDs. SeeDs will defeat the sorceress. Right?”

Squall nodded, agreeing. Yet another thing that didn't make sense. Because if Sorceress Edea was Edea Kramer, Headmaster Cid's wife and Matron to a group of helpless orphans, then she was the same one who thought of SeeD and garden. So, if that were true, why order Seifer to torture Squall for information about what they were. She would know better than anyone.

“So like...This is what I wanted to say,” Irvine straightened his back and looked them all in the eyes determinedly.

“I understand what Rinoa is saying. I get that fear that you'll lose something important to you. Despite the time that's come between us, you all are still my family. And that's just as true for Matron. For the woman who took me in when war destroyed my hometown. I understand. But I'm still gonna fight.

“I wanna stay true to everything I've stood for. To the past that brought me here. And I'm sure it's true for all of you. That's why I thought it would be best if everyone knew we would have to face our Matron. I didn't want to be the only one who knew we were facing our own past.

“You've all heard it said before: Life has infinite possibilities. I don't believe that one bit. There weren't many paths for me to choose. Sometimes, there would only be one. From the limited possibilities I faced, the choices I made have brought me this far. That's why I value the path I chose. I want to hold true to the path that _had_ to be taken.

“I know our opponent is Matron, whom we all love very much. She raised us, she gave us a home when we had nothing else. She protected us, provided for us, and sheltered us. But this is one of those times when I have few choices. And facing Matron, facing my past, is the easiest one I've had to make.

“It's true, we might lose something very important on account of the GF. But I don't mind. It's not like I drifted here on the tides of fate. I was reunited with you all by chance. But when General Caraway needed Rinoa out of the prison, I _volunteered_ , because I knew it would bring me back to you all. I figured Squall would need to come to me to get her back. And when that happened, we could work out the past and the future. I chose that. And I choose this.

“Because, more than anything else, we all grew up together. We're family. But due to various circumstances, we well all separated. Spread out across the world. Despite that, here we all are now. Back together and much more our own people than we were.

“As a kid, you can't really go out on your own. There _are_ no other paths to take. All I could do then was just cry. Then grow. And get stronger.

“And now, somehow, we're all together again. Just like old times, though a lot has changed. We're not kids anymore. We're strong enough to take care of ourselves. To make our own decisions. And we're confronting a big one right now:

“Do we fight Matron, or not...?

“I say we fight. Shoot for a common goal. Hey, at least it'll keep us together a little longer. And I don't know about you, but I have to know. I have to be able to ask. It was a brief few years of my life, but it was a big part regardless. I have to face this. I want you all to be there with me.”

Irvine finished with a long breath and they remained silent for a moment, staring at him. Letting the words sink into their minds, into their hearts.

Zell broke it first. He nodded, smiling slightly. “Yeah. Let's do it. We can't run from her for the rest our lives. She's already after us anyway.”

“It's just such a bummer,” Selphie kicked at a loose stone. “I can't believe we have to fight Matron.” And now that she remembered who she was, it actually hit her emotionally.

“I agree,” Quistis sighed, but straightened her shoulders. “But Zell's right. We can't run from her forever.”

“Rinoa.”

She jumped in surprise when Squall called out to her. She had been so focused on everything going around her, that she had kind of forgotten that she was still there. She almost felt like she was watching a drama unfold on a TV. With just her name though, Squall turned everyone back to her and their friendly gazes pulled her back into the circle.

“It's your choice now,” he said softly. “We're gonna fight. I think it's the only way we can move on with our lives. If that makes any sense at all, come with us. I'm sure that's what everybody wants.”

It's what I want, he thought to himself as the others nodded and smiled eagerly. Rinoa stared at them, her face unreadable, as the first snowflakes started to fall.

“Look! Look!” Selphie bounced eagerly, pointing as the fluffy white puffs drifted down around them silently. “A gift from the faeries!”

Squall had his head turned up to watch it.

“Yo, you wanna go check out Edea's orphanage?” Zell asked eagerly.

Irvine shrugged. “Sure. We might find a clue.”

“Clue?” Quistis repeated. “You mean as to why Matron turned out like this?”

Ten years ago, give or take, Edea had closed her orphanage. She adopted out as many kids as she could and saw to the comfortable placement of the others. Squall could now remember staying there by himself watching as all of his playmates, his friends, his siblings, were taken away. Ellone's disappearance followed by everyone leaving him one at a time. Matron had disappeared not long after that.

Squall couldn't remember exactly how he had ended up at garden, but he knew that he had been mostly alone. He had only Seifer as company, and Seifer was not very good company. That loss, one after the other in so short of time, had driven him to what he was now.

And marked the moment that Matron had changed.

But the past was the past. It was over, done with...

“Despite what truth we find, it's not going to change the present. But...” Squall's hard voice softened slightly as he admitted, “I wanna see, too. I don't know what we'll see, but let's try to find Edea's orphanage.”

The others all started nodding and talking excitedly. With a new plan, with the truth now burning in their minds, they started walking back towards garden. Rinoa started to follow them but then stopped under the basketball hoop. Squall walked to her calmly.

“I guess that's it,” he shrugged. “We're fighting.”

“...You guys are fearless.”

Fearless? No, that wasn't quite right. It was more like they didn't want to think too hard. If they did, they would just lose themselves.

“I wish we didn't have to fight either, for what it's worth,” he admitted.

Rinoa shifted her weight, her face still closed and guarded. They hadn't addressed her fear yet. They knew what she felt, but that didn't change...

“I'm scared, Squall,” she breathed.

“I'm not going to let you get hurt. And you can defend yourself.”

“I”m not worried about me, I'm worried about you.”

“Me?” Squall was taken aback by the admission.

Rinoa nodded. “Squall, you almost died the last time you took her on. She's a sorceress! The normal rules of magic don't apply to her. She's so strong...”

“Okay. Then I just get stronger.”

Rinoa lifted her head up again, looking Squall in his eyes. “Just like that?”

He shrugged. “Sure, why not? Sorceress's are powerful, but they're not invincible. Isn't that why yours needed a knight in the book?”

“You...actually read it?”

“I was raised, trained, and crafted to defeat her. So if I'm not ready yet, I just train until I am.”

“How? By killing grats in the training center?”

“No. Well start by upgrading our magic. Get more powerful spells. We'll train our GFs. We'll train ourselves. We'll work until we're strong enough.”

“...We?” Rinoa looked up, smiling slightly.

“We,” he agreed easily, almost grinning back at her. “If you feel like you're being left behind, then I'll train you until you catch up.”

Rinoa chuckled softly. “Somehow, I knew you'd say that.”

Squall looked at her, trying to figure her out. Trying to figure himself out. Rinoa smiled brightly at him and reached out to take hold of his hand. She clenched it tightly, firmly.

“Just so you know, you're not alone.”

Squall's eyebrow raised. “What brought that on?”

“Your childhood,” Rinoa stepped closer and leaned against his shoulder. A place that she had already become comfortable on. “I saw it in your face when you said you were waiting for Ellone to come back. I just wanted to tell you. You're not alone. I'm here. The others are all here.”

“Everyone leaves eventually, Rinoa. Didn't you hear that part?”

“Yeah. I also heard the part where everyone came back,” she smiled up at him. “We're not children, Squall. Isn't that what Irvine said? No one can force us apart now if we don't wish it.”

“You said yourself that circumstances change.”

“Yeah. And they can change back. Let's keep walking this path, Squall. I want to see how far it's going to take the two of us.”

The corner of Squall's mouth lifted slightly as she started leading him from Trabia Garden. He couldn't lie, he rather liked the way she would take control and not rely on him for everything. When she ordered him around, he didn't have to worry about being leader or making tough choices.

***

That night, after ensuring that all SeeDs and cadets were back aboard the garden, Squall sat down at his desk and turned on the small lamp there. He placed the black leather bound journal he had bought from the library supply store down and picked up his pen.

He hesitated for a moment, unsure of how to begin. He had taken a peek at Selphie's public diary, but he doubted highly he could replicate that kind of thing. It just wasn't in him to get into emotions and joyfully and sorrowfully proclaim the events of the day.

What was like him, however...

Squall put his pen to the top of the paper and wrote the day's date. Then, like he was penning a formal report for the headmaster, Squall wrote down the events of the day, implications thereof, important thoughts, plans, and the current general status of himself and his team.

It took a long time to write that first journal entry, but when he reached the bottom he finished it with the simple statement Rinoa had given him. He wanted to walk with her down this path as well, to see where it would take him because he couldn't seem to stay away from her long enough to find out what it would be like without her.


	27. Shumi Village

The first problem that needed solving was that of supplies. Quite simply, the enormous garden was running out of them. Food, medical, household; they were coming up short on everything. They hadn't been prepared for an extended journey when they broke free of Balamb and FH wasn't sufficiently supplied itself to provide more than the power the garden needed.

Quistis, Xu, and Squall spent most of the next morning discussing plans and potential places to resupply that wouldn't result in problems for themselves or the locals. There were two chief hurdles. First: It had to be a place that had such a surplus that they could supply the garden for a long period of time. Second: It had to be a place that the sorceress couldn't control or coerce and/or didn't already hate Balamb Garden.

The first narrowed their options considerably, the second made it near impossible. They dared not use Balamb as a permanent port for fear of the latter, and they couldn't use FH for the former. Dollet was a port town, but too close to Galbadia and still currently recovering from their attack. Esthar wasn't even an option. And there was no city in Trabia that could provide for them.

“Maybe we could forage our own supplies?” Quistis suggested with a grimace. “There are some monsters that taste good, and the field supply training could be useful.”

“Field supplies are meant to bolster proper supplies or to be used in an emergency,” Xu shook her head at the suggestion. “They're not sustainable for long periods of time. And especially not for so many people.”

“We might be able to start a crop of our own in the open grounds on the quad,” Squall said, pointing to the space he intended on the garden map pulled up on touchscreen table the three of them were working over in the headmaster's former office. The spot zoomed in automatically. “It wouldn't be enough to feed us all permanently, but it could supplement what little we're able to hunt or fish.”

“That would help,” Xu nodded. “But, again, it's not sustainable. There's just not enough room to allow us to grow enough food for everyone. And it takes time. We need a solution now. It also doesn't help with general supplies. Soap, cloth, metal supplies. Things we can't build ourselves.”

Squall frowned and swiped the garden map aside, the world map slid into view. His eyes moved over every dot that was representative of a major city. Really, only Galbadia and Balamb had much in the way of options. Centra had been wiped out by the Cataclysm 80 years ago, Esthar was so xenophobic they had cut off trading entirely with the rest of the world, and every other place couldn't or wouldn't help them.

“What's that?” Quistis asked suddenly, pointing to a dot on the far north of the map.

“That's, um...” Xu trailed off as she looked at it and realized she didn't know. “Hm?”

As she was the closest, she reached out and tapped the city. The map zoomed in on a large island north of Trabia covered in mountains and snow. Trabia already was too mountainous and icy to sustain a large population. Who could possibly live further north of that?

“Hey, that's Headmaster Cid's login,” Xu grinned. “He must have put this city here.”

“What is it?” Squall leaned over to look for himself.

“...Shumi Village?” Xu frowned then shrugged. “If it's a village, it can't help us.”

“What's that?” Quistis pointed to some writing below the city.

“The headmaster liked to put notes in on the places he visited or places he sent SeeDs on important missions. They're all over the map. Well, except Esthar.”

Xu tapped on the small box to enlarge it. It appeared right-side up to her. Squall, upside down as he was in relation, could read it with just slightly more difficulty than he would be able to normally. It was dated some ten years ago.

' _The last supply train was dropped off this morning. Estimated TTC for the Training Arena artificial habitat: 4 days. Monster eggs and plantings ETA: Next week at the earliest. Second half of payment sent out at 08:30 this morning after confirmation of all supplies._ '

“Supplies?” Quistis read, lifting her head first. “Wait, does that mean this place helped build and renovate the garden originally?”

“I thought FH did that,” Xu frowned.

“They did the engines and the like,” Squall corrected. “Maybe this Shumi Village was in charge of interior designs and décor. And the training center, apparently.”

“Think it's worth a look?” Quistis asked.

Squall leaned back, looking at the map thoughtfully. Really, the only other thing he could do was search for Edea's orphanage, and he had no idea where to start that. The supply problem was honestly more pressing at the moment.

Squall finally nodded. “It can't hurt to check. I'll go tell Nida to announce the departure. Xu, how much longer do you think our supplies could hold?”

“If we tighten the purse strings and ration correctly, I'd say we could pull things out for another four, maybe five days.”

Squall nodded and left to alert Nida to their new destination. He was absurdly grateful for Xu during this time. He didn't think he'd be able to handle the running of garden the way she did. And with the garden faculty clones no longer working for them, she was in charge of it all. He had heard her discussing introducing a chain of command for her half of running the garden and he privately thought it was a good idea. He kept it to himself because it was her business.

As he was leaving, he heard Quistis call out, strangely hesitant. “Hey, Xu. Can I talk to you?”

The door shut behind Squall before he could hear her answer. By the time he was leaving the bridge after giving Nida his new instructions, they were both out of the office. He wasn't really all that curious, he really just noted it out of habit.

The garden didn't begin moving immediately. They were calling back anyone who had gone hunting – in the hopes of catching something worth eating – before they could leave. Squall really wanted to sit down and come up with some better guidelines for leaving the garden. So far, the best they could do was shine a light from the top of the garden and hope everyone came back or left in pairs.

Before that, he needed to get to one of the second floor classrooms to start virtual aiming practice with the gunblade students. He wouldn't need to be there long. There was already a sharpshooter instructor, Squall was only needed because shooting a gunblade wasn't the same as a firearm.

He was in there a great deal longer than he initially thought. He didn't get a chance to leave until the scheduled lesson was over. His shoulders were stiff when he finally left, complaining at being locked in a classroom again.

He hit the hallway and started going down what else was on his to-do list today. Off-campus guidelines, mid-level magic refinement and collection places, monster part collections for weapon upgrades, he owed that guy at the front of the garden a Triple Triad game, there was a rogue T-rexaur trying to break through the monster lair walls that needed dealing with. Xu had volunteered to assist him with that last one. Oh, and he had promised Rinoa he would have dinner with her tonight. It wasn't a date, he just owed her a canceled dinner.

Squall was putting off labeling anything they were doing together a 'third date'. Rinoa hadn't brought it up again, but he knew she was waiting for him to officially ask for that third date. For what she had told him the third date would mean to her. Honestly, he didn't know why he was refusing to take that last step. To make it official. No one was even surprised to see them constantly around each other any longer. They tended to look more surprised when one was by themselves. Squall had even heard people saying that they were, in fact, an official couple.

Unsurprisingly, even to himself, Squall found his feet heading towards the library where she tended to hang out. She really loved the books, the quiet given to her there. The selection of literature was so large that she said she'd probably never get bored.

Squall liked the library as well. The quiet, the expected sense of distance between people required to maintain said silence. And now, of course, he would often find her there.

But not today. Squall worked his way to the back, to where the study desks were, but the raven haired girl he couldn't shake from his head wasn't there today. He looked around a bit before giving up and deciding she was elsewhere at the moment.

As he was leaving, the library girl caught sight of him as she was re-stocking the shelves.

“Oh, hey, Squall,” she waved, calling him over.

“Yes?” He paused.

“Looking for Rinoa?” She smiled and didn't wait for his answer, which was quite obvious. “She just left a few minutes ago. She found a book she said she wanted you to see and went off to find you.”

Of course.

Squall nodded his thanks to her before continuing on. He had to actually bite back the sense of disappointment that she wasn't here.

What was wrong with him lately?

He was debating whether it was worth looking for her or if he should just continue on with the long list of things he needed to get done today. He hadn't had much time in this break, he didn't want to spend it searching for her only to end in disappointment.

It didn't come to that. He heard his name being called when he approached the center of the garden and he lifted his eyes to see her on the raised dais that held the elevator. She was waving to him, beaming, the book she had found clutched to her chest. Once she knew she had his attention, she turned and ran to come join him.

Squall followed her around and they met at the base of the stairs. Rinoa beamed and barely resisted throwing her arms around him right there.

“Hey, you,” she beamed. “I was just about to come up to the bridge to find you.”

And he had just been coming down to find her. They were pulled to each other. Drawn to one another like magnets. Was she feeling the same things he was?

Rinoa didn't wait for him to respond. She held out her book excitedly. “Check it out.”

He took it and turned over the cover calmly. “Sorceress Theory: A Study Between the Link of Guardian Forces, Gaia Based Magic Wells, and Sorceress Affinities With An Emphesis on the Succession. What is this?”

“Check out the author,” Rinoa pointed, smiling. “Dr. Hakase Odine. The world leader in magical understanding and magical goods.”

“So it is. Why are you giving me this?”

“I found it deep in the stacks,” she said, pulling on his arm and pointing over to one of the empty benches along the path. “It's kind of old, but the information is still good. I thought you could check it out. Learn more about sorceresses.”

Squall looked over the book, the study, as the two of them sat down. “Is this your way of trying to make me more capable a fighter?”

“Knowledge is power, right?” Rinoa smiled. “And they say that Dr. Odine was able to study the Tyrant of Esthar back when she was ruler. If anyone is able to help, it would be him.”

“She wasn't a tyrant because she allowed people to study and publish her weaknesses.”

“Already ahead of you.” Rinoa grinned and flipped open the book in his hand. She pointed on the front page to the publishing information. “This came out a full two years after the end of the Sorceress War. The tyrant was already deposed by that point. So she couldn't have censored this.”

Squall flipped over a few pages and started skimming the introduction.

' _The Succession is the unbroken line of sorceresses that dates back to the time of Hyne and connects all sorceresses together. In recent generations, the practice of 'poaching' has led to the congregation of multiple sorceress succession lines into a relatively few number of women..._ '

“Look, here,” Rinoa interrupted, grabbed the pages quickly and flipped through them. She opened to a page near the front that she had marked and pointed to a paragraph. “This one. Read this one.”

Squall's eyes focused obediently on the new text.

' _The practice of 'poaching' (the slaying of sorceresses for their power) has become a troubling trend. Sorceress lines have crossed and power has been multiplied to dangerous degrees. Nowhere was this more evident than in Sorceress Adel. Relating to an anecdote that has no true evidence told by Sorceress Adel to this researcher, “Killing a sorceress is not so hard, even if you don't have magic yourself. Sorceress's are magically powerful, but physically weak. If anything, they're more vulnerable for the addition of magic. It makes them lazy and overconfident. Killing my first was easy. I just distracted her and ran her through with my blade. Simple.” Though the account has no evidence, the source is considered credible enough to be included in this paper._ '

“Well?” Rinoa asked, biting her lip eagerly when he reached the end of the page. “What do you think?”

“I'm going to need to finish reading the study,” Squall said neutrally, slipping it into his jacket, into his INVENTORY. “You're not wrong about knowing more, so I'll check it out.”

Rinoa frowned. “But...”

“But what?” he raised an eyebrow at her.

She hesitated. “I mean...That's it? You're just going to read a book before going after Edea?”

“No. Right now we're heading further north to a place called Shumi Village.”

“Why?”

“Well, mostly to resupply. However, while we're there, I'm going out hunting.”

“In the far north?” Rinoa frowned. “Does anything even live up here that we could eat?”

“No. The ice monsters this far north don't have any nutritional value for us. It would be as productive as trying to eat paper. But I'm not talking about hunting for food. I want to go hunting for magic.”

“Magic hunting? Like from monsters?”

“If I have a chance of collecting some blizzara spells, it will be up this far north. I want to get a good cache of them to replace, or at least sufficiently supplement, my blizzard spells. Quistis and I were talking this morning about upgrading our magic. Usually, we'd have to use opportunities as they arise on missions to do that, but with the garden moving, there's nothing to stop us from seeking those areas out now. And since I'm here, I might as well take advantage of it.”

“So, we're looking for high level magic?” Rinoa was sitting sideways on the bench, on leg tucked under her, as she looked at Squall with her head on her hand. He remained where he was, his arms spread out back on the bench. Almost like he was embracing her.

“No, not high level,” Squall shook his head. “We can't use high level magic. We have to accept mid-level.”

“Why can't we use high level?”

“It's too powerful. These Odine capsules can hold blizzara to capacity, but if I attempted to put a blizzaga spell, just one, inside, it would shatter. They're just not capable of containing it. Even curaga is too strong. You can only put a single spell inside a capsule. We're just going to have to deal with the mid-level.”

“So, what counts as mid-level?”

Squall thought for a moment before reaching into his jacket pocket. He pulled out a piece of paper and a pen and made a quick chart. Down one column, he wrote each of their names, starting with hers and ending with his own. Then, in the second column, he started listing their magic.”

“Fire, thunder, bio, demi, slow, float...My magic?” She asked.

In the next row, next to Quistis's name, he wrote thunder and aero. Under that, Zell with fire and aero. Selphie with water and esuna. Irvine with blizzard and thunder. Then, finally, himself also with blizzard and thunder. Aside from cure, cura, and scan, which were magic spells with no affinity and therefore any GF would take them, it was their complete magic stock.

“Selphie told me that Leviathan is settling in nicely with her. So, with that, and you having given her Carbuncle, we've got a very good spread of affinities and powers.”

“I can't believe she can hold three GF at the same time,” Rinoa marveled. “I feel like I barely have enough room for Diablos.”

Squall thought it was only because it was Selphie that she was able to hold onto all three GF. It probably helped that they all three complimented each other so perfectly without any negative side effects. If Siren wasn't a rare, double affinity GF, it likely wouldn't have been possible. Her water power was nearly a direct match for Leviathan's. And her status effect silencing power was the same type as Carbuncles reflect power.

“So are you taking Irvine with you?” Rinoa asked as he moved his hand back up to the top of the page to start on the third column.

“Taking him with me where?”

“To hunt blizzara. You both use blizzard, right."

“He can't use blizzara. Mid-level magic isn't like lower magic in that you can use it as long as it's not a direct contrast of your abilities. The magic increase is too powerful to handle if it's not your affinity. Of us, only I will be able to use blizzara, but I won't be able to use thundara. You see?”

“Yeah, I get it,” Rinoa nodded. “So what's this column?”

“This is the magic that we're going to be hunting down. Based on past SeeD reports on where the magic was mined, I think we can find most of it.”

“Blind, zombie, haste, double, protect...” Rinoa read off what he wrote next to her name. “I think I've heard of some of those. Aren't those supposed to be kind of rare?”

“Yeah, kind of. Well, the blind should be easy enough to find actually. The protect will be useful for you though. It will offer you some defense to physical strikes. Your magic is coming along well enough that I don't think you need to worry about that. You're fighting ability needs work though.”

“Yeah, I know,” Rinoa made a face at her own shortcoming. “Diablos says that's a lot of magic at once.”

“Can he not handle it?” Squall asked deliberately and Rinoa grinned.

“He says he doesn't appreciate the insinuation or the intention behind it. Also, he's more than willing to take it on. He's more worried about my capacity to hold that much magic.”

“If you can't hold it all, you can return it to the Odine capsule.”

Squall continued writing down the column. Next to Quistis, he wrote float and thundara. To Zell, he wrote fira and holy. By Selphie, silence and confuse. For Irvine, quake and break. And next to his own name he wrote just blizzara.

“That's it?” Rinoa looked up. “You're not getting anything else?

“There's nothing else I can have. Shiva's picky.”

Rinoa frowned. “I wish she would expand her acceptance a bit.”

“It's fine. She's more than powerful enough to make up for what I lose in diversity.

Rinoa sighed. “So, where are we going to find all this stuff?”

“Monsters. Magic wells. It's not going to be without effort. But the training afforded to us by all the monster fights will make us stronger physically as well. The monster parts we gather can be used to upgrade our equipment, and, who knows, we may even find a GF or two.”

“What a plan,” Rinoa breathed softly. He said it so simply, like he was suggesting they could find these things at their local item store. What he was describing though sounded like a massive undertaking to her ears.

“Squall.”

He turned to see Xu walking towards him. She pointed over her shoulder. “You ready to go deal with that T-rexaur? I've got some things I need to finish tonight, so I want to get this done quickly.”

“Yeah,” Squall nodded and stood. The list he had crafted, he passed back to Rinoa. “Can you make copies of this for me? I want everyone to have one so they know what magic they need. In fact, here, take my chip.” He pulled his necklace over his head and passed it to her. “Go up to the third floor and see if you can narrow down where we can find each of those spells. You can use my chip to access the map table.”

Squall stopped, frowning at himself. He realized, just a bit too late, that this wasn't a combat situation and he shouldn't be ordering her around. She was still his client, technically.

Rinoa, however, broke out into a wide smile and stood quickly. Her hand clenched tightly on his necklace and the list and she nodded eagerly. Squall was finally asking her to do something, to help carry part of his burden. She had been hoping desperately that he would start relying on her even slightly. This sort of thing was easy, but probably time consuming. She could save him a great deal of trouble by doing this annoyance for him.

“You got it,” she beamed before nearly jogging towards the elevator.

“Well, that made her happy,” Xu grinned, standing next to Squall. “Would you like me to work at getting her her own microchip? She's not SeeD, but there's no reason she should be locked out of everything around here. Especially since she's obviously going to be with us for a while.”

Squall nodded. “That would be fine, thank you.”

“I'll give you access to her file so you can help decide what she can do with it. You know, we might think about paying her as well if she's going to be working for us. Not like a full SeeD salary, but maybe a small consultant fee sort of thing. Like a freelance job.”

Squall looked over, a bit confused. Xu was grinning a bit wider than she had been earlier, and the offer she was making was not one she would normally suggest. Xu was in charge of money around here specifically because she didn't like spending it and loved hoarding it.

“What's got you in such a good mood?” Squall asked.

“Hm? Oh, nothing. Come on, let's go get that monster. If we can kill it without magic, the cafeteria ladies say they're willing to try cooking the meat. A monster that size could feed the entire garden tonight as long as there isn't a sleep spell in it to knock us all out. You up for it?”

“Let's do it,” Squall nodded, grabbing for his gunblade.

***

Though Selphie was from this far north, she was actually uncertain about Shumi Village. She had heard of it when Squall asked her, but said she didn't remember where it would be if she had ever known that information to begin with.

The garden moved diligently through the mountains anyway, tracking further north. They had to cross more water and the freezing waves lowered the temperature around them significantly.

The instructors, true to form, were using this opportunity as a chance to teach their students cold weather fighting and survival techniques. Fire magic became the standard around the garden for everyone who didn't have the benefits of an ice powered GF. Though, even for them, that was usually not an option as only Shiva had the capability to keep Squall alive _and_ functioning optimally at subzero temperatures.

Quistis and Selphie trained with their new GFs, trying to master their powers and the new benefits the dual and triple GF system gave them.

Quistis now not only could control the sparking of electricity from her hands and body, but could also read and control air currents. While initially it had been a difficulty for her, Quistis was not a prodigy for no reason. Her whip, now assisted by the wind itself, was suddenly almost like an extension of her arm, acting more like a tentacle as she wound the wind about it. With the electric sparks that raced down its body, she was more deadly than ever.

According to Quistis, Pandemona was a very silent sort of GF. He was just kind of _there_. He didn't seem to mind Quetzalcoatl's singing, he didn't seem to mind his new master, he didn't seem to mind anything at all. Quistis said he seemed more like the type of GF that could bind to any master simply because he didn't care one way or another.

Selphie had little trouble bonding with and mastering Leviathan's powers. Besides the simple fact that Siren also had water powers, Leviathan loved Selphie. She was so happy, so energetic, and so eager to see new things that the GF bonded to her instantly. It was such a difference between her head with all his new friends and NORG's head in the dark, lonely room down below.

Selphie's voice, with Siren attached, was strangely hypnotic. With her alone, Selphie had been able to exercise some basic control over water – keeping herself from being wet, move it around in small amounts, nothing too exciting. However, with the master of the waves himself, Selphie found herself able to actually breath underwater for a limited time. Ten minutes was her current record actually breathing, not holding her breath, before the magic weakened to the point that she needed to draw in real air. And Carbuncle was able to allow her to enact a basic reflect shield at nearly any time that could reverse low-level spells without needing her to actually summon him.

The three GF together gave her weapon the ability to actually, physically beat back magic and fight under the water without a decrease in speed or strength.

At night, when the garden stopped to allow Nida to sleep, Squall would go out hunting. He went by himself, despite everyone's dismay and his own rules. Shiva was in her element out here, finally able to free her ice in ways she had never been permitted before. Honestly, Squall didn't want to bring anyone because he didn't want them to risk hypothermia or frostbite because Shiva was having the time of her life commanding the ice and snow around him.

During the day, Squall would go hunting with others at times for meat, for fur, for horns or talons, for magic, for skills. Sometimes with his comrades, sometimes with Xu or Nida – who would beg a break to be able to work out for a while – and sometimes he would take cadets out for field training. Mostly the gunblade specialists only, but soon the other instructors had managed to rope him into helping the other classes as well.

The days passed rather quickly. His stash of blizzard was refreshed easily, and his new stock of blizzara spells began growing rapidly. To the point that he was able to use it as a total replacement for blizzard for his magical needs much sooner than he expected.

Shiva delighted in the new, powerful spell. It had been years since she had gotten to hold it, she told him, even before he had been her master. The blizzara spell made it too easy for the temperature around Squall's body to drop dangerously low for those around him. He had needed to spend some time actually training to keep it and Shiva under control.

It was about a week after they had left Trabia before anything changed. A week spent scouring the mountains and the islands of the north for the town they wanted while barely managing to extend Xu's four to five day supply estimate. Then Nida finally alerted Squall that he had spotted something besides rocks and trees in the snowy expanse.

“Holy Hyne!” Irvine cried, wrapping his arms around himself as he walked down past the front gates towards the lift with the others. “It's so cold out here!”

“Where's your jacket?” Quistis asked, frowning at him.

Irvine glared over at Selphie who was humming, cleaning her gold and ivory Crescent Wish with a cloth, bundled up in Irivne's stolen jacket.

“If I die of hypothermia, it's your fault,” he told her.

“Noted,” she grinned triumphantly.

“Haha, weaklings,” Zell grinned, striking a pose with his hands on his hips. The air around him was steaming from Ifrit's fire in his veins. He was still wearing his shorts and short sleeve shirt, completely unaffected by the freezing chill in the air.

“Oh, shut up, Zell,” Rinoa glowered, raising her fur lined hood over her head.

Squall was already waiting at the gates for them to catch up. He had brought the binoculars down from the bridge and was using them at the edge of the garden to stare out at what Nida had found. The talking from his friends had him lowering the instrument to look back. Like Zell, his GF gave him immunity to the cold that was affecting them all to almost painful degrees. He felt it, it just wasn't a bad feeling.

His eyes landed on Rinoa first – because of course they did. He noted her shivering despite having winter-proofed her outfit. She was joining the others in glaring at the gloating Zell. He was a common enemy for them and their cold bodies.

“So, what's up, commander?” Selphie asked happily, bouncing in front of Squall.

“Take a look,” Squall passed her the binoculars as he spoke to the others. “The coordinates for the place on the map are a bit off, but this is the first thing we've seen out here, so we're going to investigate it anyway.”

“It doesn't look like a village,” Selphie frowned over the binoculars. She looked back and focused again on the strange, circular metal building with a blue glass roof and pipes coming off of it almost like spider legs. “It doesn't even look big enough to hold more than a few people.”

“Another reason to investigate it. I spoke with Headmaster Cid earlier, and he said that he's never been to Shumi Village itself, so he has no idea what it looks like. He got the coordinates from NORG, so that might be why they're slightly off.”

Selphie passed the binoculars on to Quistis as Rinoa stepped forward next to Squall. She squinted out towards the building. There was some light snowfall today, obscuring her vision, but at least it wasn't a full blizzard like it had been yesterday.

“Alright. So what are we waiting for?”

“Nothing, I'm ready to go now.” Squall looked back towards the structure, removing his jacket as he continued to speak. “We don't know if it's hostile or not, so just assume that it is.”

Rinoa started when she felt the soft, silk interior of the leather jacket settle over her shoulders. Squall's scent filled her nostrils as she looked down to see the black leather hanging over her body. It was a little cold because of Shiva, but her own body temperature would soon change that. She grabbed the edges and looked up, but Squall was already walking towards the lift.

She looked back at the others and they were deliberately not looking at her, grinning, as they also moved forward. Rinoa smiled herself and adjusted her arms into the sleeves as she hurried after them so she didn't leave them waiting on the lift.

The snow was thick on the ground. Squall's boots fell deep into it as he stepped down and he didn't think he had hit the ground yet. This far north, the snow probably never melted. The garden had pulled as close as Nida dared to the structure, but it was still a bit of a walk to the entrance. He led the pack, carving a path of sorts in the thick snow. The wind that bit at everyone's faces was like a gentle caress to him, the perfect temperature.

As they got closer, a path into the structure became more evident. Someone had taken the time not only to lay down stones to make walking easier, but to also kept it clean. As they walked in closer, Squall realized it wasn't kept clean by shoveling the snow. Pipes along the sides of the path were hissing out hot steam that melted the snow and kept it that way so that the path would never need to be physically cleaned off.

They walked into the shadow of the large dome and Squall had barely begun wondering how to open the large, circular door when a red light suddenly started blinking green. He froze in place, instantly thinking that it was some kind of defense system.

Then, with a hiss of steam, the doors slid open. Warm air rushed out, hitting them almost painfully in contrast to the cold around them. There was no one there, it had opened automatically. Squall hesitated for only a moment before stepping inside.

The crisscrossing of the metal beams in the glass ceiling cast long shadows on the dark soil. There was another door at the far end connected to a large blue glass tube and little else. No plant life, no furniture, no snow. The cold was a memory in this room that Shiva mourned even as the others were adjusting their clothing back, even Selphie returned Irvine's coat. Except for Rinoa. She was keeping Squall's jacket.

“What is this?” Quistis asked, her voice automatically lowering. They could hear the hum of a machine, but they couldn't see where it was coming from. The snow falling from above was sliding easily down the domed roof.

“Squall, look,” Rinoa pointed, touching his arm.

He glanced over to the side. Near some low, long steps that led to the far door, looking over to them with curious faces, three men with yellow skin, no hair, and little wobbling pseudopods hanging from their chins – or maybe they were their chins – were looking their way. They didn't appear hostile, merely curious, as they watched.

“Hey,” Zell frowned. “Don't they kinda look like...NORG? But, like, in miniature?”

“Think they're as hostile?” Rinoa asked, looking at Squall.

He said nothing for a moment and stepped towards the men.

NORG had been a large, towering figure. He had moved a lot, agitated and restless. His seafoam eyes glared all around him as he made weird murmuring sounds. The three shumi he walked towards now were about half of his own height. They were still but for their heads and eyes tracking his movements and there was no challenge in their gaze.

The one standing in front of the other two smiled at him.

“Welcome to Shumi Village,” he said, moving his arm to indicate to the side. “If you wish to visit the village, just take the elevator to the bottom level.”

“Bottom level?” Squall frowned, looking towards the blue glass tube. It was an elevator? It seemed rather large for such a purpose. “Shumi Village is underground?”

“Indeed,” the front one nodded. “You are most welcome here, of course. There is an inn if you are tired and food if you are hungry. If you cannot pay, you can trade or work. That is only fair.”

Squall nodded, agreeing with him, before moving towards the elevator. Just like the front, the door here opened automatically as they approached. The room they stepped into was large, contained individual seating set around in a half circle, and a control panel.

“ _Please have a seat,_ ” a chipper voice suggested over an intercom.

“What's up with this?” Irvine asked as the door shut behind him.

Selphie and Rinoa took the voice up on it's offer to sit. Squall and Quistis moved towards the control panel while Zell looked around and Irvine stood back.

“Where's the down button?” Quistis asked.

They didn't need to bother finding one. The elevator was apparently programmed to run on its own and they could hear its motor start up without any input from them at all.

“Oh, well then...” Quistis grinned.

Before she could say anything else, a hologram burst into life on the consul top. A miniature figure of the shumi people smiled out at them all happily.

“ _Welcome to Shumi Village,” he greeted, staring out into the room. “You have been specially permitted to visit and we hope you enjoy your stay. Please refrain from violence or disruption. The elevator will reach the village entrance shortly._ ”

“Selphie,” Rinoa turned to her. “Do you know anything about this place?”

She shook her head. “No, not really. Trabia Garden liked to trade with the shumis, but they usually came to us and I was never part of the group that would travel up here. I've met one before though. He was a really nice guy, very polite and soft spoken.”

“So, you two had nothing in common then?” Zell asked, snickering. Selphie glared at him as Rinoa hid her own laugh behind her hand.

The elevator moved fast. While the others were joking around, Squall was keeping his eye on a number that he imagined was the depth, if the negative value increasing was anything to go by. He could tell by that number when the elevator started to slow. The stop itself was so smooth and easy it almost felt like they still might be moving.

He turned from the consul then as the same cheery voice asked them to exit the elevator and wished them a nice day. The others fell in line behind him, just naturally accepting him as leader and therefore the first to walk through, as he approached the door.

It opened automatically as all the doors had done before it.

The rush of warm, fresh air hit them at the same time as the sight of an enormous meadow filled with tall grasses, climbing trees, and bright, warm sunlight.

“What the...?!” Zell jumped back in shock. “Wait, the elevator went _down_ , right?!”

“This is impossible,” Quistis breathed, almost afraid to step forward.

“How beautiful,” Rinoa gasped, her hand moving up over her mouth as her wide eyes traveled over the marvel set out in front of them.

Far below the arctic wasteland above them, Shumi Village was a vibrant, artificial habitat that somehow managed to be bright, open, and filled with blooming plant life. The air was as fresh as it would be in a peaceful valley, the scent of flower wafted on a soft breeze, and the artificial sunlight streaming down stroked their skin gently.

Amongst the dirt paths, living their lives normally, the shumi people were walking around slowly, like they might have no purpose whatsoever. A few of them glanced their way, but most of them kept to their own business.

Filled with more than a little disbelief, Squall walked forward slowly to the top of a large staircase leading down to the village proper. He half expected the vision to disappear and to be faced with dark, damp reality in the form of a cave system. The idyllic scenery didn't vanish. He didn't awaken from any sort of dream. Beside him, Selphie pinched herself as though to make sure she was still awake. A butterfly flew down and danced around Rinoa's head, making her laugh.

Unreal...

Squall started down slowly. The others kept close to him. Their heads were all on a swivel, looking around and trying to take in the full breadth of what they were seeing.

“Welcome to Shumi Village!” A shumi at the bottom said brightly, nodding as they came down. “Are you here to trade?”

“Trade?” Squall repeated, his boots hitting the ground. The dirt was strangely soft. Almost like he was walking on carpeting instead of a well beaten path.

“You must not be here to trade,” the shumi smiled like that was perfectly okay. “You're welcome here anyway. The inn is right there if you're weary.”

“Excuse me,” Rinoa interrupted him gently. “But...can you explain what's going on here?”

“Going on?” The shumi tilted his head, confused by her question.

“I mean...this whole thing is...how is this even possible?” She was back to looking around again, trying to capture it all. There was no blue sky, she could clearly see rock face up there along with vines that had grown to the top. But she could also see the sun.

“Ah, yes, well, we shumi are adept at harvesting minerals,” the trader explained. “It's simply easier to get them if we don't need to travel long mine shafts. Did you think we built a village 300 meters below ground for fun? Well, there was a little fun in it..."

“Well, I guess this explains the training center,” Quistis let out a long, admiring breath. “If they can build all this, the garden training center would be all too easy.”

“Oh, you mean the Balamb Garden Monster Habitat,” the shumi beamed. “Yes, I remember that very well. It was a true pleasure to spread our technology and techniques to the surface as more than just miners. Has it been holding up well?”

“Very,” Selphie beamed, throwing him two thumbs up. “Excellent work!”

“Yeah,” Zell nodded quickly, agreeing with her.

“Wonderful,” the shumi beamed. “Are you here to discuss that?”

“Well, actually...” Quistis gave Squall a look.

300 meters underground, probably unknown to Galbadia entirely, this was the perfect place to hide away from the sorceress. However, Squall wasn't sure about the ability of the place to provide supplies and food for the entire garden. It wasn't that big.

Still, they had come all the way out here. It couldn't hurt to ask.

“We recently discovered that our garden is mobile,” Squall said immediately without preamble. “We weren't ready for it and I'm afraid we're running low on supplies and have some powerful enemies after us. We were searching for a place to restock when we found this place on our map. We decided to check it out.”

“I see,” the shumi man nodded. “If that's the case, you'll want to speak to the elder. For trading on such a large scale, I'm afraid I'm not authorized to agree. I'll be most happy to discuss terms and pricing if the elder gives permission though.”

“Alright, we'll go speak to him,” Squall nodded. “Thank you.”

“Of course,” the shumi man nodded happily. “If you go that way, you'll find the elder's home.”

Squall thanked him again before turning and beginning to walk deeper into the underground meadow paradise. Even if Shiva disliked the warmth, he couldn't deny how much he enjoyed the sights of such an impossible place.

“Weird,” Rinoa said, looking back from the shumi and up to Squall. “Did you notice the way he talked?”

“Yeah,” he nodded.

“What about it?” Zell frowned.

“He sounded nothing like NORG,” Squall explained as Rinoa frowned in thought. “He had a slight accent, but it was perfectly understandable. And he was so small compared to him. Are they really the same species?”

Zell blinked as that dawned on him as well. “Huh...”

The five of them chatted – save Squall – as they moved deeper into the village looking for the elder's home. All the trader had said was that it was 'this way'. Squall imagined that they would be looking for the biggest, most impressive building.

However, all the homes they passed were humble and discreet. The shumi had roofs that dipped incredibly low to the ground on either side of their homes, but doors large enough to fit human sized people through. Like they were trying accommodate any human guests they might have.

As they walked through town, a few shumi would nod to them in greeting, but none of them stopped going about their day. Not like they were being rude, more like they were just busy and happy to be getting on with their work.

“Woh! Check it out!” Zell pointed suddenly further along the path.

“What?” Rinoa started when she saw it.

The vibrant red hair, the large paws and big black eyes. There was no mistaking the moomba that was standing in front of one of the homes. He didn't appear to be doing anything, just content to remain where he was and watch them pass.

“What's a moomba doing all the way up here?” Squall asked as they passed by, continuing to search for the elder's home.

“I used to see them all the time,” Selphie said helpfully. “I always just thought they were indigenous to this region. A better question would be how they got all the way to the Galbadian desert.”

As if the artificial meadow and sunlight weren't enough, the next thing that they came upon was a wide pond, almost a lake. Squall could imagine that this was already here and the town had been built around it when the shumi dug down and found it. They had merely introduced plant life, amphibians, and fish to the ecosystem.

“Wow...” Rinoa beamed, crouching down at the bank. A frog on one of the rocks croaked at her, expanding its wide throat, and she giggled. “So pretty! Squall, this place is like a paradise.”

She turned, beaming up at him. Squall had stopped when she did, standing next to her as she peered down into the water. He nodded in agreement. It really was quite an amazing place. Hidden away, like a gemstone in the desert sands.

“Squall, look at that,” Quistis pointed ahead of them. “That building isn't like the others. Think that might be the elder's home?”

Squall turned from Rinoa, followed Quistis's finger. She was gesturing to a building just a little further up the path. Though it had the same general design as the other homes, this one was quite a bit bigger than the humble places they had been passing. The ceiling was higher, the door wider, the glass in the windows of a different quality. It was the only building that had any noticeable differences from the rest.

“Let's check it out,” Squall said, walking past Rinoa. She stood up quickly and followed after him as he headed towards the stairs leading to the wide door.

Like every other door they had approached, this one opened automatically. Squall stepped inside first and this was definitely not the elder's house.

There were three shumis inside. One standing in the back, bent over a stone statue. The other two were walking between long benches containing a series of instruments and minerals spread out over the stone tops. This was not anyone's house. This was a workshop.

The two closer shumi looked up as they entered but didn't stop going about their business. Selphie beamed as she walked in behind Squall. Irvine was right behind her, looking around at everything in the room.

“What's that?” Selphie asked, pointing to the back of the room. Then, without waiting for anyone to answer her, she charged forward.

Squall opened his mouth to call out for her to come back, but she wasn't listening. He rolled his eyes before jogging after her. The others all followed him. He didn't want her disturbing these people at their work. And they were trying to find the elder, not sight see. He swore, he was not bringing her along to anymore missions like this.

As they got in closer, the shumi working on the statue stepped away from it to pick up something on one of the long benches. As he stepped away, the half finished creation he had been blocking their view of was suddenly visible.

Squall skidded to a halt in front of it as Selphie stared with a wide open mouth. The others behind him, but for Rinoa, mimicked his action. They stared in confusion and wonder at the, admittedly, half finished face. That didn't make it any less familiar.

That pose. The old machine gun. Long hair tossed back carelessly. The foolish grin. There was no doubt in Squall's mind.

He stepped in closer, turning his eyes over the depiction. It was life sized, the feet hadn't yet been carved out of the stone. It was still a little rough, it needed to be smoothed down.

“What is it, Squall?” Rinoa asked, looking between everyone anxiously.

Squall hesitated. “It...looks like Laguna.”

The sound of stone being dropped to the ground had them all turning to see that the sculptor had jumped to face them. His face was bright and a smile was crossing his features even as he was walking forward quickly.

“You know Master Laguna?” He asked Squall intensely.

“Well...sort of,” Squall said carefully, unsure how to explain.

The sculptor beamed and indicated to the statue. “This is Laguna Loire. Long ago, almost twenty years in fact, a moomba found this man lying near our village, covered in blood, and carried him down here. It appeared that he had slipped and fallen off a cliff.”

Yeah, that sounded like Laguna, Squall thought with a raised brow.

“We took care of him until his wounds were healed,” the shumi smiled, crossing his hands gently in front of him. “He was a very kind man. Quite unlike most humans we meet. He radiated a sort of charm that made him so likable despite his...shortcomings.”

Was that a polite way of calling him a moron, Squall wondered.

“I think it was his eyes,” the sculptor looked at the statue. “They were so open and friendly. You could detect no darkness in him. He was honest without being cruel and felt without reservation. Would you not agree?”

Squall hesitated, unsure of what to say. Somehow, he felt like insulting Laguna to these people would be very rude. “He's certainly an...unusual sort of person,” he said at last.

The shumi laughed. “You are careful to say that you did not like him. That is alright. My admiration is not at all diminished by your disdain.”

“I wouldn't say I disdain him,” Squall said quickly. “I honestly...don't know him that well. I'm interested in learning more though. What do you know of him?”

“Sculptor had very little interaction with him,” he admitted, frowning. “My loss, I'm afraid. He was quite a good man. If you wish to know more about Master Laguna, you should go talk to the Elder.”

“The elder,” Squall repeated. Well, that was where they were trying to go anyway.

“Sculptor insists that you go speak to him,” the shumi said eagerly. “Sculptor is sure it will please the Elder.”

There was a light shining in Sculptor's eyes as he waited for Squall's answer. It was like looking into the face of a child, an innocent, as they asked for a favor. Expectation, excitement, eagerness. It was the sort of combination Squall couldn't deny.

He nodded once.

The shumi beamed. “Excellent. For a foreigner, you have a big heart. Here, take this to the moomba guarding the entrance, it will let you pass.”

The moomba? Oh! That building had been the Elder's home? Squall took the small note Sculptor passed him with surprise. That home had been just as humble as any other. Squall didn't know of any leader that didn't have finery attached with his position.

But that also brought up a new question Squall wanted an answer to.

“You raise moombas in this village?” He asked, curious as to what they even were. They were too docile to be monsters.

“Raise?” Sculptor turned his head, confused at the question. “Moomba is one of the final forms that we shumis can take.”

“Final form?” Say what?

“You don't know?” the shumi asked, as though surprised someone might not. Then, ever helpful, he launched into an explanation. “Excluding the ones who are to become elders, all shumis evolve at a certain stage in their lives. We become what is in our hearts. Those who cannot become honorable elders turn into moombas. The passionate iniquity in their hearts gives rise to their red hair. Sculptor thought this was common knowledge. You did not know?”

“It's not really common knowledge above ground,” Squall admitted, hoping that wasn't insulting.

The shumi nodded sagely. “Sculptor understands. We shumi do not make much effort to connect with the outside world. Forgive Sculptor's candor, but your people are not always the kindest. We shumi are much more content underground. Oh, but please do not take that to mean that Sculptor is not pleased with our conversation.”

Squall shrugged, not at all hurt by the insinuation.

“Man, that must suck,” Zell shook his head. “Having to turn into those beasts.”

Squall knew that Zell had something wrong before Sculptor could even react. His yellow face darkened to a deep brown, like his face was flushing with anger. His hands raised in anger as he sputtered and his accent deepened to his more natural tone.

“B-B-B-BEASTS?! H-H-HOW DARE YOU CALL THEM BEASTS?!”

He shook his head quickly, trying to get his accent back under control. “Yes, the ones who become Elders are remarkable people, but to call those who don't... _beasts?!_ ”

The shumi made as though he was going to reach past Squall and throttle Zell. It was only his angered cries that came out though.

“Did you not see their noble features?! Their gem-like eyes revealing innocence! Their bright red hair symbolizing passion! Their spectacular mane signifying power! Their soothing, adorable cries! Their mighty hands with incredible strength! Their proud postures demanding respect!” His words were tripping over each other in their rush to come out. Sculptor slammed his hands to his sides, glaring at Zell. “Everything about them is great!”

“Okay,” Squall held up his hands, trying to calm Sculptor down. He turned and leveled a sharp glare over his shoulder at Zell who flinched back. That look didn't bode well...

“He apologizes,” Squall said quickly, looking back at Sculptor. “Zell doesn't really have much in the way of 'tact'. And he's pretty dense. He didn't mean any harm by it, he just didn't know any better.”

Sculptor, still agitated, tried to straighten his robes. “One cannot be blamed for ignorance, only for continued ignorance. If he does not know, he should learn.”

“I'm sure he'll be eager to learn,” Squall said deliberately and Zell flinched again. “I apologize again.”

Sculptor's face calmed slightly as he looked at Squall with a new expression. “Interesting. You're so different and yet...you remind me of him.”

Squall frowned. “Remind you of who?”

Sculptor smiled, shaking his head. “I'm sure it's just a coincidence. Please, the Elder's home is just down the path that way. Go speak to him.”

Squall nodded once and turned. Zell was eager to leave the building, but Squall couldn't help but look back at the shumi. Sculptor wasn't looking at him anymore though. He was now staring up at the statue of Laguna, a distant look in his eyes.

“So, Laguna made it all the way up here,” Irvine whistled as they started down the path. “That man really did end up going everywhere.”

“Sir Laguna is really amazing,” Selphie agreed, sighing happily.

“I think I'm kind of sad that I never got to see him,” Rinoa smiled. “It seems like he was a really great guy. What do you think, Squall?”

“He was...something,” he said neutrally making her laugh.

“I guess that about covers it,” Quistis nodded. “I can't imagine the two of you getting along. Kind of makes me wonder why Ellone always puts you in Laguna's head but changes up who gets to be Kiros and Ward.”

The others started laughing and talking as they returned to the house the moomba was guarding. He looked up again as they came in close and purred gently as Squall walked up to him. Squall hesitated for only a moment before pulling out Sculptor's letter.

“He asked us to speak with the Elder,” Squall said, holding it out.

The moomba didn't take it as he predicted. He sniffed it. Then he sniffed Squall. When his eyes opened again, they were bright and happy. He nodded, purring with a sweet, soft coo before stepping aside. He took a seat on the path and watched them calmly.

Why was it that both moombas Squall had ever met sniffed him, he wondered as he turned to face the Elder's home. The only real difference between this house and any of the others was the fact that his door was a bit brighter red.

Squall reached up to knock but it opened automatically. Squall hesitated for a moment before stepping forward. The others remained outside, not wanting to crowd inside. Except Rinoa. She was staying right by Squall's side as she came in. Her eyes moved around curiously but her steps remained even with his.

Walking the same path that he did.

The main room of the Elder's house was rather plain. Except for the circular fish tank that flowed clockwise above their heads complete with bright orange fish. Within, a shumi was standing to the left, watching them come forward. To his right, facing away from the door, was what Squall had to assume was the Elder.

He was taller than Squall was, totally opposite of the shumi that Squall had seen so far. He wasn't nearly so big as NORG, in height or width. As Squall explained to the shumi beside him, who called himself Attendant, why they were there, the Elder remained unmoving. First the matter of their supply problem, then meeting Sculptor and talking about Laguna.

“I see,” Attendant nodded, his eyes sparkling eagerly. “We appreciate you coming forward.”

“Your concern for our ability to supply your garden is most kind,” the Elder said, his voice considerably deeper than any shumi they had met thus far. “As it happens, we do not have a surplus of supplies or food.”

“I see,” Squall nodded, accepting that with a frown.

“However,” the Elder continued, “that is more due to our own farming and production methods. We do not make or grow what we do not need. I am familiar with the size of Balamb Garden and how many it can hold and I am confident that my people can produce enough for you. The discussion of trade agreements is Trader's job, I will let you work with him with my permission. Now then, onto the other matter: You know Master Laguna.”

The Elder finally turned and looked at them. His sea foam green eyes lit with intelligence, patience, and kindness. “If you would allow me, I would like to speak about Master Laguna for a moment.”

Squall said nothing as the Elder stepped forward, holding his hands behind his back. “I would say that it has been seventeen years since we found him in the snow, injured and near death. He had been on his way to Esthar to save a girl child by the name of Ellone that had been kidnapped by Esthar soldiers from their home in a small town southwest of here named Winhill.”

Squall and Rinoa shared a look before turning back to the Elder. The last time Squall had seen Laguna, he had been in Winhill with Ellone. Over seventeen years ago. And now, from the last place they would expect, another piece of the puzzle that was Laguna Loire.

“He had been mountain climbing with his friends, trying to enter Esthar from the north, when he fell from a cliff. His friends were to be looking for him, he promised, however he was in no position to be able to seek them out. So we opted to care for him.

“He stayed with us for a short while until his injuries healed. We shumi do not use GF and therefore do not use magic. However, there is a well of cure magic feeding the lake, and by drinking from it, Master Laguna was able to heal faster.” The Elder paused and smiled as he remembered back. “During his stay, he tried to teach a moomba how to speak.”

“ _Laguna! Laguna!_ ” As though through a tunnel, the moombas call from inside the D-District prison returned to Squall in full force.

“Why?” Squall asked softly.

The Elder grinned. “He told me that he felt sorry for the moombas because they don't know any words. He said that words are useful and precious. I believe that the moombas don't need to know words, because the important things can be communicated without words. Our hearts can call to each other, and convey our true intentions.”

“Our hearts?” Rinoa repeated, smiling gently.

The Elder nodded. “We are, all of us, connected to each other. Perhaps, we don't need words either. Perhaps, our hearts are enough to communicate. For those who find speaking to be difficult, and emotions hard to convey, it is their actions and hearts more than their words that speak.”

“I understand that,” Rinoa said, almost looking over to Squall.

“Even Master Laguna was not very good with words,” the Elder chuckled. “His communication skills were horrible. Despite that though, we still understood what he was trying to say. What he was so desperate to convey to us. How much he needed to save Ellone. His eyes, far more than his words, told us this.”

The Elder was staring deep into Squall's eyes now, surprising him with the intensity. Squall felt suddenly like he was being studied, dissected and observed.

It made Squall a little uncomfortable, but he didn't look away. He returned the Elder's gaze with a distant one of his own until the Elder grinned.

“That is all I have to say. Thank you for listening.”

“Why are you building a statue of him?” Squall asked, curious despite himself.

“You find it strange, yes?” the Elder smiled. “I doubt you will understand. However, we believe that Master Laguna has something very special. Something very rare. The power to attract people. Not through good looks or what have you, but through something else. Something difficult to quantify. We still do not know what it is. So we decided to build the statue of him. We felt that we may be able to capture that quality, to understand what it is that makes Master Laguna so special by doing this.”

That bumbling clown, Squall thought harshly. They believed he was able to attract people? Honestly, Squall was amazed he managed to survive to adulthood. He rather thought that wasn't something he should bring up though.

“Thank you for speaking with us,” he said instead, trying for diplomatic. “I'm afraid I'm not qualified to speak on trade either. That's more for Xu to handle. I'll call her down here to begin discussing with Trader an agreement. Excuse me.”

Rinoa was already turning towards the door, walking out, when Squall turned to follow her. The Elder stood up from the seat he had taken while speaking.

“Please, wait.”

Squall turned back as Rinoa continued out. He looked over to see the Elder giving him that same dissecting gaze from before. It was no more comfortable the second time.

Then Elder smiled. “Please. We would like to present you with a gift for coming all this way and listening to us. And for our new trade agreement. But, in Shumi, one must work to earn anything. This is our way. I have an idea that I think will work best. Please assist Sculptor in the workshop so that I can present you with this gift.”

“Assist him with what?” Squall asked, wondering how long that would take. He didn't want to be rude by refusing a gift, but he did have other responsibilities right now...

“Nothing too onerous, I assure you,” the Elder smiled. “I merely want you to assist in finishing Master Laguna's statue. We wish to have it completed as soon as possible.”

Squall thought it over for a moment before nodding. He was going to have to wait for Xu to finish negotiations anyway.  
“Very well.”

The Elder smiled, ignoring Attendant's look, as Squall left his home. Rinoa was already outside, explaining to the others what the Elder had said. When Squall caught up, he finished the explanation with the request given to him.

“Aw, man,” Zell frowned. “What's the point of a gift if you have to earn it?”

“It's their way,” Squall shrugged. “And you don't have to worry about it, because you're not helping. You're going back to garden and are going to write me a twenty page report on shumi culture.”

“What!?” Zell fell back a step, his eyes wide. “You gotta be kiddin' me! Come on, Squall! Make me do push ups or give me a grat body count or something!”

“That won't teach you a lesson about cultural sensitivity. The moomba are obviously important to them and you were insulting. I expect it by tomorrow, so you better work fast.”

“Frickin' hell!” Zell kicked at the dirt before turning to sprint from the village. He didn't want to find out what Squall would do to him if he failed to deliver the paper on time.

“Quistis, I want you to return to garden as well,” Squall said to her more calmly. “The Elder gave Trader permission to work with us so I want you to bring Xu down to begin negotiations. She'll know more about what we need than I do. You can assist her then consider yourself off duty when you're done.”

“Yes, sir,” Quistis smiled before turning to follow after Zell at a much more sedate pace.

“Rinoa, Selphie, Irvine; you all and I are going to help finish the statue. I've been assured it won't be difficult, but the sooner we finish it, the quicker we can go back.”

“Sweet!” Selphie laughed. “What are we doing?”

“We're going to ask Sculptor what he needs and do whatever it is."

Rinoa skipped to catch up as Squall started back towards the workshop. Squall's jacket was slipped off around her shoulders, hanging on limply to her, but she made no efforts to give it back. Squall wasn't trying to take it either.

Selphie and Irvine shared a grin to see it. Neither of them said anything because they didn't want him to get embarrassed, but they couldn't help but be happy for him. Ten years was an awfully long time to be alone and if he was finally changing, then that was a great thing.

Sculptor's eyes lit up when Squall told him what the Elder asked of him. He laughed as though he had been told a joke and nodded quickly.

“He's offering you that, hm...”

“Offering what?” Squall asked. The Elder hadn't offered him anything.

“That is a great honor, and it's rarely given to outsiders,” Sculptor beamed.

“What are you talking about?” Irvine asked, sharing a look with the others.

“Shall we get to work then?” Sculptor asked, grinning at him. Squall wasn't sure if he was deliberately not answering his question or if this was just how shumi acted. “Sculptor has the very important task of finishing this statue. To do so, Sculptor will need to do research on several different types of stones. Sculptor would like you to obtain samples.”

Sculptor waited, actually wanting Squall's agreement to do this. He was already here. He nodded, prompting him to continue.

“Sculptor needs five kinds of stone. Shadow stone, wind stone, life stone, water stone, and blue stone.”

“We don't know anything about stones,” Squall admitted, frowning.

“That is alright. The stones are so named because of their characteristics. And all five types of stones can be found around Shumi Village. Trader near the elevator is very knowledgeable about stones if you require assistance.”

“Sounds like fun,” Selphie laughed excitedly. “Right, Irvy?”

He nodded, tipping his hat. “Hey, Squall, wanna make it...interesting?”

“Somehow, I don't think I do,” Squall said dully making Rinoa giggle next to him.

“Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Irvy?” Selphie asked, clapping eagerly as she bounced on the heels of her feet.

“Five stones to find, two teams of two,” Irvine gestured to the four of them. “A friendly couples competition to see who finds the most stones.”

“Couples competition?” Squall and Selphie asked at the same time. He with a raised eyebrow, her with a raised voice.

“You sure you wanna lose that badly, Irvine?” Rinoa asked, leaning forward with her hands on her hips, one of the shoulders of Squall's jacket falling down loosely.

“If this were a battle, you might be right, but Squall doesn't know rocks,” Irvine crossed his arms, giving her a smug grin. “On the other hand, I have two earth GF's in my head. You sure that you wanna start bragging so soon?”

“Name the wager, Irvine,” Rinoa smirked confidently.

“Alright then. Besides the standard shame and humiliation that comes with crushing defeat, if you lose, you both have to join the garden festival committee and become _active_ members. No in name only stuff, you got me?”

“Fine,” Rinoa crossed her arms. “And if _you_ lose...hm...” She trailed off, trying to think of a suitable punishment.

“Irvine has to dump all his girly mags, and Selphie has to give up her rocket launcher,” Squall cut in easily.

Irvine gasped in dismay as Selphie cried out pitifully.

“Not my rocket launcher,” she moaned, her eyes going big.

“Squall, you can't be serious. It's just a misunderstood art form!” Irvine bemoaned.

Rinoa smirked. “Well, if you two want to bow out before the competition starts...”

Irvine and Selphie shared a look. Determination hardened their gaze and they turned back. Selphie nodded, agreeing to the terms.

“It's a deal,” Irvine tipped his hat. “Selphie and I are going to work you two to the bone when you're on the committee. Better get ready.”

Squall nodded. “First to three stones officially wins, but all five stones still need to be found. If you find a stone, bring it back. Sculptor, you don't mind keeping score?”

“Surely not,” Sculptor nodded, smiling at them. “Shall I declare the start?”

“Do it,” Irvine grinned as Selphie prepared to sprint.

“Ready...” Sculptor looked between them as all four youths lined up in a row.

“Set...” Rinoa was laughing, smiling at Squall as Irvine looked at them suspiciously.

“GO!” Sculptor cried loudly.

Irvine put his hands against Rinoa's side and shoved her hard into Squall. He reacted automatically, moving to catch her so she wouldn't hit the ground. Irvine hooked his foot around Squall's ankle and used the moment he was taking her weight her to send them both tumbling down. The two of them hit the ground as Selphie was already reaching the door.

Irvine, laughing, ran after her as Rinoa and Squall tried to detangle their limbs from one another. Rinoa was blushing at how close she was to Squall, he was trapped beneath her, trying his very best not to focus on the way her breasts were rubbing against his chest as they moved together.

“Irvine, you dirty cheat!” Rinoa yelled as she finally sat up, finding herself on her knees between Squall's legs as he got up as well.

“Pretty sure that's on Squall for being unprepared!” Irvine was yelling as the automatic door slid shut behind him.

“Come on!” Rinoa stood, holding out her hand for Squall to take. “They're getting ahead!”

Squall took her hand – more just for the pleasure of taking her hand – and stood up. “All right. Let's- huh?”

“What?” Rinoa, who had already been taking a couple steps forward, turned to him. “What's wrong?”

“Sculptor, one of the stones you wanted was blue, right?” Squall looked at him.

“Blue, shadow, wind, water, and life, that is correct.”

Squall pointed to the rows of rocks that were already lined up behind Laguna's statue. One of them, sandwiched between a dark gray stone and one of Sculptor's instruments was a very bright and beautiful shade of blue. The whirls of color in the stone were subtle but lovely. And Sculptor had said that their names were a clue.

“That stone is blue,” he pointed out, his voice carefully neutral.

Sculptor turned to see what he was pointing at. His face suddenly flushed a slight brown as his spine straightened awkwardly.

“Hey, don't tell me this is the blue stone,” Squall frowned.

“Oh,” Sculptor laughed sheepishly. “Sculptor completely forgot. Sculptor already has blue stone. Oh, but that still counts as a point for you! One down, four to go. You're already in the lead. How fortuitous for you that your opponents do not know about fair play.”

Squall face palmed as Rinoa laughed.

“Oh, come on. A point's a point,” she pulled on his arm with a smile. “Let's go. There's still two stones left for us to find.”

Sculptor waved them off as the two of them ran out after Selphie and Irvine. By the time they got outside, the others were no where in sight.

“Want to go talk to Trader? Get some hints?” Rinoa asked as they started down the steps.

Squall thought about the list of stones and knew the likelihood of him being able to find them on his own were small. He knew nothing about geology. He nodded and led the way down the path as the two of them raced for Trader near the town entrance.

As they were turning onto his street, they spotted Irvine and Selphie standing up from a rock. Their hair was moving in the breeze that circulated impossibly down here.

“Hey, losers,” Irvine grinned, holding up the seemingly innocuous gray rock. “Wind stone, infused with an aero spell. It generates the air currents down here. That's one-to-zero. Feeling nervous yet?”

“It's one-to-one, Irvine,” Rinoa corrected, smirking. “We already found blue stone.”

“What?” He started, taken aback. “How did you find it that fast?”

“Better start saying farewell to those magazines,” Rinoa called back, laughing as she followed Squall down the path.

Irvine and Selphie shared a look before running back to give Sculptor their catch.

Xu worked fast. As Rinoa and Squall were running up to Trader's table where the two of them were already deep in negotiations, she was already talking to him eagerly. Quistis was there as well, smiling gently at the exchange between the two parties. She looked up as they approached.

“Oh, hey, Squall,” she greeted. “Come to check on us? We're doing fine.”

“No, that's not quite it,” Squall shook his head. “I'm sorry to interrupt, but can I ask you a few questions Trader?”

“Hm?” The shumi looked at him curiously. “Of course. What do you need?”

“Just information. The Elder has us on an assignment for Sculptor and we need to find some stones. We don't really know anything about stones though.”

“Oh, of course. Trader shall be happy to assist,” he nodded. “What do you need to know of? Mythril? Adamantine? Moon crystal? There is no substance, no matter how rare or obscure, that Trader does not know about."

“What about shadow stone, life stone, and water stone?”

Trader's face fell slightly, a little baffled. “Shadow stone, life stone, and water stone? Those are very common sorts of stones. Why is Sculptor sending you after those?”

“He said he needed them for research,” Squall crossed his arms. He was really starting to feel like he was being mocked right now.

“Oh. Well, it is not Trader's place to say what Sculptor might or might not need. What do you need to know?”

“Where we can find them. What they look like. That sort of thing.”

“That's easy,” Trader smiled calmly. “Shadow stone is a dark rock, gray and rough to the touch. It's very photosensitive and degrades quickly in bright lights. You're not going to find it anywhere that receives a great deal of light, especially sunlight. Life stone is a beige sort of stone, usually soft with marbling. It is so named because you can grow plants on life stone like it is soil. Water stone, of course, is to be found in water. It's light gray in color and spongiform in texture. It tends to be found in thin sheets and is excellent for use in washing. Is that helpful?”

Squall nodded. “Very much. Thank you. I'll let you get back to negotiations. Xu.”

“Commander,” she nodded back to him. There was a grin on her face. A hungry sort of expression she only got when making a deal. She was having the time of her life right now. Quistis, standing next to her, recognized that same look and she and Squall shared a glance over it.

Rinoa waved to the both of them as she and Squall started back.

“So? Where do you want to look first?”

“Honestly, they sound rather ubiquitous,” Squall frowned. “There's just so many places that they _could_ be it makes it more difficult to narrow down.”

“Ah. Cheaters at three o'clock,” Rinoa pointed slightly ahead of them.

“That's one o'clock,” Squall corrected automatically as he turned to face forward.

“That so doesn't count as 'finding' blue stone!” Irvine snapped at them, slightly irritated, as they drew even with each other.

“Jealous you didn't see it first?” Rinoa asked, grinning at him.

“Of course!” Irvine glowered as they ran past. Selphie stuck her tongue out at them as they continued back down the path. Squall didn't know where they were going, though he imagined Irvine might be correct about them having the advantage in this competition.

“Let's go to the lake, Squall,” Rinoa pulled on his arm again. “I bet we can find water stone there.”

“It certainly seems like the place for it,” he agreed, letting her lead him.

They started back, heading for the water's edge. Rinoa was talking to him, laughing and practically skipping from excitement. It was such a little task they had been set, but it was enjoyable for precisely that reason.

Squall was paying attention to her words. He really was. At least, he was listening to her with half an ear. It wasn't that he didn't enjoy hearing her slightly melodic voice, he was honestly just a little distracted.

Rinoa was having fun. Her cheeks had flushed in response giving a slight glow to her skin. The bright smile spreading across her cheeks brought light into her eyes. The fear that had been controlling her for the past week was dissipating slightly.

She was also wrapped in his leather jacket. And though it was a very loose fit on her, hanging off of her shoulders almost completely now, it made Squall feel rather possessive over her. She had looked good wearing his SeeD uniform jacket, she looked great wearing this jacket in her dress, in this attire she looked even better. Sinful and seductive. And she wasn't even trying.

She was completely oblivious to the affect she had on him. She didn't know that Squall watched the way the ring on her necklace bounced off of her breasts slightly as she walked. She couldn't know that he watched the pulse beat in her neck and imagined pressing his lips there. Or that the way her perfume hit him made his world narrow and focus on the smooth planes of her skin and had his fingers itching with the desire to run them along each dip and curve.

She had changed since she had started traveling with him. Squall compared her to the girl he had first seen bathed in moonlight in the ballroom of the garden and, though they were the same person, they seemed so different to him.

The highlights in her bangs were grown out now because she hadn't had time nor opportunity to keep them fresh and she didn't seem to care that much. There were so many more important things than her hair right now. Her skin had been gently kissed by the sun, bringing a vital glow to her coloring. Her arms now had more muscle tone and definition and her thighs had thickened slightly from all the running and fighting she had been doing.

Not only was she still beautiful in Squall's eyes, she was even more so than she had been. He liked the muscle tone, he liked the healthy color, he liked how there was an awareness to her air now like she was beginning to watch her surroundings as he did. She was still feminine and sensual, she just now no longer looked so delicate and breakable. Squall felt like he could pull her into his arms and not damage her in the process.

She looked strong enough to hold. Tough enough to squeeze. The kind of girl he could throw down onto his bed and place his weight on while he lowered himself into-

Dammit!

Rinoa grabbed the edge of Squall's jacket to pull it up as the air got suddenly colder around him. She didn't think much of it. He had been getting cold at random times since he had started using blizzara in place of blizzard. He just needed to get used to the power boost. She was focused on trying to find the stones.

Meanwhile, Squall was busy going over monster statistics of every beast he had fought since his first visit to the training center to keep his mind off of Rinoa's body and what it would be like to lose himself, to stop thinking for one damn minute, in that body. She would be warm, she always was, and the sweet way she called his name-

“Squall!”

He jumped guiltily. Thinking for a crazy moment that she had somehow heard his thoughts. Or maybe the cold Shiva was wrapping him in wasn't doing enough to calm down his body and she had seen something.

However, when she grabbed his arm to stop him and he halted, he turned to see that she wasn't even looking at him. She was beaming up at the short drop off they were walking by.

“Look!” she pointed eagerly.

Squall followed her hand, confused. The drop off was just a bit taller than his head. There was a tree growing at the top and its roots were bursting from the side of the earth alongside vines that were climbing their way up.

Then he looked closer and he saw it. There, amongst the roots and vines, were many sand colored rocks with marbling. A few with roots actually growing out of them.

“Life stones,” Rinoa beamed. “Can you reach them?”

Squall stepped off the path and towards the drop off. All the stones were higher up than he was, probably higher than he could jump. The roots looping through the earth looked sturdy though. He shrugged and reached up to grab one.

“Careful,” Rinoa said sweetly as he started climbing.

He hesitated only for a second before continuing up. She was telling him to be careful while climbing a rock that he couldn't even hurt himself on if he fell from the top.

That was so nice. No one else cared for him like she did.

Squall reached forward and pulled one of the sandstone colored rocks out of the ground. Below him, Rinoa clapped in approval.

“Sweet! Let's go give it to Sculptor.”

Squall released the wall and dropped down to the ground. He landed neatly in front of her and she smiled at him.

“Showing off?” She asked with a grin.

“It was faster.” Yes. Yes, he was.

Rinoa fell into step beside him as they started back. They weren't running this time, kind of content to just walk. It was so nice down here. Everything seemed to be going slower. Even though they knew it was a competition, it was hard to work up a great deal of urgency.

“I really like it here,” Rinoa admitted as they started past the lake. “It's so calm. So peaceful. It's almost like this place isn't even part of the world.”

“Yeah...” Squall looked out over the peaceful lake stretching across the enormous cavern that he still couldn't believe was underground.

“It's too bad we don't get to stay for longer,” she sighed, looking down at her hands.

Squall glanced over to her, frowning. “Well, you know, we aren't going to leave immediately. They won't finish negotiations and loading the garden up tonight. We can stay here in the inn. If you want to.”

“You'd do that for me?” Rinoa beamed up at him. “We don't have to. I'm not complaining. Balamb Garden is really beautiful. It's just...I feel so at peace here, you know?”

Squall did know. Standing in this place, it almost felt like all the responsibilities he had were fading from his mind. All that mattered was the lake, Rinoa's footsteps in time with his, and the sunshine pouring down over them.

Simple. Easy. Wonderful.

The two of them stepped into the workshop and walked back to where Sculptor was sanding down Laguna's thigh on the statue. He looked up as they approached and stood up straight.

“Is this it?” Squall asked, holding out their prize.

“Yes! That's it,” Sculptor beamed and took it from him gently in his large hands. “Wonderful. All that's left is the water stone and the-”

“Shadow stone.”

Squall and Rinoa turned to see Irvine holding out something wrapped in a piece of cloth. They looked from it up to him and he frowned.

“Look, it's in there, alright. Every time we expose it to the light, it starts turning into dust. Just trust us, it's in there.”

Sculptor stepped forward and took the package from him. The shumi was careful to hide the stone in the shadow of his own hands as he checked it. He nodded and wrapped it back up.

“Where was it?” Rinoa asked curiously.

“Up top,” Selphie beamed. “We found it in a shadowy spot under the dome. There's just no where dark enough down here often enough for shadow stones.”

“Excellent,” Sculptor nodded to them. “With that and their life stone, that leaves only the water stone left to find with a tie in points. Whomever finds this stone wins.”

“Hey, Squall?” Irvine looked to him.

“Hm?”

“Think fast!”

Irvine grabbed Rinoa by her shoulders and threw her at him. Rinoa threw out her hands to catch herself. Squall grabbed her hand and spun her around. Rinoa spun with him and used their combined strength and momentum to slam her knee into Irvine's gut as he tried to run away.

Coughing, he sank to his knees as Selphie cried out in surprise.

“I am not a bag of potatoes!” Rinoa snapped at him. “Stop throwing me around!”

“Did you really think I would fall for that twice?” Squall asked calmly, raising an eyebrow.

“Ow...” Irvine grunted painfully, his voice strained. “You've gotten stronger since you last hit me."

“Come on, judge!” Selphie beseeched him. “That's got to be illegal, right? Some kind of foul?”

“He _did_ cheat last time,” Sculptor said calmly, shrugging.

“Come on, Squall,” Rinoa put her nose in the air and pulled him out. He didn't realize until she tugged on it that he was still holding her hand.

He made no move to make her release him either.

Until she released him herself at the water's edge. She dropped down and started pulling off her boots and rolling up her winter leggings. Her bare feet were strangely more erotic than Squall would have imagined the sight before actually seeing it. He was seeing a part of her naked that he hadn't before and he hungered for more.

“What are you waiting for?” Rinoa asked, smiling as she set her shoes off to the side. She slipped Squall's jacket from her shoulders and gently folded it before putting it on her shoes. Then she untied her duster from her waist to fold and put on top of that.

He wasn't really waiting for anything. He was just watching her get undressed and feeling hypnotized by the sight. He was physically disappointed to the point of almost feeling pain when she stopped there and stood up.

Her dainty feet tip ted across the dirt and into the water. She laughed at the coldness of it but didn't jump back in shock.

“Come on, Squall,” she turned back to him, grinning. “You're not going to start searching in your clothes, are you? Take your boots off and roll your pants up.”

Oh, what the hell...He was already here anyway. Squalled kneeled down and did as she ordered. Pulling off his boots and socks and rolling up the leather of his pants before stepping in after her. Rinoa watched him do it and he couldn't begrudge her the act since he had done the same.

It was kind of odd seeing him so undignified, Rinoa thought to herself as she ran her feet along the silty bottom of the cavern lake bed. He was such a proper guy that watching him roll up his pant legs was almost funny.

He stepped in after her and she beamed at him.

“Want to separate and you'll look over there while I look over there?” Squall asked, pointing first left then right.

Rinoa beamed and grabbed onto his arm and held it like she was embracing him. She would have actually done that if she wasn't unsure of how he would react. “No, I don't.”

“We would find the stone faster.”

“We probably would.”

“If we lose we have to be on the garden festival committee.”

“I'm willing to risk it.” Rinoa smiled at him as she pulled against him. “Stay with me.”

Squall didn't attempt to fight her as she pulled him across the water so they could search. As they were wading across the shallows, Selphie and a wincing Irvine stepped from the workshop. They glared at them as they rushed towards the water.

“We'll find it first!” Irvine told them firmly, reaching for his boots.

“Yeah! Yeah!” Selphie kicked off her shoes quickly, throwing away her socks, before running into the water. Irvine had to roll up his pant legs but he rushed in after her a moment later. The two of them split up to search around the pond while Squall and Rinoa looked together in their area.

The shumi had done some terraforming to the area that was the lake. There was a layer of silt and soil for plants to grow on. However, despite that, it was still obviously a lake cavern. Squall could see, through the clear water, stalagmites growing up through the ground and the marks showing where the water had been wearing away at it for centuries.

“Look!” Rinoa laughed, pointing. “They even have fish!”

“So they do,” Squall nodded, seeing the flash of silver scales as it fled their presence.

There were plenty of rocks here. None of which fit the requirements of what they were looking for. A spongiform, gray blue rock in thin sheets. It was all marbled rock or regular earthen stone. Lovely, but rather unnecessary for them.

As Selphie moved quickly across the water, probably missing many things, Irvine stayed back and very exactingly went over every inch with a sniper's patience. Meanwhile, Squall and Rinoa stayed close together as they moved deeper into the water.

As the minutes dragged on, however, none of them found anything that even remotely looked to be the water stone. All the stones here were worn soft and smooth, nothing close to spongiform. Selphie started to become impatient and began complaining. The others, used to practicing patience, didn't let their lack of success irritate them.

Squall was bent over, running his hands through the silt at the bottom to find the irregularly shaped rock when she struck out of her boredom.

A sudden splash of cold water along his back and legs made him jump up and turn. Selphie was doubled over, laughing, after having kicked the water at him.

“How old are you?” Squall asked, frowning as water dripped off of his back.

Deliberately, he turned from her to see Rinoa covering her mouth with both hands, trying very hard not to let the laugh show on her face. Her eyes couldn't conceal it though and Squall raised an eyebrow at her.

“Funny?” He asked calmly.

Rinoa shook her head, her hands still firmly on her face.

Squall opened his mouth to tell her to get back to work when a second splash hit him. This time covering his head and flattening his hair against his scalp and face. He turned angrily to see Selphie had fallen down laughing and Irvine was whistling nonchalantly as he pretended to search an area all four of them had already covered.

“Seriously?” Squall frowned, flicking off the water running down his hands.

“Not my fault you had your back to an enemy,” Irvine smirked.

Water rushed past Squall's head and splashed against Irvine's torso. He looked down, then up again as Rinoa took her place beside Squall. Grinning, she flicked the remaining water on her hands at his face and he flinched reflexively.

“Your fault for not keeping your eyes open,” she grinned at him.

Irvine growled and kicked out, sending a large splash in her direction.

Squall reached out and caught it, freezing it in midair so he ended up holding a chuck of large ice while the smaller droplets splashed back down as tiny ice crystals.

“Hey, no fair using magic!” Selphie yelled, throwing up her arms.

The large wave of water she called forth rushed towards them.

“You don't get to call cheat then cheat!” Rinoa snapped throwing out her hand.

The gravity magic Diablos gave her pushed back against the tidal wave and sent it crashing right back over Selphie. Her cry of surprise was cut off as the water fell over her head.

Squall closed his fist, shattering the large chunk of ice he held into powder. Then he pushed them all forward so they coated Irvine. His body heat melted the tiny crystals almost immediately so he became drenched in near freezing water.

He cried out from the cold, his limbs locking up.

Squall leaned back, smirking and crossing his arms, as Rinoa laughed at the two of them.

“Admit your defeat already,” she demanded.

Selphie growled, wiping off her face and jumping to her feet. The water rolled tumultuously around her as she did so. “Never!”

“You'll pay for that!” Irvine yelled, dropping his hand down into the water. His hand smacked against the rocky floor and sent it rolling only around Squall and Rinoa. She lost her balance, he did not. He reached out and caught her by the arm before she could fall.

His eyes narrowed on them. “So be it.”

Attendant was humming as he fed the fish in the large aquarium that encircled the Elder's home. The fish, ready to eat, had gathered around the area where he was sprinkling the food. Behind him, the Elder was talking to Trader who had come over to finalize the details of the trade agreement that he had reached with the garden representatives.

Attendant moved down the tank, spreading out the distribution of food so that not only the larger fish would get to eat. In doing so, he moved in front of the Elder's front window. It was not sight but the shrieks of laughter and outrage that were distinctly human that had his eyes raising.

The large wave of water coming up out of the pond had him flinching back. His jaw dropped slightly as it turned to snow and crashed down over the four teenagers in the pond. It melted before hitting the water's surface so as not to ice the water itself. It soaked two of them, not the other two.

“Um, Elder?” Attendant called out, frowning at the sight. “There's...um, well...”

“What is it?” Elder asked calmly, standing.

Unsure of how to phrase it, Attendant pointed out the window. The Elder joined him at the window and looked out to see a large rock upending the girl with black hair into the water. She splashed down, jumped up, and sent a wave of water over the long haired boy in one easy motion.

“What are they doing?” Attendant frowned.

Elder smiled at the epic splash battle being waged outside his home.

XXX

Rinoa was panting and soaked as she collapsed back onto the bank of the pond. She didn't care about dirt covering her hair or clothes at this moment. She was so tired from the battle that she didn't really care about anything.

Much calmer, Squall sat down next to her. He looked out into the pond where Selphie had disappeared under the water and Irvine was seated in the shallows. Getting wet didn't really matter since all four of them were soaked to the bone.

“We didn't find the stone,” Rinoa laughed breathlessly, turning her head to look at him.

“I'm sure Selphie will find it,” Squall shrugged, unconcerned. She had gone underwater to search the deeper parts of the pond with Leviathan's abilities.

“Would you two like a towel?”

Squall turned and Rinoa dropped her head back to look at the shumi who had come up behind them. He wasn't one they had met yet, but he was holding two towels in his hands, smiling at them.

“Thank you,” Rinoa beamed, sitting up and reaching out.

Squall took the second one and started running it through his hair as Rinoa wrapped herself in hers. He nodded his thanks as Rinoa sat back on her heels.

“What's your name?” She asked him.

“I am called Artisan,” he nodded. “Very pleased to meet you.”

“I'm Rinoa. This is Squall,” she introduced them. “Thanks for the towels. And, uh, sorry for all the noise.”

Artisan laughed at her self-conscious grimace. “It's alright. I am quite used to the noises humans make. You're a very loud, boisterous sort of people. I rather like it.”

“You do?” Rinoa tilted her head curiously.

“Oh, yes. Artisan met humans like you once when I was traveling. The people I met were artisans like myself. They shared the same soul as we shumi, though they were boisterous as humans. They were good people. Most shumi are distrustful of outsiders, but not Artisan. I know there are good humans in the world.”

“Thank you,” Rinoa beamed. “What kind of stuff do you create, Artisan?”

“Would you like to see?” He asked quickly, his eyes shining brightly.

Rinoa nodded eagerly and Artisan smiled wide.

“Very well. This way. My home is this one right here. I will show you.”

“Come on, Squall,” Rinoa laughed, pulling on his arm as she stood up.

He didn't protest as he got to his feet. Still barefoot and soaking, the two of them followed Artisan up some dirt steps and into his home. Squall was worried about tracking dirt and water inside but Artisan waved away his fears and urged him forward.

“I shall show you my work,” he said, reaching for a switch on the far wall in the kitchen area. He hit it once and they heard something open.

Down from above the bed, a tiny car fell. He flicked it again and it was joined by a tiny jeep. A third time and a small bus joined them. Rinoa gasped in delight as she ran forward. Artisan was smiling at her reaction as she began inspecting the models.

“The artisan's I met inspired my work,” Artisan explained.

“May I touch them?” Rinoa asked eagerly.

He nodded and she immediately pulled up the tiny car into her arms. Squall walked around her and joined Artisan in the small kitchenette.

“Why cars?” He asked as Rinoa looked it over.

“They're marvelous little machines. So complex and useful.”

“Oh!” Rinoa's eyes lit up as she used the tiny handle to open the door. “It works!...Hm? Wait...The inside looks absolutely perfect.”

“It's fully functional,” Artisan nodded. “Of course, no one could use it, it's too small. However, you can probably operate it with your fingers.”

Rinoa reached inside and pressed the tiny button to start the car with her nail. She jumped back when the little engine actually roared to life. She laughed in delight as she reached inside and hit the gas and the tiny back wheels started spinning.

“Oh, Artisan! This is marvelous!”

Artisan flushed light brown at her compliment.

“Why build a fully functional car no one can use?” Squall couldn't help but ask.

“Why build a miniature car that it purely decorative?” Artisan returned. “There's no purpose to it if you're not also willing to create the engine. That's where the challenge lies.”

“I suppose that _would_ be a challenge,” Squall agreed as Rinoa turned the steering wheel in delight.

“Artisan does not mean to pry,” the shumi started slowly, “but what were you doing down there? Before the water war started, I mean.”

“We were looking for something for Sculptor.”

“Ah. Artisan did not mean to interrupt your task.”

“It's alright. Selphie and Irvine will find what we're looking for.”

“You are dripping wet.”

“Sorry. I can leave if you'd prefer.”

“It is alright,” Artisan smiled. “If you wish, you can wring out your shirt in the sink. It will help a little, I would think.”

Squall nodded and turned around in the kitchenette. He was reaching for the hem of his shirt when his eyes gazed down into the sink and he paused.

A dark blue, spongiform stone was resting in the center of the shallow basin.

Squall reached down and took it in hand.

“Hey, Artisan, what's this?”

“Hm?” Artisan turned from Rinoa – who was now admiring the bus – to see what he was holding. “Ah. That is Artisan's washing stone. Excellent for washing clothing. Would you like some soap to clean your shirt?”

“No, I mean...Artisan, can I have this stone?”

“You want my washing stone?” Artisan asked, obviously confused.

“I'm willing to trade for it. I have many items or gil or even a service. That's what we're doing for Sculptor right now.”

Artisan shook his head, grinning. “That's fine. If it means that much to you, you can have it.”

“But I thought it was the shumi way to work for what you earn.”

“Of course. You have already given me a great gift by admiring my art. My fellow shumi are appreciative, but they can not understand it as humans can. Your companion's reaction is more than enough in payment. I can get another washing stone easily.”

“Thank you,” Squall nodded to him, closing his hand around the stone. “Rinoa, we're going to see Sculptor.”

“Hm?” She lifted her head up from where she was looking at the tiny engine in the jeep. “Oh, already?”

“You can stay if you want.”

“No, that's okay.” Rinoa gently shut the engine again. “Thank you so much for showing this to me, Artisan.”

“Thank you for your heartfelt appreciation,” Artisan smiled back at her.

Rinoa waved at him and threw one last look at the miniature cars before following Squall out of the house and back onto the path. Irvine was standing in the shallows again, hands on his hips as he looked out to where Selphie was swimming under the water.

Squall ignored the two of them and started back towards the workshop.

“So why did we leave?” Rinoa asked.

Squall opened his hand and showed her. She gasped.

“The water stone?! Where did you find it?”

“In Artisan's sink.”

“Huh? What the...Why was it there?”

“I don't know.”

“Why call it the water stone if it's not in the water? That makes no sense. Why wouldn't they just name it 'the washing stone'.”

“I don't know,” Squall shrugged.

Rinoa shook her head as they stepped into the workshop. They made their way to the back where Sculptor was lining up a chisel with Laguna's calf. He turned as he heard them approach though and lowered the instrument.

“Did you get it?” He asked.

“Is this it?” Squall lifted the stone and showed it to him.

“Yes!” Sculptor beamed and took the stone from his hand. “That is the water stone. You've won the competition.”

“Yes!” Rinoa threw her fist in the air, laughing. “I'm gonna go tell the others!”

She beamed at Squall before running out to let Selphie and Irvine know.

“Did you go swimming to find it?” Sculptor asked, looking at the state of Squall's clothes.

“Yeah, we did,” Squall said shortly, crossing his arms. “I rather wish you'd have mentioned that we wouldn't find it in the pond. Calling it 'the water stone' is slightly misleading.”

“Ah, well...” Sculptor cleared his throat. “Congratulations on your victory! And your job is complete. You may go see the Elder now about your gift."

Squall stared at him for a long moment, but Sculptor was excellent at keeping his emotions off of his face. He looked right back at Squall, apparently nonplussed by his gaze.

Finally, slowly, Squall turned from him and left the workshop. Sculptor waited until the door had shut behind him before letting out a relieved breath.

Outside, Selphie was seated on a rock in the pond, pouting, while Irvine tried to wring the water out of his long hair. Rinoa was grinning at them, seated beside Selphie, her boots back on her feet. Squall's boots were on her lap, his jacket settled over her shoulders. She looked up as he came out and smiled.

“We won!” She laughed, kicking her feet.

“My poor magazines...” Irvine moaned sadly. “That collection is years old! Come on, Squall. Have a heart for once in your life.”

“Forget your magazines!” Selphie crossed her arms. “My new RPG! I was about to have it engraved.”

“I expect them both gone by morning,” Squall said ruthlessly.

“You're so cold,” Selphie cried pitifully.

“I won't forget this, Leonhart!” Irvine vowed, leveling a finger at him. “What you are destroying today is not mere paper and ink. It is _art_!”

“It _was_ art. Now it's trash,” Rinoa giggled.

“That's not even right,” Irvine sighed. “Come on, Selphie. Let's get this over with.”

“I don't wanna!” Selphie yelled loudly even as she followed Irvine back up the trail.

Rinoa grimaced slightly. “I almost feel bad.”

“I don't.”

“Why not?” She looked over to him as he took his boots from her and sat down to put them back on.

“Do you honestly think either of them are actually going to go through with it?”

Rinoa opened her mouth. Hesitated. Then closed it again. “Yeah. You might be right.”

Rinoa continued to kick her feet against the rock as Squall finished dressing and unrolled his pants. He was still soaked, but he could deal with it. She was hardly in any better state. Her dripping hair was stuck to her head, her clothes clinging rather tightly to her body. It was taking all of Squall's not inconsiderable willpower not to stare at her in that moment.

He stood up and she jumped down from the rock. She was smiling at him, content to remain here with him even though the others had already gone.

“We'll talk to the Elder,” Squall told her, starting forward. “Then we can rent a hotel room if you still want to stay here tonight.”

“Oh, Squall. So soon? I don't know if I'm ready,” Rinoa dithered, pretending to blush and grabbing for her cheeks.

Squall frowned at her. “What are you talking about? You're the one who wanted to stay here.”

Rinoa laughed and took his arm. “You're so awesome, do you know that?”

Squall blinked, uncertain of what was going on. He felt like he had missed a cue somewhere along the line. She didn't look like she was mocking him, but what did he know?

“Don't worry about it,” Rinoa waved his confusion away. “You just keep on being yourself. I like you just like that anyway.”

Squall's eyebrow raised at her. The way she smiled as she leaned against his arm. He was really rather comfortable with her right there. Past the point of tolerating it and just being familiar with it. He was now starting to count on the weight of her head against his shoulder.

She didn't release him until they were about to step into the Elder's house. He could tell that she did so with some reluctance and he let her go with the same feeling.

The Elder was seated when they walked inside. Attendant tilted his head curiously at their damp state of dress but didn't comment on it.

“You finished your task?” Attendant asked instead.

“All the stones Sculptor asked of us have been delivered,” Squall nodded. He was getting really curious now as to what this gift was.

Attendant smiled and nodded. “Wonderful. The Elder will now present you with a gift.”

All eyes turned to him as the Elder got to his feet. He smiled at them pleasantly.

“For your services, it gives me great pleasure to present you with this.”

Squall was already taking an expectant step forward as the Elder held out his hand. The large limb turned over and Squall stopped suddenly.

There was nothing in his hand.

The Elder continued smiling. Squall stared down into his palm, confused. Behind him, Rinoa tilted her head curiously, frowning.

“Um,” Attendant looked between the three of them. “Elder, Attendant is having a hard time seeing it.”

The Elder looked to him sweetly. “Oh.”

He turned his palm down further, offering Squall a better look at it. He could see the crease lines in his hand, could count the extra knuckles in his long fingers, and could trace with his eyes the dark brown veins going down his wrist. He could not, however, see anything.

“...There's nothing there,” Rinoa said first, grabbing her elbow in confusion.

Squall looked over to Attendant who was looking into the Elder's palm with nearly the same look of baffled confusion that he felt.

“What the...I don't see anything,” Squall said to him.

“Ah...” Attendant hesitated, obviously unsure of what to do. Well, he wasn't going to go down without giving it the good old fashioned shumi try. “Isn't it amazing?! When he holds something in his palm, you can't even see it. Such is the power of a person who has attained eldership.”

The Elder took his hand back, still smiling peacefully. He was looking directly at Squall like this was completely normal. Squall looked between him and Attendant, trying to make some sense of what was happening.

“So, what's the gift?” Squall asked as politely as he was able. The last thing he wanted was to offend people who might very well become steady suppliers for the garden. At the same time, he just had to know what he was seeing.

“Uh, what else?” Attendant stuttered, trying to find something reasonable to say. “It is the honor of seeing his hand.”

Squall and Rinoa shared a look but Attendant pushed forward quickly, trying to follow up.

“These great hands have shoveled the earth!” he said, his own hands moving with his speech as he put a bright smile on his face. “These great hands have created wonders! These great hands justify his eldership!”

“Wha...” Rinoa's eyebrows creased. Was it a cultural thing?

“We are proud to send you off with this gift,” Attendant beamed at the two of them. “Do stop by again. Good day.”

It was a rather hasty dismissal, but it was clear nonetheless. Squall and Rinoa shared another look before she shrugged and started to leave. Squall called out after her, telling her to wait up for him, and started after her.

He didn't make it through the door before Attendant called out again.

“Hold on.”

Squall turned back to see Attendant hastily pulling something off of the Elder's shelves.

“We forgot to give you a souvenir,” he explained, smiling. “It's embarrassing to present you with this silly thing after what we have already given you, but...”

Attendant stepped forward and he had something obviously in his hands this time. Squall reached out and let him place the object in his palm. Attendant drew back and Squall blinked to see a bright red feather that seemed to gleam with gold dust.

“What's this?” He asked, lifting up to his eyes. It was iridescent and somehow...warm?

“That is called a phoenix pinion,” Attendant explained, smiling at him. “It's a rather rare item, but we have no problems giving it to you.”

“It's beautiful,” Squall nodded, wondering what he was to do with it. Was it decorative or...

“Indeed. The great Phoenix sheds such feathers with each death and rebirth. They are said to contain the life force that makes his existence eternal.”

“Wait, what?” Squall lifted his eyes.

“Oh, yes. This feather is said to be able to return someone even from death. It is of little use to we shumi for we do not believe it is right to interfere in the natural cycle of life and death. However, for a warrior such as yourself, we thought it might prove more useful.”

Useful? If what Attendant was saying was true, such a gift was worth more than all the gil in the world! And they were giving it to them in exchange for collecting some common stones?!

“I don't...T-Thank you...” Squall said in awe, lifting his eyes.

Attendant nodded, smiling at him. “And, please, do not be afraid to come by anytime you wish. You may consider yourself to be an ally of the shumi people. You are quite kind for outsiders.”

Numb, cradling the feather like the priceless treasure it was, Squall stepped out of the home. Attendant waved happily at his retreating back as the door shut behind him.

Rinoa was waiting on the path, thinking. She turned as he stepped outside. “Hm? What's that?”

“It's...” Squall hesitated, unsure of how to describe it. He decided to go with short and clinical and explained to her what he had been told.

Treating the fantastic feather carefully, he put it into his INVENTORY as Rinoa watched it with her mouth open in a small 'o' of incredulity.

“They just gave it to you?” She asked, baffled.

Squall shrugged. “They insisted. I wasn't going to say no. Especially after that hand thing.”

Rinoa frowned, tilting her head. “Do you think that maybe that hand honor thing was true?”

Squall opened his mouth, hesitated, then opened it again. Finally, he shrugged. “Maybe. Who's to say? It might be true. You notice he's kept his hands concealed since we met him.”

“Yeah. He's pretty subdued,” Rinoa agreed. “I've never really met a person in power so...humble.”

Squall nodded, casting his eyes around the enormous cavern. “Judging from this place, the shumi people are pretty advanced. So they can't be stupid. They probably knew that hand thing wasn't going to impress us, even if it is an honor for their people. That's why they also gave us the feather. To try to show us honor in their own way.

“They really admire Laguna here. Hyne knows why. And since we know him, they wanted to treat us kindly. A friend of a friend kind of thing. Their kind gesture just came out weird, that's all. But at least they tried. I think, overall, it was a decent, heartfelt welcome. Especially between two such different cultures.”

“I didn't really think of it that way,” Rinoa grabbed her elbow, smiling sweetly. “That's really nice.”

“It's funny,” Squall looked back over the Elder's home. “The Elder humbly concealed his hands. NORG meanwhile showed them off constantly.”

“It takes all kinds,” Rinoa shrugged, smiling gently. Her heart was warmed by the sweetness of the shumi people. So very different from NORG. Squall nodded, agreeing with her.

Inside the home, Attendant carefully looked out the window. He could see the humans talking, but he couldn't make out what they were saying.

“What a sham,” he sighed at his own lies. “They probably know.”

“Of course,” the Elder laughed in delight. “There was a fierce shrewdness in his eyes and a keen intelligence in hers. They are so young yet they carry such heavy burdens. It is a shame...” Elder sighed. “In a different time, those two would still be considered children. The Great Cataclysm eighty years ago ruined the youth of today for all humans.”

“Elder?” Attendant tilted his head, confused.

Elder shook his head. “You are too young to remember. It's alright. Those two...The weight of destiny is heavy on them. There's no doubt that they know.”

“Then why did you bother with the charade?” Attendant couldn't help but ask. “You should have just said 'here, there's nothing'. Why bother pretending to give them a gift at all? We are lucky we had that feather or we would look like fools.”

“I did not want to give them material things,” the Elder explained, frowning softly at his Attendant. “I wanted to give them a moment of peace, of fun, and our heartfelt welcome. They are still so young, I wanted them to remember what that means. Even if only for a short time.”

“Hmm,” Attendant looked at him critically. “Sounds like a poor excuse.”

The rudeness of his one words didn't register in Attendant's mind until Elder smiled at him quite peacefully. He turned away from him, his voice was honeyed when he spoke.

“I have an assignment for you.”

“Yes?” Attendant asked carefully.

“I want you to assist Sculptor in the shop. You will not rest or sleep until the statue of Master Laguna is completed.”

“ _W-What?!_ ” Attendant's mouth fell open. “Wait a minute. Y-You misunderstood me, Elder. Please...Mercy...”

The Elder continued to smile quite peacefully. His Attendant would make a great Elder someday, of that he was sure. He wouldn't be his Attendant if Elder believed otherwise. However, he was still young and had a great deal to learn.

When Attendant saw no mercy on his Elder's face, his body slumped.

“ _No-o-o-o-o!_ ”

Outside, Rinoa and Squall jumped at the plaintive cry.

“What was that?” Squall frowned, looking at her.


	28. Centra

“That's not possible,” Seifer mumbled, staring into the darkness that was his room. The old headmaster's personal bedroom here at Galbadia Garden. Now it belonged to Sir Seifer. As everything in this garden belonged to Sir Seifer.

“It's true.” His mistress's voice was in his head now. Like a GF but stronger. She didn't need to be in the room with him anymore to pull on his leash.

“How could I have forgotten all of that?” Seifer asked, whispering in his own disbelief.

The headmaster's old bed, now his new bed, was luxurious and large. Seifer was taken care of very well here and it showed in the health of his skin and quality of his clothing.

There was something lost in his eyes though. Something had been sucked out of his soul. And, in its place, was obsession and mania.

Seifer was having trouble keeping track of days anymore. Everything seemed to be bleeding into each other. He knew he had spoken to Fujin and Raijin when he had arrived at this garden. He had been debriefed on their failed attempt to take Balamb.

But he couldn't remember if that was this morning or yesterday morning or last week. He couldn't remember coming into this room to sleep, but his body felt heavy like he may have been laying there for days.

Except his mistress was coming to the garden today, and everything was suddenly clear again. They were going to be abandoning Dollet and discontinue their Ellone search elsewhere. They were moving on, regardless of the fact that they weren't finished here yet.

His mistress had begun preparing him for what was to come and what he needed to do. Seifer had to work in order to earn the sweet dreams that he had. To earn the glory and respect bestowed upon him by his title.

To prepare him today, his mistress had reached her magical hands into his mind and began toying with the memories that lay dormant there. Everything that had been locked away by the GF use through the years was suddenly brought out into the light.

And Seifer couldn't quite believe what it was he was seeing. The memories...

He had always known he was an orphan. Tracking down his parents or his heritage had never been of great importance to him though. Seifer felt that, in story telling, all the best heroes and knights had come from orphan backgrounds. It made the best hero archetype.

With his own past being laid bare for his eyes though, he couldn't help but wonder if maybe he shouldn't have looked it all up before.

Himself, the chicken-wuss, the messenger girl, the great instructor, and, of course, Mr. Leader. All of them, together, as children. Bound together by Ellone, their Sis. The same Ellone that Seifer was currently hunting down to serve up to his mistress's whims.

His past. The beginning of his dreams. Looking up to his precious Matron who had sheltered him from a harsh world and vowing to protect her. She had laughed, smiling in delight at the enthusiasm of a child who had no real idea what he was saying.

Had that been the start of his dream? Matron had never kept the fact that she was a sorceress hidden from the children. She would often use her magic to create fun little games for them. Dancing ice sculptures, winds for their kites, displays of flashy, harmless lights.

And more. She had kept monsters away from the orphanage. She had protected them from the war going on around them. If food was scarce, she would create it. If water was low, she would summon more.

Seifer, who had lost his family to that war, a child too young to remember, had grown very attached to her. He had loved her powers. Loved her magic. Loved her. When he had learned that they hid from the world because people feared and reviled her, he had been angry.

His own origins. His own motivations. Forgotten in the power of the guardians.

But he had succeeded. He had everything he wanted right now. He was a sorceress's knight. He had the respect and might of an entire nation and its army under his control. Childhood dreams be damned, this was his reality now.

He was powerful. Unstoppable. He protected his sorceress. He defended her from the world that would turn against her. He had to destroy those who would harm her. That was the vow he had made all those years ago.

“Not right now. Now is not the time for dreams. Get up. Obey.”

Seifer's eyes, that he didn't realize had closed, opened again. The darkness in the headmaster's old room was suddenly banished. There was sunlight outside now. Had he fallen asleep? He didn't remember having fallen asleep...

Time to get to work, he told himself, standing from the bed. If his body protested about movement after so long of stillness, he didn't notice.

If a small voice in his head cried out for him to stop what he was doing, to stop all of this, he didn't hear it.

Lost in the manic obsession, Seifer picked up his Hyperion and made for the door.

He had a destination in mind now. And a purpose to fulfill.

That damn Squall. Always protecting Ellone. Hogging her. Even now. He knew where she was, of that Seifer had no doubt. He simply had to find him and pull the information out of him.

Seifer grinned at the memories of Squall bound to the electric generator. About the way his body had twisted and twitched. The cracking of his bones. The screams of his agony.

The screams of Seifer's own agony, buried deep in his heart, as what was still him was ruthlessly covered up by sweet dreams and purpose.

Time to put an end to him at last.

Somebody...save me...

***

It took the shumi tribe three days to resupply the garden. The shumi people, when called upon, were very industrious and creative workers. Though they hadn't budgeted for supplying their large garden, they managed to bring out enough to do so and get to work for future supply runs. What they gave them would last about a week, however the shumi would have more by then. Eventually, they would only need come back every month or so.

More than pleased with the outcome of their journey north, Squall turned his attention to the gathering of magic and supplies for his team. If they were going to go fight a sorceress, he wouldn't allow them to be equipped with anything less than the best. If nothing short of that was good enough for Cid, then he could certainly reach for that same level.

In deciding where they should hunt next, it was Xu who suggested Centra. The southern continent had no major cities or communities. At least, not anymore. It was, nowadays, a hub of monster activity, many of which possessed powerful magic spells. Exactly what Squall wanted.

Since it would be faster to just travel around the pole of the planet, Nida maneuvered the garden around the island Shumi Village sat on and continued around towards the Centra Continent. Almost as soon as they landed, people began leaving on day trips. Nida decided to start sleeping during the day and moving at night to allow others to hunt while there was long.

Not long after that, they had their first cadet accident. A girl who had gone off on her own hadn't returned at sundown. Which meant that Squall and Xu immediately started an enormous search effort to find her.

It took over three hours to find her at the bottom of the ravine she had fallen into. Though she was alive, she didn't escape without injuries. Or punishment for leaving on her own.

Which prompted Xu to force Squall to deal with the next problem. The rules that needed to be enforced when leaving the garden. On Balamb, where almost every monster was easy to defeat, it had never been a problem before. With the garden mobile, it suddenly was.

So before Squall could take the others in his team out hunting, he had first needed to draft a new set of rules and regulations for leaving the safety of the garden. It also came with a set of punishments via Xu who was quite annoyed at the cadet who had gotten hurt.

When Nida next pulled the garden to a halt so he could sleep, Squall called a mandatory garden wide meeting in the cafeteria – the only place big enough to hold everyone. It was there that he gave the address on outing rules.

“First and foremost, and more important than any other rule: no SeeD, cadet, or student is allowed to leave the garden alone,” Squall ordered them from the small dais that elevated him slightly over their heads. His hands were behind his back in parade rest as he spoke calmly and clearly. “Any student caught leaving the garden alone will be subject to harsh punishment, not the least of which is loss of leaving privileges.

“Secondly: All SeeDs, cadets, and students are to be back on the garden no later than sundown. If anyone is still outside after sundown, it _will_ be treated as an emergency situation. Search groups will be formed, Dr. Kadowaki will be put on standby, and all resources utilized to find the missing person. I have been informed by Xu that, one way or another, a person who is out after sundown is going to be returning to garden with injuries. Allow that to motivate you.

“Which brings me to my next point. Every SeeD, cadet, student, and instructor is required to take their microchips to the technology department to be fitted with a tracking device. This will be considered the first line of defense in finding any who get lost.

“All other rules regarding outings have already been sent to you. Read them in your own time and memorize the contents. I have already been told by multiple instructors that there might very well be a quiz given over the contents.

“Thank you for your attention. You may return to your day.”

Squall's dismissal was informal. However, the reaction of everyone else was not. Very few remained standing during the small speech. When he finished though, there was no one left sitting as they all got to their feet. An entire room gave him a formal salute before chatter began to break out and people began filing out of the room.

Squall let out a long breath, glad that was over with, as Rinoa stood from her place beside the stage and climbed up after him. Her new microchip, installed in a wristband she was wearing under her cotton bracers, already had a tracking device installed. She was, in fact, the first to receive it and had been the test for how far out one could go before they lost signal.

It was around three hundred yards. Not perfect, but wireless signals never were.

“Not bad, commander,” Rinoa admired, clapping for effect.

“I hate public speaking,” Squall growled unhappily. “And don't call me that.”

“You let everyone else call you that,” Rinoa pointed out. He had been unhappy at first, but he had eventually given way when it became apparent that no one was going to stop. It was the first time she had done so, and the first time in a while that she had heard him protest.

Squall gave her a dull look as he led them down off the stage. People were excited to get out and test themselves against more Centra monsters. Nida had also told Squall that he had seen some ruins in the distance and that information had somehow gotten out.

Squall was already anticipating the headache he would get from wanna-be treasure hunters and archaeologists.

“Who's magic are we getting today?” Rinoa asked, smiling.

“Well, I think we should be able to get the last of it here. If we work our way around Centra, gathering the rest of the mid-level magic shouldn't be a problem. There's even high-level magic here. Not that we can use it. Mid-level will be easy.”

Rinoa nodded, agreeing happily. From just traveling across the continent, already she had many new spells from the list Squall had created. Diablos had taken control of them eagerly. He had a great deal of power to control, but he did so easily.

“Are we going to go try to look through the ruins?” Rinoa asked eagerly as she kept pace with Squall.

“Why?”

“For fun, of course,” Rinoa laughed. “Isn't it crazy that only eighty years ago this place used to be a big civilization? It's amazing how much can change so quickly, huh?”

“Mm,” Squall hummed noncommittally. He didn't really care about an old civilization or the Cataclysm. None of that was important to him now.

“Really makes you wonder about life, doesn't it?” Rinoa sighed, looking up at the ceiling with a soft smile. “How it can all end – poof! – just like that. All those lives that were over before they started. All those people that were killed in their prime. It's really sad. There's haunted lands under our feet, Squall. Doesn't that just give you the willies?”

“No.” Squall wasn't even sure what the 'willies' were.

“So what are you going to do next? Are we going out hunting now?"

Squall looked at his watch, frowning. “We'll have to go out later. Or tomorrow. I need to meet with Xu in about five minutes about the SeeD hiring problem. We think we've got a solution but we need to hold a test run. Then I have a lesson with the gunblade cadets.”

“Okay.”

Squall looked over to her at her chipper answer. “That's it?”

“Is that not enough?”

“Usually you ask to go with me.”

“I thought it bothered you when I did that.”

“I didn't say that,” Squall frowned slightly. He didn't really mind her tagging along with him. He was more worried that she was bothered by how boring his daily life was.

Rinoa smiled and stopped as they reached the nexus. “You go talk to Xu. I've got an appointment anyway.”

“With who?” And why did Squall suddenly feel so very concerned about it?

“One of the instructors saw me using my blaster edge the other day and offered to give me some specialist training even though I'm not a student.”

“Really?” Wait! She was getting instruction from someone else?! Why did he feel so...betrayed?

“You're a great teacher, Squall,” she hastened to say. “It's just...our weapons are so different. There was naturally going to come a point when you couldn't really teach me anymore. This instructor is a blaster edge master, among other things.”

“Of course.” Squall nodded once, unable to deny that logic. In fact, he started to feel better knowing it was something so perfectly reasonable. It wasn't her attempting to get away from him.

“I'll see you after your lesson,” Rinoa promised. “Good luck with Xu.”

She waved at him and started walking away. Squall watched her go with hooded eyes. She got a only a few steps away before she hesitated mid-step. Squall tilted his head curiously. Rinoa paused for just a second before turning.

She smiled and ran at him. Before Squall could react, she was jumping up onto her tip toes. The soft feeling of her lips against his cheek stole Squall's breath. The contact was brief, not even a full second, before she was falling back down.

Rinoa's face was bright red as she took some steps back. “Later!”

Squall blinked, frozen in place as she jogged away from him. Squall was rather sure that his face was almost as red as hers had been.

Slowly, he reached up and touched his cheek with gentle fingers. He could still feel the heat of her lips burning into his skin and it felt like every nerve in his body was suddenly focused on that spot. Such a sweet, brief, innocent thing and it felt like it had just shattered something that Squall didn't realize had long ago hardened in his chest.

***

“Winhill, huh?” Quistis said as she and Squall walked down the hall. “That's actually not a bad idea. It's not exactly a port town, but it's near the water. And it is where Sis is from. That would make a great place to search for her. Shall I tell Nida to set the course?”

“Please,” Squall nodded to her. “Leave the note in his room. He just got off duty. I'm going out hunting. I'm taking Irvine and Zell with me. It's a good place to get their magic.”

“Going to make your way towards the ruins?” Quistis asked, smiling. They were closer today than they were yesterday. Many people were talking about heading that way.

“Maybe,” Squall shrugged. He didn't really care. He was going to go where the monsters were. But knowing Irvine and Zell, he would probably find his way down that way. “I plan to be gone through the night. I've already let Xu know.”

“Abusing your power already?” Quistis laughed.

“I allowed for special night training sessions in the rules,” Squall told her calmly. “And we can't work Nida every single night. He needs a break as well.”

“You, Irvine, and Zell, hm? Sounds like a fun boy's night. I might get Selphie, Rinoa and Xu together for our own fun night.”

Squall hummed in agreement, not really caring. Rinoa already told him she was staying inside tonight so he wasn't worried about her safety right now.

“We'll do typical girl things,” Quistis continued despite his lackluster reaction. “Paint each others nails. Have sexy pillow fights in our nighties. Compare techniques for pleasuring men with our-”

“Since when did you like lying so much?” Squall asked calmly, raising an eyebrow at her.

Quistis laughed at him. “Alright, we don't do any of that. But there will be plenty of girl talk.”

“As opposed to...?”

Quistis continued laughing, shaking her head. “It's just no fun baiting you. I think I'll go find Irvine and taunt him instead. I bet he'll react much better.”

“Don't forget Nida's instructions.”

“Of course,” Qusitis nodded and split away from him to walk towards the dorms. Squall continued on towards the front of the garden where Zell and Irvine would probably already be waiting.

He wasn't at all surprised to see Rinoa sitting on the rail next to the elevator. He did frown at the sight though because it was a straight drop to the water below.

“Isn't that dangerous?”

“Squall!” Rinoa looked up brightly, not having seen him approaching. She quickly jumped down and rushed to his side. “Did you and Quistis finish your lesson?”

“Yeah,” he nodded, stopping in front of her. “I'm going down to meet with Irvine and Zell.”

“Great! I brought your bag!” Rinoa quickly turned and ran back to the rail. She came back again, carrying the black bag he kept in his closet. It was filled with supplies. Squall frowned because he hadn't packed it.

“Where did you get that?”

“I found it. Decided to help you by filling it myself.” Rinoa beamed, pleased with herself, as she held out the bag to him. “I asked Xu what you would need and packed it based on that. I can't say that I'm an expert on camping, but I think I learned enough from you to help.”

Squall already had everything he would need in his inventory. He could have told her that. Instead, he reached out and took the bag from her hands with a nod.

“Thank you.”

Rinoa beamed, holding her hands behind her back. “You're leaving now?”

“The sooner we go, the sooner we get back.”

“Yeah, but I get the same amount of time without you either way.”

“Quistis is thinking about organizing a girls night,” Squall shrugged, wondering if that would be a comfort for her.

“That could be fun,” Rinoa nodded. “Though I'll still be lonely without you there.”

“What would I do at a girls night?”

Rinoa burst out laughing at the dead serious tone of his question. Her insinuation went right over his head. She supposed she was going to have to spell things out for him. He just wasn't the kind to let his mind go there without being directed in that direction.

“Squall, are you going to think about me while you're gone?” Rinoa asked, stepping in close to him, putting one hand on his chest.

Squall's eyes moved from her hand back up to her eyes. “I'm only going to be gone a day. If that.”

“I notice that wasn't a no,” she grinned.

Squall hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Yeah. I'll probably think about you.”

Rinoa's grin widened with her eyes. “You admitted it.”

“I said probably.” Honestly, if he was going to base it purely on precedent, he would likely not get her out of his head the entire time they were apart.

“That's close enough for me,” Rinoa leaned up just a bit. “I'm going to think about you. So you're going to think about me, and I'm going to think about you. We'll be thinking of each other at the same time. It'll almost be like we're together again.”

“I don't know that that logic follows,” Squall raised an eyebrow at her.

She laughed at how serious he was all the time. “Our hearts will be together, even if our bodies aren't.”

“Is that a line from your book?”

“No. The line from the book is 'no matter how far apart we are, even if death should separate us, our hearts will always be together. In that way, my most beloved, we will never truly be alone'.”

Rinoa reached up with her other hand, grabbing onto his biceps as she stood almost between his legs. The garden around them faded away as the world narrowed. They were going to be apart for only a single night and a day, but that time stretched out before them seemingly infinitely.

“How can they be together if one of them is dead?” Squall asked seriously, looking at her with guarded eyes. Like he really wanted her to provide a reasonable answer.

“I told you. It's their hearts that are together.”

“Your heart can't be anywhere but in your chest.”

“Our souls then. Our thoughts. Our intentions. We are together in our own hearts, so our hearts are together.”

“Sounds like romantic drivel,” he said softly, his eyes warm on her face.

“Yeah. Romantics like to talk that way a lot. But, you know, they're not wrong.” She moved her hands back over his chest, putting them over his beating hard. She could feel the dull, vital thud under her palms and it made her smile. “Can you feel me in your heart, Squall?”

All the time. Every day. She was infecting, invading, his every thought and emotion.

“I notice that wasn't a no,” she smiled as his silence, coming in closer.

Her scent was wrapping around him now. Blurring the world in his mind. He could count every eyelash on her slowly closing lids. Denying him the sight of her beautiful brown eyes but drawing his attention down to her plump pink lips. Coming together, reaching for him.

He wasn't trying to stop her. His own head was angling. His nerves straining for her. He needed a taste of those sweet lips to last him in their hours apart. If he must be separated from her scent, from her sweet touch, then he could go with the memory of the taste of her lips.

Her back arched her chest against his. His free hand itched to reach out and touch her. He started reaching out to grab her waist and pull her in closer. To completely eradicate any space that might exist between their bodies.

Their breath mingled together in the air between them. Squall's eyes started to shut, to allow him to better feel. He could feel the heat of her torso just under his palm.

“Yo, Squall!”

Rinoa jumped backwards as Squall threw a dark look over his shoulder. Zell was waving at the two of them as he walked in closer. He was smiling without a care.

“Glad I'm not making you wait,” he said, drawing even with them. “I thought for sure you'd already be down there. I got caught up showing-...I, uh mean...I just got caught up.”

“Subtle,” Rinoa frowned, crossing her arms. “You were with the library girl, weren't you?”

“She wanted me to show her how I make my gloves,” Zell explained, smiling. “She likes sewing, you know. It's something we have in common.”

“I still can't believe you like sewing,” Rinoa's eyebrow went up.

“Of course. I've wanted to start making my own gloves for a while,” Zell raised his current pair. “And do you know how often I have to fix these things? Better to just learn it myself.”

Rinoa sighed, giving Squall a side glance. He was carefully not looking at her. She could tell, however, by the hard set of his jaw just how annoyed he was with Zell.

“Shall we get goin'?” Zell asked, oblivious.

“Yeah,” Squall said flatly for want of anything better.

Humming, ignorant of what he had interrupted, Zell started strutting off towards the front. Rinoa sighed and looked over to Squall with a sad smile for what was lost.

“Have fun,” Rinoa touched his arm and leaned up. “And keep me in your heart.”

Squall said nothing as she stood up to give him a kiss on his cheek. A second one, as sweet as the first, tinged now with bitterness. It wasn't as quick as the first one and he had more time to appreciate her soft lips. Now he could imagine easier what it would be like to have her lips against his. And he wanted it more than anything before in his life.

Rinoa smiled as though she could see it in his face. “The sooner you go, the sooner you get back, right?”

Squall didn't say anything for a moment. Which was fine with her. Rinoa had learned to appreciate his silence. He just wasn't a talkative kind of guy.

She started to turn to leave, to let him go off on his own. When he called after her-

“How about when I get back...we have dinner?”

She turned again, a bit confused. “Sure. Want me to reserve some hot dogs or something?”

“No. I mean...dinner.”

Rinoa blinked. Not understanding.

“Maybe...dress up. Have something a little special. A...date.”

Rinoa gasped softly. Her heart began racing as she looked at Squall's face. Turned away from her just a bit in embarrassment. She almost tripped over herself in her eagerness to accept.

He smiled at her. A very subtle upturn of his lips. But it was powerful. And it made her feel like everything in the world was made better by the sight. He nodded once then turned and started after Zell.

It was hardly a declaration of love. And it was brief. Squall moved away rather quickly, putting a bit more haste into his steps from embarrassment. From anyone else, Rinoa would almost have considered that a rude farewell.

Because it was Squall, no one else but Squall, she felt her heart melting in her chest. He had smiled at her. Not with her or about her, but deliberately at her. He had shown a sign of happiness and he had shared that moment with her.

And he had explicitly asked for a third date! His idea! With no prompting on her part!

He would finally be hers. All hers! No other girl could tempt him away. Not that she expected him to be interested, she was just putting her claim on him. The thought of any other woman throwing him eyes made her angry. Rinoa didn't realize that she was the jealous type until she had spotted some other garden girls looking at him as he passed by.

Not at all acceptable. It turned out that Rinoa was absolutely the envious, possessive girl. Squall was a fantastic specimen of manhood and strength. Loyal, responsible, strong, smart, and incredibly attractive even despite the long scar across his face. A guy like that could no doubt make a great, safe house anywhere he chose. He had a great source of income, mastery over one of the most powerful weapons in the world, and was a physically perfect human.

No doubt he appealed to all the SeeD girls around here. There was no way Rinoa was just going to stand back and watch as one of them tried to move in on _her_ territory.

Oh, crap. Rinoa had worn her only nice dress in front of him twice. And she had absolutely nothing sexy to wear under it! Even if she could get him to 'lay his claim' there was no way she was ready for him to do so.

“Quistis! Selphie!” Rinoa turned and ran off in desperation.

***

Ever since the Great Cataclysm, the once fertile and vibrant lands of Centra had become little more than a wasteland. What forests did grow were made of the toughest, sturdiest plants. Monsters ran rampant here, where their numbers were usually tamed around the other continents. With no cities, with no human civilizations, the monsters were free to roam and breed without end.

Squall barely had time to do anything but fight monsters since he left the garden. His group wasn't the only one to leave the safety of their mobile base but there was still a surplus of monsters in all directions.

“Damn!” Zell panted as he stood up from the remains of the grand mantis they had just recently brought down. He wiped his gauntlet over his sweating brow. “They just keep coming.”

“You aren't lying,” Irvine nodded, grateful he had left his coat behind. It was hot enough down here that he didn't at all need it. He rather found himself envying the power that Shiva had that enabled Squall to be perfectly fine even in hot weather.

The good thing about the constant barrage of monsters was that they were finding themselves quickly gathering a great deal of magic and supplies. And being so busy gave Squall little time to focus on the hollow feeling left in his chest at being away from Rinoa.

What was wrong with him? How obsessed could one person be? He had lived his life just fine before her for nearly twenty years. Surely after only a few months he wasn't so attached that he couldn't go a single afternoon without her...

“So are we heading towards the ruins?” Irvine asked, pointing over to where the structure sat in the middle of nothing. Many had already gone. And though all of them came back, they all insisted that they didn't want to return.

Squall looked over his shoulder, back to where the garden was floating over the land. They had traveled a decent way from the building. However, Squall thought they could probably still make it back before curfew if they moved quickly. He could see her again...

There would be no purpose. He turned back deliberately. He was going to stay away to prove a point. He wasn't entirely sure what point, but he was proving it.

“Yeah, let's go to the ruins,” he said, walking forward. The physical exertion was probably going to be good for him anyway.

***

“I've got snacks!” Selphie declared, walking into Xu's room with her arms loaded down with all of the 'secret' stash of Zell's room.

“You can put them there,” Xu pointed to the counter in her kitchenette.

Xu's room had been chosen for this particular get together because her room was on the third floor and was bigger than the standard SeeD dorm.

“This place is really nice,” Rinoa said, turning around. It was close to the small suites enjoyed by the regular students in that she had a door between her bedroom and the rest of the apartment. She also had her own bathroom and a small TV in the wall. It was hardly a palace, but it was the biggest room Rinoa had seen around the garden yet.

“All upper level personnel live on the third floor,” Xu explained, setting out the mixed drinks she had prepared herself. “Myself, Cid, and a few of the senior level instructors have their rooms on this floor. It's much more private than the dorms.”

“What about Squall?”

“Hm?”

“Squall,” Rinoa pressed. “He's the commander. Is that not high enough level?”

“Yeah, most definitely,” Xu nodded. “There's no room at the moment though. All the suites are full. I already talked to Squall about it. He said it was okay. He didn't mind living in the dorms despite his title. Does that bother you?”

“Well, the dorm room walls aren't sound proof,” Selphie said, picking through the trail mix she had just poured into a bowl to pick out the chocolate pieces.

“Selphie!” Rinoa flushed bright red.

“What? Am I wrong?” Selphie looked up innocently. “Why else would you ask me about lingerie?”

“She asked you about lingerie?!” Quistis looked up, startled.

“I regret everything,” Rinoa his her face in her hands.

“Well, this just got more interesting,” Xu grinned. “Don't tell me you're actually considering making love to him, Rinoa? Can you imagine what that would be like?”

“Missionary,” Selphie said immediately.

“Regimented,” Xu grinned.

“He'd be totally quiet,” Quistis nodded knowledgeably. “That was always the thing I dreaded most about him. I can't imagine trying to be in bed with a ghost.”

“Okay, I bet he would not even!” Rinoa lifted her head defiantly, crossing her arms. “He would _definitely_ , definitely be passionate and intense and creative.”

“And what makes you so sure of that?” Selphie asked, grinning at her over the trail mix bowl.

***

“Nothing like a fire to keep the monsters away,” Irvine grinned, leaning back away from the flickering flames. The flickering flames were illuminating very little of the waste land before them. The large ruins that rested about half an hour's walk away were a hulking shadow in the sky.

Squall hummed noncommittally as he ran a cleaning rag down his gunblade. There were so many monsters here, he had needed to keep fighting with very little breaks to wipe blood and guts from his blade. They were only staying away now due to a combination of the campfire and the barrier of ice and earth Squall and Irvine had created.

“This has been a great day,” Zell smiled, gently threading a needle with some tough black thread.

“Hey, what's that you're doing there?” Irvine asked, pointing at him with his Bismark's gun barrel.

“Needlepoint,” Zell held up the small pillow he had stored in his pocket all day. “Very relaxing.”

Irvine blinked at him. “Needlepoint...”

“I can feel your judgment and I don't care,” Zell said calmly, beginning to gently work on the bird that would eventually form on that pillow.

“Moving on to something immediately more manly,” Irvine turned from him quickly. “Squall? Please stop cleaning and say something manly.”

“Zell, your stitches are a bit big.”

“Oh, you think?” Zell turned his pillow around curiously.

“I hate you both,” Irvine grumbled, setting his gun between his legs.

“Well, what would you prefer to talk about?” Zell snickered at him.

“Guns and women are both appropriate, manly topics,” Irvine grinned. “I'm honestly down for either. Preference on guns. Unless we're talking about naked women. In which case-”

“Guns it is,” Squall cut him off smoothly.

“Methinks Squall is keeping some dirty exploits to himself,” Irvine grinned. “About a certain raven haired lovely, I would assume. I bet she's bomb naked. Those full breasts and hips make a great- _and shutting up now._ ”

“Good choice,” Squall said coldly, lowering the gunblade he had leveled at Irvine's throat.

***

“I'd love to help, Rinoa,” Quistis shrugged helplessly. “But your hips and breasts are bigger than mine. My underwear just wouldn't fit you.”

Quistis gestured down to her long, lean, willowy body. Her breasts and hips were both less dramatic than Rinoa's. Anything she tried to loan her would be too tight.

“Don't look at me,” Selphie raised her hands in helplessness.

Selphie's hips were lager, her breasts smaller. Xu's hips and breasts were both bigger. None of them would be able to let Rinoa borrow something sexy.

“What's wrong with your underwear?” Xu asked, sitting down next to Quistis on her small love couch.

“There's nothing really wrong with it,” Rinoa sighed, leaning against the table on the barstool. “It's just not all that...pretty. You know? I don't want to show Squall boring underwear.”

“Honestly, I can't imagine he'd care. He's a SeeD. He appreciates function over form.”

“Xu, would you go to bed with someone wearing plain undies?"

“Oh, Hyne no. Not the first time. Are you crazy?” Xu laughed.

“I would wear boy shorts,” Selphie laughed. “I like boy shorts. They're comfy.”

“Well, we don't exactly have a lingerie store in the garden,” Quistis shrugged. “I suppose we could stop by a town and buy you something the next chance we get. When are you planning this?”

“Well, it's not so much a plan,” Rinoa shrugged. “I'm just trying to prepare for anything. I don't want to have a moment start then realize I'm wearing bad undies.”

“He won't care,” Xu promised.

“ _I'll_ care! Not everything is about him.” Rinoa sighed again, poking through the trail mix. “I'll feel so unsexy. It will totally ruin the moment.”

“You could always wear no undies,” Selphie suggested brightly. “Commando is the way to go!”

“Please don't sit on any more of my furniture,” Xu frowned at her.

***

“Seriously? You find that attractive?” Zell asked, making a face at Irvine.

“What can I say? It's the crazy ones that are the best in bed,” Irvine grinned. “Selphie is the next level combo of hot, crazy, and sweet. She'd bang me like a drum, make me cookies, then feed them to me while brushing my hair. That level of insane is unbelievably good in bed.”

“Irvine.”

“Yes?”

“I told you three times already: I do _not_ want to have this conversation with you,” Squall said firmly, glaring at him pointedly as he clicked his blade back into its sheath.

Zell chuckled.

“Alright then. Let's talk about Zell's girl,” Irvine grinned.

“Wait. My what?” Zell looked up quickly. “I don't have a girl.”

“You're doing needlepoint to impress her!” Irvine pointed at the pillow. “Also, that bird is coming along really well.”

“Oh, thanks...Wait! I'm not trying to impress her! We're just working on it together...separately. You know what I mean.”

“Hey, I'm not judging,” Irvine grinned, holding up his hands. "I've done more embarrassing things for less sweet girls. That library girl has got that that whole 'girl next door' thing going on. I really appreciate that look. The ponytail, the big lips. It works.”

“Stop talking about her like that,” Zell frowned, lowering his pillow. “And why does everyone insist on calling her 'the library girl'? She has a name.”

“Yeah, but you never let us meet her, so how can we know it?”

“She works in a public place! You can meet her at any time.”

“Yeah, but we want to _meet_ her,” Irvine grinned salaciously. “You know what we mean.”

“Squall, help me out here,” Zell beseeched him.

“Irvine, you've got second watch. You should go to sleep,” Squall obliged, leaning back on his hands to keep lookout as he was on first watch.

“Actually, now that your gunblade is safely away-”

“Watch it.”

“-let's talk about Rinoa.”

“Uh, Irvine...” Zell frowned. “If he kills you out here, I'm not ratting him out.”

“So like, are you trying to hit that?”

“Irvine, stop talking,” Squall warned him softly.

“I'm not asking for dirty details...Well, actually, I am. After all this time, you've had to have done _something_ with her. That girl is throwing herself at you. If you're not catching that tail, then I'm going to have to question your preferences.”

“Your disrespect for her astounds me,” Squall growled warningly as Zell pointedly became suddenly fascinated with making his stitches near invisible.

“Not disrespect,” Irvine looked confused and surprised at the accusation. “This is what friends do, Squall. They give each other intimate details on each other's lives. Do you think that Rinoa isn't doing the same thing with the girls?”

“I can trust the girls to keep their mouths shut. I can't give you that same confidence.”

“That hurts, man,” Irvine grabbed for his chest dramatically, like there was a pain in his chest. “I thought we were close.”

Squall raised an eyebrow at him. There was absolutely no desire in him to reveal anything whatsoever to these two. The only one he was prepared to divulge secrets about any part of his life to was Rinoa herself.

“Come on. I've told you about Selphie-”

“Despite my protests.”

“-and Zell told you about the library chick-”

“Despite his protests.”

“-so now you have to speak. Fair is fair.”

“I never agreed to this deal. It's only in your own head. Also, no, I don't.”

***

“It usually gets colder around him when he's thinking something naughty,” Rinoa explained, taking a bite of a piece of fruit from shumi village. The sweet juices coated her tongue and she licked at the corner of her mouth to catch them all. “He thinks I don't notice, but I'll catch him staring at my chest. That's usually right when it gets colder.”

“So Squall is a boob man,” Xu said thoughtfully.

“I guess that makes sense,” Quistis shrugged. “He never really had a mother to care for him. It stands to reason that he would become more obsessed with breasts.”

“Irvine is more of an ass man,” Selphie interjected, laying upside down on Xu's small sofa. Quistis was next to her. Xu and Rinoa were sharing the floor. “He likes staring at me when I bend down.”

“That explains why you've been so clumsy and dropping everything lately,” Xu raised an eyebrow at her. “I was wondering if I was going to have to put you through a physical early just to make sure you weren't losing your abilities.”

“Nope. Just letting him stare,” Selphie giggled. “I keep waiting for him to go for it, but its like he's waiting for the right time. Which is so cute. I wonder if he knows I'm a sure thing...”

“Like Hyne you are,” Xu told her firmly. “You may be a SeeD, and we may be a floating base now, but sexual activity is still banned within the garden.”

“Hey!” Selphie pointed at Rinoa. “Then how come you're talking about it with her?!”

“Psh,” Xu chuckled. “Like Squall would ever willingly break a rule. He's not going to touch her so long as he's in garden.”

“Oh, yeah? Then what about you two!?” Selphie turned her accusatory finger on Quistis and Xu. “You think I haven't noticed that you two have been going at it like crazy?”

“They've been what?!” Rinoa shot up, her eyes wide in shock.

***

“Have you ever kissed _anyone_ Squall?” Irvine pressed, looking at him with a smirk. “I mean, no judging, right? I'm just curious.”

Like all the preceding questions, Squall ignored it without so much of a twitch of an eyelid. That fell into the category of 'none of his business' and Squall had no intentions on revealing information that Irvine had no right to knowing.

“Just give up already,” Zell grumbled, glaring at him from where he was laying on the ground. “One of us is trying to actually get some sleep around here.”

“I kissed my first girl when I was thirteen,” Irvine said, thinking back with a smile. “I may have forgotten some in between, but I never forget her. She was pretty cute, especially at the time. I gave her my ice cream in exchange.”

“So you had a prostitute for your first kiss?” Zell grinned, earning a glare.

“I think you just insulted her more than me.”

“What are you talking about? She was smart. She traded a kiss that I promise wasn't her first for your ice cream. She totally won out on that deal. You're the dummy that lost your ice cream.”

“Oh yeah? What was your first kiss then?” Irvine glared.

Zell grinned. “I'll never tell.”

“You've never been kissed either, huh?” Irvine smirked at him. “That's so cute. Would you two like me to get you some ice cream?”

***

“It was an accident!” Quistis flushed bright red.

“Yeah,” Selphie nodded sagely. “I can't tell you how many times I repeatedly, accidentally smash my genitals against someone else's.”

“I want details!” Rinoa leaned forward eagerly. “When? How? Why?”

“We were drunk!” Quistis yelled.

Rinoa and Selphie squealed loudly.

Quistis groaned, lowering her head into her hands.

“It was a little while back,” Xu explained. “We were drinking and, well, one thing led to another. It was a pretty great night. Even if we were both out of it.”

“What?” Rinoa shook her head with a wide grin. “I thought you had a thing for Squall?”

“Well, I did. That's why we got drunk in the first place. It was right after you got here, Rinoa. I was kind of...depressed. We were just comforting each other.”

“Okay, that explains the first one,” Selphie grinned, leaning forward. “What about the others?”

“Well, I was going to do it only the once,” Quistis bit her lips. “But after I realized that what I was feeling was sisterly love...Well, I thought we'd try for another one.”

“I had no idea you were lesbian,” Rinoa leaned her head on her hand, grinning.

“Well, I've always been bi,” Quistis shrugged. “I've just also always had a thing for Squall. Or I thought I did anyway. Xu and I...Well, it's comfortable. I don't know where it's going, but I'm enjoying myself right now.”

“Well, that's most important,” Selphie grinned. “But, better question, does Irvine know yet?”

“No. Why?”

“Oh, please, let me tell him,” Selphie snickered delightedly. “I want to see his face.”

“Irvine's going to be staring at you for a while,” Rinoa laughed.

“What about you two?” Quistis asked. “You two ever slept with anyone?”

“Yeah,” Selphie grinned. “A cute guy back at Trabia. We were together for about three months.”

“Then what happened?” Rinoa asked curiously.

“Don't really know. He told me that he couldn't take it anymore. He was in tears. I think that maybe he fell out of love with me or something.”

The others stared at her. She looked back.

“What?”

“Nothing,” Rinoa said quickly.

“I feel kind of bad for him,” Xu shook her head.

“Yeah,” Quistis nodded.

“What?” Selphie looked between them, her eyes wide and innocent.

“What about you Rinoa?” Xu asked, deliberately not answering the question.

“No, I haven't slept with anyone,” she shrugged, leaning back against the couch.

“Not even Seifer?” Quistis pressed.

Rinoa shook her head. “No. Seifer was always a little self obsessed. He was so busy showing off that he didn't really care about me. I was his adoring audience.”

“Did you kiss him?” Xu asked, sipping at her drink.

“I tried to once. He kind of ruined the moment. Made such a show of trying to kiss me back that we didn't actually get to the act itself.”

“Well, have you ever kissed anyone at all?” Selphie asked.

“Yeah. A boy at my academy. We were pretty close until I found out that he was only with me because he wanted to get close to my dad. I pushed him off of the greenhouse roof. He had a broken ankle and I was grounded for three months. But it was worth it.”

That moment had been the one that had started her life of rebellion and dissent. Honestly, she owed that boy a thanks for breaking her from the spell of obedience and mindlessness. That heartbreak had really opened her eyes.

Rinoa smiled. “Honestly, Squall reminds me a bit of my father. But different, you know? He's all the best parts of my father without any of the negatives. He gets this look his eyes. Like he's ON. All the time. He's so intense. I bet kissing him would be...unbelievable.”

“See, I always thought the opposite,” Xu hummed. “He seems so boring and regimented that I can't imagine him being a good lover.”

“No way,” Rinoa moaned softly. “He's so dedicated to doing things right. I bet he would keep going until I was breathless and unable to scream any longer. Those rough hands and those big arms. Mm...I bet he'd be great with those hands. And that mouth...”

“You need a moment alone?” Xu asked, grinning at her.

“I need a moment with him,” Rinoa smirked.

***

“Ow!”

“Disrespectful-”

“-overly sensitive!”

Zell and Irvine continued to grunt and groan as they grappled across the campfire. Squall watched them with an even gaze. They had been going at it for a few minutes now. They weren't trying to land any blows to kill – and Zell was holding way back – but they were definitely hitting hard enough to leave marks.

Squall ignored them and lifted his eyes up towards the moon. He could hear some nocturnal monsters moving out on the plains, but they were held at bay by their magic barriers.

What was Rinoa doing? Was she thinking about him?

Were their hearts together like she said?

***

Selphie and Quistis were discussing certain techniques as Rinoa sat in Xu's windowsill. From here, she had a near perfect view of the moon.

Would Squall be able to see it where he was on the open plains? He would probably be on first watch. He always took first watch. So he was no doubt still up.

Are you thinking about me, Squall? Can you feel my heart?

Rinoa smiled as she leaned against the glass of the window.

A third date tomorrow. She was going to start officially calling herself his girlfriend. And, if he didn't say anything, she would assume that to be his agreement. It would no doubt take him a while to admit it himself, but she could wait.

Squall was worth waiting for.

***

The next morning found Squall, Irvine, and Zell having sought out the Centran ruins. Despite the lack of desire to be there, Squall wasn't at all surprised that he was there.

“What a weird building,” Irvine said, tilting his head at the strange structure that was all that was left of the Centran civilization.

Most of it had been destroyed in the Cataclysm. However, there was still something left inside of a giant, diamond shaped structure balanced on its tip. A decrepit, tall building in the center had very old, deteriorating architecture.

“Let's get closer,” Zell grinned, urging them towards the staircase entrance.

“I'm looking forward to these monsters,” Irvine grinned.

Squall let them talk as he adjusted his gunblade on his hip. He was keeping the sheath out today to make for easier drawing. He had upgraded his weapon while he was in Balamb. The twin blades that made up his new Punishment was deadly and far lighter than his previous gunblades. He had been getting a great workout using it today.

They walked forward towards the entrance. A small, crumbling stone archway opened up onto a flight of stairs that led up into the structure. There was a sign next to the archway. Faded and chipped. Irvine frowned at it, squinting to try to read the old writing.

“My...Blue...Heaven...What's that mean?”

Squall shrugged. “Might be the name of the building. Do you want to keep-”

“ _I am Odin..._ ”

Squall's hand was on the hilt of his blade, Zell dropped into a fighting stance, and Irvine cried out even as he lifted up his gun and aimed out. The three of them automatically turned to put their backs together, but they saw nothing.

A long moment strung out as they looked around, waiting.

There was no further sound. They saw only a breeze sweeping around the dust amongst the leaves.

“What was that?” Irvine finally asked as the silence strained on.

The voice had been deep, powerful. It had sounded so close. Like the owner had been speaking right into their ears.

“Okay...” Zell said slowly, rising carefully. “That was creepy. Squall?”

He didn't respond immediately. As he stood up straight, he kept his hand on his sword. “I don't know. Let's keep going.”

“Uh, Squall.” Irvine hit his arm, catching his attention. Squall turned quickly, thinking maybe Irvine had found the source of the voice.

From the edge of the trees, not far from the arch, a tiny green monster came around from behind a tree trunk. It moved slowly, seemed to be wearing a burlap sack, and held a lantern in one hand and a knife in the other.

It was walking, kind of awkwardly, from the trees.

“What is it?” Irvine frowned.

“Looks like a tonberry,” Zell tilted his head at it.

“Yeah,” Squall nodded once.

“They hostile?” Irvine asked.

“They are, though it's hard to tell immediately from looking. They move so slow that it's hard to think they can do much damage. That knife of theirs is deadly though.”

“Is he coming at us?” Irvine asked, tilting his head.

The tonberry was walking closer to them. It moved so slow though that it would probably take literal minutes for it to reach them.

“Kill it,” Squall ordered.

“Aw, seriously?” Irvine frowned. “But it's so harmless. It almost looks cute.”

“If you don't kill it, it'll kill you.” Squall crossed his arms. “I'd rather not start fighting tonberries. They're tribal monsters. They work in teams. If one starts coming, you can bet money that others are going to show up.”

“So? What are they going to do? Meander us to death?”

“Irvine, take a look around. Do you see any exits to this place besides this staircase?”

“No.”

“So if we go up there, we have to return in this spot. By then, that tonberry will be right here waiting for us. As will his entire family. They're slow and tiny, but they're tough. Bullets can't pierce that skin. They can go days without water and weeks without food. If those things lay siege on us, it will only be a waiting game for them. Which is what they want. Shoot it.”

“Yeah, yeah...” Irvine lifted his shotgun and took aim. “Sorry little guy. Demo ammo will make it fast and painless.”

The tonberry, waddling slightly as it moved in closer, was watching its large feet. Like it might have to do so in order to not trip over its own limbs.

Irvine shook his head. But he had his orders, and if there was anything his new SeeD training was teaching him it was that you always followed orders.

The demo ammo was loud as it burst from the barrel of the gun. Irvine's aim was true, as it always was, and the tonberry fell onto its back.

“Goodnight, sweet prince,” Irvine sighed.

“Hey, can we go steal that knife?” Zell asked.

A soft squeaky noise caught his attention. Irvine's mouth fell as the tonberry gently pushed itself back to its feet. Its burlap sack was worse for the wear, but the tonberry was not. It dusted off its chest before looking up at them and continuing its slow march.

“Okay, so that's creepy,” Irvine frowned.

“You stay here and keep the tonberries back,” Squall ordered as Irvine let off another shot. “Zell and I will keep moving forward to see what we can find.”

“Damn, monster,” Irvine growled, shooting a third round.

Squall set foodton the staircase and immediately the rails started glowing blue. He eyed them suspiciously as he started moving up. The color followed him, but nothing attempted to stop him from going upwards.

“Maybe it was a dance club,” Zell laughed at the trailing color of the railing. It faded into a bright green as it tracked their movement.

At the top, they were greeted by a dry fountain with a series of statues in the center. Most prominently, a woman with long hair lounging back on her hand.

“ _To him who doth vanquish me, I grant my august powers._ ”

“There it is again,” Zell frowned, looking at the sky. “Squall, what is that?”

“I don't know,” he admitted, frowning.

Squall and Zell circled around the fountain, hopping over a break in the platform that looked down into ancient machinery and dry pipes. At the back, another light-up staircase led them upwards further to a large archway that peeked to the building proper.

They continued inside and were greeted by small twin staircases that led up to a platform. The room wasn't dark despite not possessing any windows or visible lights.

“Awesome,” Zell grinned, looking around. “I'm really digging this old school architecture. I'm thinking of building a house in this style.”

“Focus, Zell. There are still monsters inside here.”

Squall started up the small staircases towards the platform. He thought it was a small landing right before the ledge up above them. Zell stood below, hands on his hips, looking around. Squall stepped onto the platform and he heard machinery begin to whir.

“Squall?!” Zell turned quickly, running up the stairs after him.

The platform jerked suddenly up sending Squall to his knees. After that jump though, it began to rise much slower. Still too fast for Squall to jump down to safety. By the time he got back up, the platform was already slipping into its shaft and raising him up.

“Squall!” He heard Zell yelling after him.

Squall looked away from the platform and back to the top of the shaft.

“ _You are the strongest. Tell me your name._ ”

Squall turned quickly. That voice again. So strong that he could swear it was directly behind him. He looked around the stone elevator, probably magic operated, and saw no sort of speaker that might transmit the voice.

“I am Squall. Squall Leonhart,” he answered, casting his eyes about.

He waited, but he heard nothing else. He turned again but the voice remained silent.

The stone platform breached the top of the shaft and stopped. Squall stood there for a moment, looking at his new surroundings.

He was about halfway up the building inside the diamond structure. There were no rails, only empty space between him and a long fall to the ground. From up here, he could distantly hear the gunshots Irvine was still letting out.

He turned around and found himself face to face with the center of the structure. Two ladders, built into the stone. Between them, something that looked like a mixture between an alter and a control panel. It was dark at the moment.

Squall stepped off of the platform and looked around. He waited for something to happen, but nothing did. Experimentally, he stepped back onto the platform. It did not start to go down, to his dismay. So he stepped off again and looked between the ladders.

“Odin, huh...” he mumbled to himself, tilting his head back to look up to the tops of the ladders.

The one on the right, led halfway up the tower then stopped on a platform. The one on the left continued on just a little higher and led to a dark entryway into the tower.

Resigning himself to the climb, Squall pushed his sheath back out of the way and started towards the ladder. At least the stone ladder was built into the building. He didn't have to worry about rungs breaking or the entire ladder falling over.

He lost count of how many of the steps he had gone up. He started just focusing on the one directly above him. The ladder was that tall. Until he suddenly hit the small landing. He climbed up and faced another ladder, this one much smaller that led up to an archway. Eager to see what was at the end, he climbed up quickly and walked inside.

The tiny room he walked into smelled like rust, oil, and metal. Strange orange orbs in black metal cages hung from above the ceiling. A single control panel with a black orb set into it had pride of place at the end of a very short walkway. It looked almost like the sort of machinery that he had seen in the sub levels of the garden.

He walked over to the control panel and looked at it. He had already gone this far...

He reached out and pushed the orb. It rolled easily under his hands. He didn't know if it was his touch or the fact that he rolled it that brought it to life. Either way, the orb started glowing blue and the cages above his head started slowly turning.

As they did, Squall heard the unmistakable, distinct hum that was electricity running through the walls and wires. The tower had come back to life and had done so without complaint.

Back at the bottom of the ladders, the alter/console now had a blue glowing screen. Squall moved over to it, hoping that it would activate the elevator and let him go back down.

He touched the screen and it asked him if he would like to operate the system. He clicked yes and looked back to the elevator.

It wasn't the platform that began moving though. To the right of the tower a series of steps burst out of the wall and began winding up and around the tower. Further from where he wanted to go.

Grumbling, almost wishing it was a ladder again, Squall started up the stairs. Halfway up the tower, he passed the smaller ladder leading to the control room. The final landing ended in a column. On the other side of it, there was a locked door and a small ladder leading up to a ledge that held a stone statue of what looked like a bearded man. With a single, gleaming ruby eye.

Squall looked around the area, noting the next staircase, the ladder, and the door.

“ _Warrior..._ ”

“...Odin?”

Nothing else.

Squall looked over to the statue where the gleaming ruby eye awaited. Curious, he moved over and climbed up the short ladder. He jumped across to the ledge and stepped in front of the statue. A small plaque at its feet declared its name.

“Odin Allfather,” Squall read off.

His eyes traveled up to the gleaming ruby in the left eye. Then frowned when it was the right eye that sparkled.

He leaned in closer and reached up to touch the empty socket. His gloved fingers found electronic circuitry. Not dissimilar to an electronic chip reader.

On a hunch, Squall reached over and touched the ruby. He pressed it down and, when he pulled back again, it popped into his hands. He pulled it out and looked into the socket. More gleaming electronics waited. He looked back at the ruby, but it wouldn't fit into the right spot. It was shaped to only fit into the left eye.

“What do I do with this?” He asked no one.

He looked back down, wondering what to do now. Odin didn't answer him and Squall went back down the ladder, staring at the ruby in his hands.

He tried the door under the statue next but it was locked. That left only the staircase. Shrugging, resigning himself to whatever, he climbed the stairs.

Did this place never cease going up?

At the top of the stairs, he found himself facing another ladder. This time curving up the side of a domed rood. Squall let his eyes follow the path and found himself looking up at another statue of Odin at the top.

Whatever...

Squall put the ruby in his pocket and started up the ladder. The Odin statue here was differently shaped but it also had a single eye ruby. The left eye.

Squall pulled the right from his pocket and slipped it in place. The electronics clicked in recognition. From the mouth of the statue, a series of numbers were whispered out. So soft that he might not have heard it at all if he weren't listening for the clicks of the electronics.

Okay...

Now what...?

Squall waited for a moment to see if anything else would happen. He looked around, truly now at the top of the tower. He couldn't hear Irvine's gunshots from up here any longer. The wind was colder than it had been at the base. And he could see the garden from here. Tiny speck in the distance thought it was.

Rinoa was there. He had to hurry and get off this damn tower. He wanted to return to garden already and get back to her side. He was so done with this hunting trip.

Almost angry now, he hurriedly popped the two rubies out of their sockets. Nothing happened. He stuck them into his pocket and started working his way back down.

Back in front of the door, he looked up at the first Odin statue. The empty eye sockets flashed at him from the angle the sun was hitting them.

Squall climbed back up and moved over to the statue. Hoping he wasn't just walking around in circles, he popped the eyes back into place.

As the second one slid in, Squall heard more clicking. The small of explosion of fire had him turning in time to see a bright orange and yellow flame bursting into life on top of the column. It wasn't exactly a way down, but it was better than nothing.

“ _You seek entrance..._ ”

“No,” Squall crossed his arms. “Actually, I seek an exit.”

Nothing. Squall grumbled. He cast his mind about. Then, unable to think of anything else, he started listing off the numbers he had been given at the top.

The sliding of a metal door told him that the entrance below him had finally been opened. Instead of going towards the ladder, Squall dropped down and just vaulted to the platform below. He stood and eyed the dark entrance warily.

He just wanted to get back already.

He walked inside. His gunblade clinked at his side against his belts.

The gleaming metal armor of the enormous man inside was blinding even in the low light. Seated upon a large metal throne was a man with high thorns on his head.

“ _Excellent,_ ” Odin's familiar voice came from directly in front of him now. “ _Prepare thyself._ ”

“For what?” Squall asked, annoyed.

“ _The weak shall perish. The strong shall triumph._ ”

“As it's always been.”

“ _Prevail over my sword and I shall grant it to thee._ ”

“Are you a GF?” Squall asked, reaching back to grab the hilt of his saber.

“ _GF? What is this?_ ”

“A guardian force. Someone who lives in your head and fights for you.”

“ _I told you already, mortal. I am Odin. I will not bow to you. I will not be your eidolon. You and I shall be comrades. If you can prove yourself worthy of my power._ ”

Squall considered him for a moment. He wasn't afraid, despite the fact that Odin was easily two and a half times his size. He measured Odin not as an opponent but as a potential ally. GF or not, if he was offering Squall his power, then Squall wanted to see what he was offering.

Instead of being insulted, Odin grinned under his dissecting gaze.

“Odds are a bit heavy on your side,” Squall finally said, pulling out his blade.

“ _Worry not,_ ” Odin assured him, lifting his own, wide, sharp blade. “ _I'll only attack you if you cannot defeat me in a timely manner. To keep the fight fair._ ”

“Not a concept I'm used to,” Squall lifted his Punishment and aimed it at Odin's chest. “Let's make this quick. I really want to get home.”

“ _For the honor then,_ ” Oding grinned at him, standing to his feet. “ _Let us fight!_ ”

Squall charged and swung up his blade in upward angled strike. Odin caught the blow easily. Then he took the time to look over Squall's sword. Checking the quality of the metal, the care of the blade, the cleanliness of the gun.

Odin threw him back when he was done. Squall rolled with it smoothly. Odin hadn't been trying to harm him. He grinned at Squall, as though pleased with the strength of his strike.

He held up his sword, growling to the sky. “ _Sleipnir! To me!_ ”

The impossibly loud whinny of a horse rumbled through the air. From seemingly nowhere, through the metal walls, a large gray horse, perfectly sized for Odin, charged into the room. Steam hissed from his nostrils. The gleaming metal and leather of his saddle shined in the low light. Its six legs worked in tandem together easily as it came to a halt before Odin.

Squall leaned his blade against his shoulder as Odin mounted the horse. His blade gleamed brightly as he straddled the beast in one easy movement.

Squall had to stare for a moment. He had only seen horses in pictures from long ago. They had all been wild animals though. He couldn't imagine someone trying to ride a horse like a chocobo. Seeing Odin doing so was very odd to him.

Also, he didn't consider himself an expert in extinct animals, but he was rather sure that every picture he had seen of horses had been with four legs.

“You know, chocobos make far superior mounts."

Odin grinned at him. “ _Not all worlds have your birds, warrior._ ”

“Huh?” Squall frowned at him, confused. Odin merely grinned.

He shrugged. Whatever. If Odin wanted to ride a wild animal, that was his choice. He lifted his blade and his eyes started going over the massive man and beast. Looking for weaknesses. Analyzing potential places of attack.

Odin waited patiently, grinning at him from high atop his horse. Like he couldn't be more pleased that Squall was first thinking about what he wanted to do. Odin was measuring his skill level. He wanted to see how Squall was fighting. He liked what he saw so far.

Now all Squall needed was the strength and skill to match it.

“Shiva...Blizzard!”

Squall threw out his hand. Odin raised his sword to fend of the magic that wasn't aimed in his direction at all. The spire of ice began erupting _beside_ Sleipnir. Squall sprinted towards it, used the raising ice as a quick, improvised elevator.

The eruption threw him in the air, over Odin's head. Squall brought his blade down, slamming it against the shoulder armor. The metal groaned angrily as the force dented it.

Squall slammed his boots down and launched himself up and away. He landed on Sleipnir's head, then pushed back against Odin's helmet. He jerked the trigger down and an explosion of ice blasted around Odin's body.

Squall ran down the length of Sleipnir's body and leapt across the distance to land on the seat of the iron throne. He turned, lifting his blade up again. Ice crystals and dust settled around his body. Shards of it cutting through his pale skin.

“ _Ice master. Cold as your heart and sharp as your soul. A fitting element for one such as you._ ”

Odin shook his head, clearing away the ice with sparks of electricity. He rotated his shoulder, highlighting the new dent in his armor.

Squall's eyes narrowed. Not because of how little apparent damage he had done. But because of the way that Odin had described him.

Cold hearted? Sharp soul? Neither of those things sounded particularly complimentary. Was that how Rinoa saw him?

“ _What is it that you're thinking that makes you hesitate, warrior?_ ”

Squall's eyes focused back on him. “None of your business.”

He lifted his gunblade and let off three quick shots. Enhanced with the power of blizzara, each bullet that landed exploded in a shower of ice shards. One in the shoulder, one in the chest, one on the hip. Ice spears burst and erupted from the places they landed. Odin jerked back with each hit, reeling just slightly.

“ _You react with anger to this question. Why?_ ”

Squall didn't answer him this time. He tapped his gunblade against his shoulder, unreasonably irritated with Odin at this moment. Not because of his lack of response to his attacks. Squall found that he decidedly did not like someone dissecting his every thought and movement.

Squall raced down the iron throne, jumping off of the arm and running past Odin. He pivoted as Squall returned to the front of the room. He stared at him carefully, making Squall angrier. He would have preferred Odin just fight back.

“ _Few things can trouble a warrior. A formidable foe...Personal weakness...A woman..._ ”

Squall's eye twitched. “I thought we were fighting.”

He charged and Odin caught his sword again. Squall started getting faster, throwing a quick series of blows that Odin deflected and blocked like the expert swordsman he was.

Odin kept his eyes on Squall's face as the flurry of blows came at him.

“ _A woman, then. A meaningless distraction. You should never allow a woman to break your concentration, warrior. That is how you fail._ ”

“She's not breaking my concentration!” Squall growled, striking out for Sleipnir.

The horse reared back, its front four legs kicking at the air. Odin was forced to grab hold of the horse in order to prevent being thrown. He would deserve it for not riding a chocobo like a sensible person should.

“ _Women have no place on the battlefield. Either in body or mind. If you allow her to infect your thoughts, it will sap away your strength. You can be better than that._ ”

Squall's eye twitched again. “What or who I think about is my own business.”

“ _Your distracted heart makes you weak._ ”

Odin threw him back easily. Squall flipped through the air, landing hard on his feet near the exit. Odin glared at him, as if insulted by his words.

“ _I will kill you, warrior. Clear your heart and mind of her and focus on the battle._ ”

Clear your heart of her.

Can you feel me in your heart, Squall?

Your distracted heart makes you weak.

Our hearts will be together, even if our bodies aren't.

Clear her from his heart? Just the thought of doing so felt strangely painful. His chest ached, dismayed at the possibility of being separated from her.

He could feel her in his heart. She was deeply rooted there. Blooming like the brightest flower that he had ever seen. Filling him with light that he had thought lost to him. And tonight they were going to finally have their third date. He was going to take the chance, run the risk, and finally accept what his own heart had been telling him for a long time now.

If the cost of that was a decrease in his strength, then that was a price he was willing to pay.

“If that's your idea of strength,” Squall growled at Odin, flipping his Punishment, “then I don't need it.”

“ _So be it._ ” Odin lifted his own, black, curved blade. The wicked point shined in the light as Sleipnir pawed angrily at the ground. “ _Your death is certain, warrior._ ”

“Shiva, blizzara on Punishment.”

Ice glittered, building between the twin blades of Punishment's body. The crystals built upwards, solidifying the blade and shining brightly in the dark room.

Squall lifted the gunblade and let the light coming in through the door hit it. Let the energy of light absorb into the glassy ice.

Odin kicked hard against Sleipnir's side, urging the horse forward. Like a bullet, the six legged horse galloped forward. Its large, hoofed feet pounded hard against the ground. Steam rushed from its nostrils as Odin raised the blade.

“ _Zantetsukan,_ ” Odin growled, power drawing into his large sword.

The energy glowed around the ice in Squall's gunblade. Enhancing through multiple levels of refraction and reflection. Shiva used her ice to build the power of the light so Squall's Punishment started glowing with a blinding light.

“Blast Zone,” he growled.

Odin was on top of him.

Squall lowered the blade and released the magic with a fire of his trigger.

The explosion of ice and light blasted like a laser. Odin cried out as Sleipnir reared back from pain and surprise. The formless, pure energy strike hit like a hammer. Sleipnir fell back as Odin was thrown hard to the ground. His sword slipped from his fingers, skidding away.

Squall's boot came down on the hilt, stopping it in place. Odin lifted himself up as the horse's legs flailed for a moment. The beast righted itself and Odin grinned.

“ _Thou art strong, mortal,_ ” he admired.

“And I didn't forget her for a moment,” Squall said pointedly.

“ _She must be a fine maid to be sure. A deal is a deal. I shall grant thee my powers. A fine swordsman such as you has the right to them._ ”

Squall tilted his head curiously.

Odin's grin and body faded at the same moment. The sword under Squall's boots became suddenly insubstantial. Odin didn't disappear into his head, he just disappeared. As Squall's foot hit the ground he frowned as he felt a strange tingling in his fingers.

He couldn't hear Odin any longer and Odin did not take up a space in his head. Shiva insisted she remained alone. Which she also insisted was a good thing because she hadn't liked Odin. But Squall definitely felt a change in his body.

Odin hadn't become a GF, but he had given Squall something. When he lifted his blade to slid it back into the sheath, he found it to be a great deal lighter. More like an extension of his own arm than a weapon.

Odin had given Squall his swordsmanship abilities.

Squall waited a moment for something else to happen. When nothing did, ee turned from the iron throne and walked away calmly.

He couldn't wait to get back to Rinoa.

With no other options left to him, Squall returned to the platform. This time, however, he was pleased to find that it responded to him. He rode it down and saw Zell waiting for him at the base of the twin steps. He had been seated but leapt up when he had heard the platform moving.

“Squall!” He cried in relief. “You're okay! You are okay, right?”

“Yeah,” Squall nodded, stepping down. “Let's get out of here.”

“Man, any longer and I was going to run back to garden and ask for a search party. I felt like you were up there forever!”

Squall said nothing as they started out of the ruins. Squall didn't want to bother waiting around. He felt like he was a man on a mission. He wanted to get back to garden soon. He felt like he had been away from Rinoa for weeks rather than a single day.

The hand rails were still glowing upwards as they made their way back down. The crumbling ruins of all that was left of Centra was quiet again. The ancient technology hummed along, the only living testament to what had been.

Squall paused at the fountain and looked back up towards the top of the tower.

What was this place used for? A dance club? A place of worship? Maybe just an ordinary office building? It was impossible. There was no one left who knew anymore. And, pretty soon, even this last remnant of what had been would be gone.

Squall turned away from it all.

The past was the past. It didn't matter. What mattered was the future. What waited for him back at garden. And what he was going to do about it.

At the base of the only staircase into the structure, Irvine was cursing colorfully as he reloaded his gun. He had taken up a crouching position on the last few steps and was busy killing tonberries. Well, attempting to.

“The damn things won't stop coming!” He yelled, no longer enchanted by their cuteness.

Squall stopped behind him and looked out at the area beyond the arch. He could no longer tell where the first tonberry they had seen was because his body had been joined by multiple others. Squall counted them up quickly and came up to near twenty. He almost missed the legs of one sticking out from behind a far tree.

There was another one waddling forward. He didn't at all seem disturbed by his fallen brothers. He was crawling over their bodies, his little lamp swinging as he kept going forward. It was taking almost ten shots from Irvine's shotgun to take down one tonberry. And by the time one fell, another one had already appeared.

“What ammo are you using?” Zell asked.

“Demo! Squall, I'm getting nowhere here. I thought demo was strong ammo, but I can't even take out these waddling plush toys!”

Squall crossed his arms. “Demo is good, but it's not the best.”

“Say what?!” Irvine looked over his shoulder, as though shocked.

“Personally, I always use AP ammo,” Squall shrugged. “It's the best one for my gun and accepts magic really easily.”

“And you were going to tell me this _when?!_ ” Irvine yelled, irritated as he shot the tonberry again. The tiny thing crumpled over, dead at last.

“I assumed you knew,” Squall shrugged.

“Where do you buy it?”

“You don't buy it. You refine it. I make my own ammunition. All higher level ammunition users make their own bullets. It's easier to craft it to your own specifications that way.”

“Okay, first of all, where do you even find time to make your own ammo?!” Irvine shook his head in disbelief. “You have no time for anything! Secondly: No one ever told me this!”

“Seems like a rather big gap in the Galbadia Garden curriculum,” Zell snickered. “I knew that and I don't even use weapons. I just always thought you had a preference for store bought. Or that you were lazy.”

Squall nodded, agreeing with him.

Irvine growled angrily. “Well, that's just great! And where am I supposed to learn this!?”

“You've got an instructor now, don't you?” Squall raised an eyebrow at him. “Just ask him. That's what his job is for.”

Irvine sighed, collapsing over in disappointment. “Galbadia Garden always told us to leave weapon making to weapon makers. We weren't allowed to create our own ammo because that wasn't our job and we were told we would do it wrong.”

“Yes, that's why you learn how to do it properly. The more self sufficient you are, the better. What if you're away from ammo makers and run out?”

“That's why I know how to sew,” Zell grinned. “So I can repair and make my own gloves.”

“Don't use logic on me,” Irvine groaned. “Fine. Let's just get out of here before any more of those tiny monsters come.”

“What? Do you not like 'em anymore?” Zell grinned as they started back towards the trees.

“No way,” Irvine crossed his arms. “One of those damn things got close to me and stabbed me. And it _still_ hurts. It's taking forever for my cura spells to fix it. Little bastards.”

Zell was laughing at him when they felt the ground start shaking beneath them.

“Woh!” Zell fell forward as Irvine and Squall maintained their balance.

“An earthquake?” Irvine turned to Squall.

Squall frowned as another loud thud rocked the ground. “I doesn't feel like one...”

The next thud was louder. As was the next. Squall realized it was footsteps about the same time that he saw something moving out in the trees.

“It's a monster!” He warned, quickly drawing his gunblade.

Though neither of them had seen it, Irvine and Zell both got ready. Their eyes scanned the area Squall was squinting at to see what he had.

It didn't take very long after that.

“Holy Hyne...” Irvine muttered, his gun lowering slightly as his eyes widened.

The tonberry that slowly crashed through the trees looked like he was just meandering their way. He was also many times the size of the other tonberries Irvine had been killing. He stood far over their heads, a golden crown glittering on his head.

Zell laughed nervously. “Look, it's a king...”

“Son of-”

The loud thud of the monster's steps cut Irvine off.

It stopped at the edge of the trees and looked over its subjects. Then it raised its face to them and its bright yellow eyes flashed in anger. In its massive hands, it carried a knife and lantern at the exact same size of the tiny tonberries.

It looked ridiculous. And Squall actually felt threatened by the thing. It took over ten shots to take down the little ones. How many would it take to kill this massive monster?

“Irvine, go up the stairs and take your shots from above.”

“Gone!” Irvine was only too glad to obey the command.

“Zell, hand to hand.”

“Wha-! Why me?” He moaned unhappily.

“Because you're stronger than I am,” Squall admitted shamelessly. “I'll back you up. Just do it.”

Growling in anger and frustration, Zell ran forward. His fists were flaming, a result of the fira spells he had stockpiled. His eyes burning almost as hot, Zell slammed his fists into the belly of the beast. The tonberry reeled back, its burlap smoking, but it didn't appear worse for wear.

Zell ducked under a stab from its knife, grabbed its arm, and twisted around to plow his elbow into the thing's back.

Doing so opened a huge hole in the thing's defenses. Squall ran forward and sliced his gunblade up the monster's belly. A long path of ice shattered up its torso with a pull of the trigger.

The tonberry rocked back as Squall and Zell retreated a few steps. It only took a second for the durable tonberry to regain its footing.

Then Irvine's first rang out and a large hole opened in the burlap along its chest. The tonberry jerked back from the demo shot. It's thick skin wasn't even penetrated yet.

“You gotta be kiddin' me,” Zell groaned in disbelief.

“Don't give it a chance to recover!” Squall ordered, running back in.

The lantern swung his way and Squall ducked under it. Just to let out a hiss of pain when the knife in the tonberry king's other hand sliced through his right arm. The warmth of his blood spread down his arm as Squall twisted out of the way.

Zell took his place, grabbing the tonberry's arm before it could stab him again. Holding it, he kicked out and slammed his knee into the monster's gut. The fire engulfing his hands started burning the tonberry's fingerless stump.

Crying out, it jerked its hand back. Swinging around, it smacked its lantern against the back of Zell's head, sending him to the ground.

“Ow...” Zell growled, pushing himself up.

“Blizzara!” Squall threw out his magic. A large spire of ice slammed through the monster's shoulder, shattered a second later by Irvine's next shot.

Angered, the tonberry charged. And it was a great deal faster than any of its tiny subjects. Zell cried out when one of its large feet crushed him into the dirt. Squall leapt backwards, catching himself on one hand, then swinging back onto his feet.

Irvine let out two quick shots, landing directly on its face. Close to its eyes. The proximity to such a vulnerable area stopped its charge and it faltered, covering his head against any further shots. Opening its defenses again.

Squall and Zell moved at the same time.

Squall flipped his blade, giving up on cutting through the tonberry's thick skin. The dull end was not a cutting edge, but it did more blunt trauma. He rushed towards the front of it.

From behind, Zell had jumped back to his feet. Covered in dust and dirt, he ran towards the tonberry and jumped at the last moment. He drove both feet into its back.

The simultaneous hit crushed the tonberry with their combined strength. Squall slid to a halt behind the tonberry as Zell caught himself on his arms and flipped away from the monster king.

The tonberry grunted, finally showing signs of being hurt. It was small, and the tonberry recovered quickly, but it was proof that it could be hurt. That simple signal alone was enough to invigorate them into keeping up the offensive.

The tonberry turned in place, its face scrunching up in anger as it beheld them.

Irvine took another shot. Though its head jerked forward from the force, it didn't seem to be bothered by it. It growled angrily at Squall and Zell, jumping up and down in its fury. The ground rocked under their feet from its massively dense weight.

Irvine called out, slipping from his crouch on the stairs. He was pitched forward. His shotgun slipped from his hands and clattered down the steps. His hand shot out and caught one of the rusty rails. His body slammed against the rail, snapping it. He slid down a few more steps before he was able to catch himself again.

This rung held under his weight. The new bruises on his body throbbed along his limbs and torso causing him to grit his teeth. He pulled himself to his feet as the brothers let loose a cure spell into his body.

“Hellfire!” Zell cried, summoning the fiery meteor up from the earth to crash down against against the tonberry. The fiery explosion of molten stone gave Irvine enough time to race down to the bottom of the steps where his gun had landed.

He hooked his toe around the barrel and kicked it up. His hand snapped around the end and his fingers found the familiar trigger as he took aim at the tonberry. From this distance, he didn't even have to try all that hard to hit it.

The demo shot made black marks against its green skin, but didn't do much damage. The giant monster shook off the heat of the fire, glaring around at them angrily.

“Diamond Dust!” Squall yelled from across the clearing. The long tunnel of ice that appeared made Irvine's skin break out int gooseflesh. It was gone nearly as quickly as it had been summoned, shattering into a million pieces.

The dichotomy of hot and cold hurt the tonberry more than anything. It was a shock to his system and his body rocked the earth again as he tried to shake it off.

“Zell! Hit him!” Squall ordered. “Before he gets his balance back!”

“Right!”

Not thinking, Zell just following the order. The tonberry was leaning back, grabbing at its massive head. So Zell ran towards the front, intending to hit him there and knock him over. He jumped into the air and came down foot first against the monster's chest.

Reeling, the enormous tonberry began falling backwards-

-right onto Squall.

Squall jumped to the side to escape. He wasn't fast enough. He felt the entire weight of the large tonberry slam against his back and pin him to the ground. He cried out in pain as he felt his ribs snap under the pressure.

“Squall!” Irvine and Zell yelled at the same time, rushing forward.

“Blizzard!” Irvine yelled, throwing out his low level spell. The spire of ice that erupted from the earth hit the back of the tonberry's head. It threw him up like a piston and the monster fell to the side. Zell ran to Squall who was grimacing, having some difficulty breathing. He could taste blood in the back of his throat.

“Oh, shit!” Zell cried, panicked as Irvine stepped in front of them. “Cura!”

The magic raced into Squall's body, augmented by the cura spell he himself had already used. Both of them went to work on repairing the bone and tissue. Healing spells were slow though. It was already too late to prevent the blood that was quickly leaking into his lungs.

Squall coughed once, flecks of that blood hitting his lips. He grimaced, grabbing for his chest as he tried and failed to push himself to his feet.

“Shit, shit, shit!” Zell cried out. “Irvine! Come on, we gotta get back to Dr. Kadowaki!”

“Working on it!” Irvine snapped, pausing to reload his gun.

The tonberry, like an adamantoise flipped onto its back, was having difficulty righting itself. Irvine's gunshots peppered its skin, finally breaking through in some places. Dark green blood started oozing up as the armor piercing rounds broke through.

“Come on, brothers,” Irvine snapped, reaching into his own mind. “Let's do this.”

Irvine's eyes burned purple for a small second as their power flooded into his veins. He reached deep into the earth. With them, he could feel every piece of sand. Feel the slow moving, super heated lifeblood of the planet. Even the incredibly subtle, almost undetectable shifting of the solid earth beneath their feet.

Irvine's hand closed on that earth as the tonberry finally managed to work its way up. Growling, Irvine brought forth the brothers from his mind.

The strongest force of nature. The magic that could not be controlled by a single one. Calling forth the ancient and crushing power of the planet itself. A power that could only be summoned and controlled by multiples.

“Brotherly Love,” Irvine grinned, throwing his fist into the air.

The tonberry rose with the large chunk of earth that the brothers threw into the air. So high that they almost lost sight of it. Irvine grinned and aimed at the block with his finger. He pulled the 'trigger' that was his thumb as the brothers hit the slab of rock.

The explosion of rock in the air his the tonberry with all the force of a mountain. Then the monster fell the entire length. Its body crashed into the crater that Irvine and the brothers had created together. The force of his own, hyperdense body hitting the earth was even more painful and jarring. So much so that it caused the tiny golden crown on its head to fall from its head.

Irvine frowned as the magical item bounced against the dirt. A large crack appeared in its center and, as a result, the golden sheen dimmed and turned to tin.

The enormous tonberry king, having lost his magical item, started shrinking right before their gaze. The impossibly large body shrank down until the tonberry was exactly the same size of his brothers. Its large yellow eyes opened, blinking in surprise as it lifted its tiny body.

It looked around, confused, until its gaze landed on Irvine. He growled at the tiny monster, lifting his shotgun and taking aim.

“ _W-wait!_ ” The tiny monster held out its hands quickly. Sweating, he bowed. “ _S-sorry._ ”

Irvine frowned, lowering his gun slightly. He watched as the monster – no, the _GF_ – burst into familiar pink and blue balls of energy. They raced towards him and merged into his chest. Irvine blinked in surprise as Tonberry made his way up into his mind. He settled somewhere behind his eyes and Irvine felt him and the brothers examining each other.

“What the...” he blinked, confused.

“Irvine!” Zell yelled, reminding him that they had bigger problems.

Turning on his heel, Irvine ran back over to his friends. Zell had pulled Squall's arm over his shoulders and the two of them had worked together to get him back onto his feet. Squall was having real difficulty breathing though and was grabbing for his hurting chest.

“You take him,” Zell said even as Irvine was grabbing for his other side. “I'm going to keep the path clear of monsters. Let's get back quickly.”

“Right,” Irvine nodded, grabbing Squall about the waist and wrist to keep him upright. “Don't you worry about a thing, man. We got you."

Squall didn't like being completely dependent on anyone at anytime. Just at the moment though, he felt like he really didn't have a choice. As much as it stung his pride, he had to allow Irvine to walk him and Zell to protect him as they moved quickly back to garden.


	29. Battle of the Gardens

“Alright, arms up,” Dr. Kadowaki ordered.

Obediently, Squall stretched his arms over his head without a twinge of pain from ribs that had been been completely shattered yesterday.

“Down again,” she smiled at him, pleased.

He did so. The subtle interplay of muscles under his skin was as smooth and flawless as always. He had finally stopped coughing just an hour ago, though his breathing had returned to normal sometime in the night. The blood had finally stopped coming up around five in the morning.

“Punctured lungs,” Dr. Kadowaki shook her head, clicking her tongue at him. “Honestly, boy. Can I not leave you alone for five minutes without you hurting yourself?”

Squall raised an eyebrow at her, almost grinning back. 

She had not been happy yesterday afternoon to have a panting and sweating Zell and Irvine deposit the injured Squall at her feet. With his cura spell, he had what he needed to heal, albeit slowly. Since Dr. Kadowaki had run out of curaga spells, he had been forced to recover on cura alone. He just needed someone to keep him from dying and watch him through the night so he didn't start drowning on his own blood at some point.

“Feeling all right?” She asked when he continued to move without pain.

“Perfect,” he nodded. “Thank you for your care, doctor.”

“Are you two done yet?” Rinoa asked impatiently from just outside of his room.

Squall was in the second patient room, the one with the door. Mostly so that the people of garden wouldn't constantly be bothering him while he rested. It was closed at the moment because Dr. Kadowaki had wanted to perform the exam alone.

“You can come in, Rinoa,” the good doctor called out, a small grin on her face.

Dr. Kadowaki barely got to finish the sentence before Rinoa was pressing the button to slide it back open. She walked in quickly, frowning at the sight of Squall up and out of bed.  
“Should you be moving around so soon?” She asked, worried.

Squall gave her a look as he reached for the shirt he had thrown onto the bed so Dr. Kadowaki could get a good look at his injuries. She had wanted to ensure the bruises and swelling were all down and that he could move without flinching.

Rinoa had seen what the cura spells could do. She knew, intellectually, that they had fixed Squall before after torture had broken his bones. However, he hadn't shown the damage as badly then as he had this time. He just wouldn't stop coughing up blood...

She had been waiting near the gates for him to return. She had been playing cards with the gatekeeper, cursing as he stole cards and refused to give her the chance to win them back, when Zell had signaled from below that they had returned and to lower the lift.

Rinoa had been expecting to see Squall again all day. She had been anticipating it. She had even dressed up in preparation for the dinner he had promised her.

Then he had risen up from below. Irvine and Zell had both been supporting his weight. There was blood on his shirt and face. He had been struggling to breath, his eyes glazed with pain and hypoxia. His boots had been dragging, but he had still been trying to walk.

It felt like Zell had been yelling at her from the end of a long tunnel when he had ordered her to go put Dr. Kadowaki on standby.

It was a good thing that Dr. Kadowaki was much more calm and capable than Rinoa in emergency medical situations. While Rinoa had been holding Squall's hand, wiping away the blood from his face with a warm washcloth, the good doctor had been seeing to him with her magical and non magical medical knowledge.

The only reason Rinoa had left during the night was because Dr. Kadowaki had kicked her out. Not because Rinoa was a bad visitor, but because Squall was a bad patient. Instead of trying to rest as he was supposed to, he kept trying to talk to her and reach for her.

Bright and early this morning though, Rinoa was back at her station. Nida hadn't even gone off duty yet with the rising sun and she was already up and in Squall's room.  
She let out a breath of relief when Squall slipped his shirt over his head without issue. He settled the clean white cloth Rinoa had brought him over his frame as Dr. Kadowaki walked back out of the room to her desk. She had some paperwork to finish about his injuries.

“Are you okay?” Rinoa asked again, still worried.

“I'm fine,” he promised, reaching for his gloves and the ring sitting on them. “It was a rookie mistake. I didn't get out of the way fast enough and I paid the price.”

“How can you be so cavalier about it?” She frowned. “You almost died. That's not 'paying the price'.”

“That's exactly what it is. Most SeeDs aren't so lucky as to live to learn the lesson again.”

Rinoa sighed and sat down on his bed. Her legs felt so shaky. So weak. Her heart had been racing since she had seen him, and not in the good way. Looking at him now, healthy and moving normally, almost made her want to cry.

Squall paused as he reached for his jacket when he saw the look on her face. “What?”

She shook her head. “I'm...just glad you're okay. I got really scared there for a minute.”

Squall said nothing as he picked up his jacket. She watched as he slipped it back over his shoulders, straightening out the collar.

Somehow, it felt nice to know she worried over him. That she cared. 

“Hey, Rinoa-”

“Squall.” His name was accompanied by Xu knocking on the frame of his open door. She looked inside, frowning. “Sorry, it's important.”

“That's okay. What's up?”

“It's Headmaster Cid.”

“Is he okay?” Rinoa asked immediately, standing up.

Xu shrugged. “I don't know. That's the problem. We can't find him. He's gone.”

Squall frowned. “Gone? Where have you searched?”

“Everywhere. I've had some SeeDs turning the garden upside down looking for him. And I know he didn't leave the garden. He wouldn't. He couldn't. Nida has been piloting all night. We're only just stopping.”

“Did you talk to the gate keeper?” Rinoa asked as Squall started forward. She followed him out of the room and the two of them fell in line with Xu.

“I did. He said that he hasn't seen him at all. But he did say that yesterday, when he showed up in the morning to man the gate, someone had lowered the platform in the middle of the night.”

“Why didn't he report it?” Squall demanded to know.

“He said that he hadn't really thought anything of it. He doesn't leave his post until Nida starts up the garden and returns before he stops. The garden moves too fast for anyone to get off while it's going anyway. There's just no way he could left.”

“All right, well let's search for him anyway. The faculty are still on the garden and one of them might have decided to get revenge for NORG,” Squall said. “I'll go start a formal search. You tell the gatekeeper that no one leaves until we find out where he went. Rinoa, go find Quistis. I need her help.”

“Yes, sir,” Xu said, saluting him before splitting away at the nexus.

“You got it,” Rinoa grinned before running off to complete her task.

Squall started up towards the elevator. He was already going over a list of steps he needed to take. He really hoped that their elderly headmaster had just wondered off somewhere by himself for a little privacy.

It was as Squall was walking onto the third floor, heading for the bridge anyway, when Nida's voice came over the intercom.

“ _Squall, will you please report to the bridge. On the double. I repeat, Squall, report to the bridge on the double._ ”

Squall frowned and broke into a jog. He covered the rest of the distance quickly and hit the switch for the rising platform as he was stepping on. Nida turned around in surprise.

“Wow. That was fast even for on the double,” he said, grinning.

“What's up?”

Nida held out the binoculars he had been using, the grin fading quickly. “Take a look for yourself.”

Frowning, Squall stepped forward and took the distance viewer from his hands. Honestly, he didn't even need them. He saw what Nida had spotted even as he was stepping up to the window.

Far out across the barren landscape, currently moving over a forest, was Galbadia Garden.

Squall cursed as he brought up the binoculars. With a few clicks of his fingers against the controls placed on the top, he focused in on the bridge of the school. Unlike Balamb, their glass was all tinted and shadowed. Squall could only make out the silhouette of someone at a circular wheel and another beside him that lowered his hands away from his face.

Lowered his binoculars. They were looking at them, too.

Squall cursed as he removed his binoculars from his face. Galbadia Garden had gotten closer and Squall knew that it wasn't just because Balamb was moving.

“What do you think?” Nida asked, a dark expression on his face.

“Damn...” Squall murmured to himself. What a time for the headmaster to disappear. There was no way they hasn't seen Balamb Garden.

The last time he had seen that garden, Fujin and Raijin had been using it as a military base. No doubt by now the sorceress and Seifer knew about their defeat. He honestly didn't think that they were going to be friendly.

Besides, what was it that Headmaster Martine had said about using their garden as a base? If it was the sorceress's base and SeeD was the sorceress's greatest enemy, then he had just as much reason to take on that garden as they did.

His jaw clenched as he made the decision.

Command the garden. Defeat the sorceress. Here was his chance.

“The battle is inevitable,” Squall informed Nida, referring to his own decision.

“The sorceress is with them, right?” Nida asked, his voice expressionless. “It's our job to defeat her, right? Then...this is it?”

“I hope so,” Squall let out a breath, closing his eyes.

He gathered himself quickly. He felt like he was mentally donning his SeeD uniform. When his stormy gray eyes opened again, he was all business. Shrewd, calculating. A SeeD in full glory. An army commander and a mercenary.

This garden was his responsibility. The safety of everyone was in his hands right now. It was no different from managing a squad. It was just on a significantly larger scale. Come on. Think!

“What do you want to do, commander?” Nida asked in an official capacity.

“The garden will proceed straight ahead,” Squall told him, reaching for the intercom. “Set our speed at 50% in case we need to take evasive maneuvers.”

“Yes, sir.”

Squall paused, hesitating for only a moment as he got his thoughts in order. He quickly ran down a list of strengths and weaknesses that he knew of about the populace here. They had SeeDs, yes, but not the full force of them. Most of the personal aboard were students. Highly trained, certainly, but students nonetheless. He didn't want to throw a fully offensive line at an enemy in that case.

Squall's thumb hit the small button on the microphone. He could hear the cheerful ringing of the bells catching everyone's attention. He hesitated for only a second.

When he opened his mouth, Commander Leonhart gave out orders to his forces.

“This is Squall speaking. This is an emergency, so listen carefully. We are going into battle against Galbadia Garden immediately. This is not a drill. This message is for all combat ready SeeDs and students. First and Second Class Sabers, assemble at the parking lot. Those with MG rank three or above, head to the second floor deck and await instructions. Be sure to have all magic, weapons, and available GFs equipped.

“The enemy will probably attempt to come aboard in our most obvious, vulnerable areas. Therefore, we must concentrate our forces at the front gate and the quad. If your student ID number is even, report to the quad. If it's odd, report to the front gate.

Those who have student ID numbers ending with an eight, take care of the junior classmen. Medic class students, report to Dr. Kadowaki for instruction. Instructors, follow emergency attack guidelines for your assignments.

“Quistis, Zell, Selphie, report to the bridge right away.”

Squall lifted his finger from the button and the cheerful ringing was awkward in the tense air.

“Hey, hey, hey.”

Squall jumped, turning in surprise at Irvine's call from below.

“What up? I'm not invited?”

Squall frowned and released the microphone back to the ceiling. He stepped onto the platform and hit the switch. As he was coming down, he was surprised to see Quistis, Selphie, and Irvine had gathered before he even called them.

“I thought I was part of the gang,” Irvine pretended to be hurt. “And after all the effort I put into saving your sorry butt.”

“Sorry about that,” Squall shrugged. He didn't want to explain right now that he had only made an effort to call the SeeDs. He didn't have the time.

“What do you want us to do?” Quistis asked in full instructor mode.

“I want you guys to help me lead the others,” Squall said. Which was the reason he had called on the SeeDs only. He didn't want to presume the other members of garden would follow non-SeeD members in this situation. “When Zell gets here, we'll divide into two teams.”

“Zell?” Selphie started, looking awkwardly over to Quistis. “Um, I think he's taking a nap. Uh, yeah. He said he hasn't slept at all lately.”

“What?” Quistis frowned at her. Selphie nudged her with her elbow pointedly, clearly hoping that Squall wouldn't see. Which he did.

“Oh...Oh, yeah!” Quistis said quickly, putting a smile on her face. “Right, a nap.”

“What are you guys talking about?” Squall frowned at them. That lie had sounded hollow even before Selphie had nudged Quistis so obviously.

“Nothing,” Quistis grinned at him knowingly. “It's our little secret.”

Seriously? What was he doing? They didn't have time for this right now!

They had even less time for Squall to bemoan something that was already done. He would chew out Zell later. For now, he had to just deal with the immediate problems.

“Fine. I'm going to check the quad. Quistis, Selphie, you're with me. Irvine, find Zell. You guys work together and lead the team at the front gate.”

“Alrighty!” Irvine winked, grinning.

“We're still a distance away,” Squall told them, looking back to the wide window. “So don't bother getting your weapons out just yet. We'll worry about it later. Let's go!”

Squall started running towards the open double doors. His mind was already thinking three steps ahead of himself. What to do next. Where to go. How to prepare. Calculations, plans, and strategies were racing through his mind as he pressed the call button for the elevator.

“Hey!” Irvine ran to the double doors. “What about Rinoa?”

Squall hesitated as the elevator opened. Quistis and Selphie ran inside ahead of him as he paused behind them.

Rinoa...

He had to take care of her. He had to make sure she was safe. This wasn't her battle, but she was smack dab in the middle of it. He rather wished she would hide with the non-combatants, but he knew better than to really expect it to happen. At the same time, he didn't have the luxury right now of putting everything on hold to find her and bring her back to his side.

No matter how much he might want to.

Squall took a deep breath and pulled the mantle of commander tighter around his shoulders. He turned back to Irvine and ordered him firmly.

“You guys take care of her.”

Irvine nodded as Squall stepped after the girls. Selphie had already hit the button for the first floor and the elevator started shutting almost as soon as Squall passed the threshold. Irvine watched them go down trying to think of where Zell and Rinoa could be.

The garden nexus was like a disturbed wasp hive. People were running all over the place. A few were milling about, confused and disoriented. Only students. The SeeDs were doing what they did best and getting everybody in line.

Someone had already set up defensive lines along the walkways, creating a sort of tunnel affect that would force enemies where they wanted them to go. Squall had to order a few stragglers along the way as he made his way to the quad. People who didn't know where they should be despite his crystal clear instructions. It would be annoying if he had the luxury to be annoyed.

Squall led Quistis and Selphie down the steps of the quad. He was already scanning about, looking for weaknesses in the defenses when he heard Zell's familiar voice calling out.

“You guys are over here! Backup the advance guards. Straighten up that line! Weapons out and magic equipped. This is a bad time to forget your junctioning, so if you need tips, ask the guy beside you. This isn't an exam, cheating is so allowed. Alright! Hey, you!”

Squall put some more speed into his steps as he followed Zell down further to where the stage had once stood. It was just an empty, open space now. Plenty of room for an enemy to come down and enter from the large, open air off the balcony.

“In formation!” Zell was yelling, grinning from ear to ear. The students that had gathered were quickly falling in line. “Alright! Listen up, troops! This is the big one. We gotta win, no matter what! You never know, you might make SeeD if you have a good performance. And if you turned in your written exam, that's a given.”

“Who said this was an exam?” Squall asked as he slowed to a halt beside him.

The student's in line stiffened noticeably at his presence. 

“S'up, Squall,” Zell saluted him lazily. “I wasn't saying it _was_ one, I was just saying you never know. It's called giving people incentive. You ever heard of it?”

“I thought you were sleeping,” Squall said dully, crossing his arms. He didn't believe it, he just wanted to hear what Zell had to say.

“Huh?” He blinked, confused. His eyes traveled over Squall's shoulders where the girls were deliberately making hand signs to shut up and not spill the beans.

“Oh, yeah!” Zell laughed, scratching his head. “Your, uh, announcement woke me up! Yeah. I'm not a Saber Class and my student ID is even, so I'm supposed to be here, right? Don't worry about a thing. I got this place covered. No big deal.”

Squall stared at him. It wasn't like Squall hadn't planned on putting his people in charge. And Zell did seem eager for the job. Squall might not have a choice.

“Hey, yo, Squall,” Zell grinned, peaking around. He jerked his head to the side. “Come here for a sec, would you? I got something I wanna ask ya.”

Squall frowned but followed Zell a short distance from the students and Quistis and Selphie. Zell peaked around again before grinning at Squall in a way that made him a bit nervous.

“It's about your ring,” he said, a very sweet smile on his fae. “I know this might not be the time, but, uh...”

What was it? Squall raised an eyebrow at him, encouraging him to hurry up and spit it out. If Zell was going to remain here with Irvine, then Squall needed to get to the front gate.

Zell took a fortifying breath. “Give me your ring, will ya?”

Squall stared at him. Zell laughed uncomfortably.

“I just wanna borrow it for a while. I won't lose it or anything, promise. C'mon, what do you say? It's really important.”

Squall's eyes moved down to his hand where his lion ring was resting over his glove. He had no real sentimental attachment to the piece of metal, but still...

“Why do you need it?” He asked pointedly. It seemed like a fair question.

“Uh...” Zell made a face like he had been hoping Squall wouldn't ask. “I can't really tell you that. I promised I would keep it secret. C'mon, just give it to me. You can trust me. I'm gonna give it back, it's not like I wanna keep it.”

What the hell? Squall frowned. He liked that ring. It was a set with his necklace and the pendant hanging from the hilt of his gunblade. 

Well...he guessed it was fine if Zell just wanted to borrow it. It was just a ring after all. He could get another one if he needed to.

Zell's face broke out into a smile as Squall lifted his hands. He took hold of the ring and pulled. It slid a bit reluctantly from his finger, like the ring knew it was being given away. Squall frowned and moved his hand. It was a bit weird without the ring. 

Letting out a breath, he turned and held it out.

Zell took hold of it eagerly. The silver band fell into his palm and Zell gave out a victory cry.

“Woo! YEAH! Thanks man! I didn't think you were gonna give it to me. Rinoa is gonna be so happy!”

“Rinoa?” Squall asked pointedly. And what did she want with his ring?

“Alright, Squall!” Zell grinned, stowing the ring in his pocket. “Just leave this place up to me!”

Before Squall could say anything else, he was already turning and running back to the lines. Quistis had been directing them into formation in Zell's absence – the instructor in her coming out – as Selphie watching, swaying her weight between her feet.

Squall returned to them slowly, trying to mentally figure out how best to distribute the few remaining troops at the front gate and why Rinoa would want his ring. Both things were of importance to him at this moment. 

“We're heading for the front gate,” Squall told the girls. “Zell, Irvine should be coming around soon looking for you. You two are to defend this area.”

“Roger!” Zell pounded his chest. “I totally got this.”

“Here he comes,” Quistis said, catching their attention. She was pointed to the stairs down to the quad where Irvine was taking the steps two at a time.

Behind him, her Rising Sun on her arm, Rinoa was keeping up with him. There was a determined look in her eyes that Squall didn't like.

“Zell!” Irvine sighed in relief at finding him. “So like, where where you?”

“Obeying orders. Where you been?” Zell grinned.

“Technically, wasn't your order to report to the bridge?” Selphie asked, grinning.

Zell flinched as Irvine chuckled. He walked past Squall to join up with him.

Rinoa's expression was unreadable as she stepped in front of Squall. The look he gave her was just as even. Nothing really passed between them for a long moment. They couldn't do anything else but this considering the situation.

“I'm gonna fight, too,” Rinoa finally said, confirming his fear. “I don't wanna just hide. I _know_ I can fight. Squall, _you_ know I can fight. I've been training.”

She had been. With him and with a blaster instructor. She wasn't SeeD level, but she was at least trainee level. There were cadets here who couldn't brag much more than that.

Still, he rather wished she wouldn't. He wanted her to let him deal with this while she remained safe with the other noncombatants. He couldn't say this wasn't her business though. Not considering she was living here just like any other. And he wasn't exactly in a position where he could say no to an experienced fighter.

“I want to fight alongside everyone,” Rinoa repeated, her jaw set. “Please, Squall. Commander. Let me help you. Let me prove myself.”

Squall bit back the completely pointless protests. He couldn't deny her this. He didn't have the right to say she couldn't fight. No matter how much he wanted to grab her. Hold her. Tell her that she didn't need to do this. She had nothing to prove to him.

But she had everything to prove to herself.

“I hope this is the last time we have to fight in our home...” Zell was saying, uncomfortable with the situation, but determined to see it through. Squall didn't turn to look at him.

“Please...” Rinoa repeated, staring into his eyes.

He could tell her no. She would obey him. This moment was too important for her to act out against the commanding officer. No matter that she hated him, she was still a general's daughter. She knew the absolute power a commander had to have over a battlefield. She wouldn't disobey an order from him at a moment like this.

“Take care of yourself,” Squall finally said.

Rinoa's face lifted as her shoulders set. “Thank you, commander.”

“Don't call me that.”

She grinned. “Victory dinner for two later?”

Squall lifted one corner of his mouth in a wry grin. “It's a date.”

Rinoa's face broke out into a wide smile as the intercom chimed above their heads.

“ _Squall!_ ” Nida called urgently through the speaker. “ _Get back to the bridge right away!_ ”

Squall turned back to the others. “Zell, I'm counting on you. Irvine, Rinoa, back up your squad leader. Everyone, good luck.”

“Yes, commander!” The line of students called out in unison as Squall sprinted back towards the steps, Quistis and Selphie a step behind him.

“He made me squad leader,” Zell cried in near ecstasy. 

“Congrats,” Irvine said dully as Rinoa chuckled.

“Alright!” Zell turned towards the open balcony. “Time to get- It. _ON!_ ”

***

Squall sent Quistis to check on the forces at the parking lot and Selphie to barricade the second floor balcony. He went on up to the bridge alone. They were to meet back up with him here when they were done. He had to trust they could handle it without him.

Back at the controls, Nida was already holding out the binoculars as Squall was riding up. He indicated with his head out the window. 

“Look!” 

Squall hurried over, taking the binoculars. He lifted them up to his face and focused in on the approaching garden. 

They were a lot closer than Squall was comfortable with. Was 50% really that fast or was time just moving quicker now that they were in a bad situation?

Balamb Garden had started over the forest as well. Galbadia's ring was skimming the tree tops as it rushed towards them. Squall may not be an expert on mobile gardens, but it appeared to him that they weren't bothering to go half speed. Birds burst from the trees that they passed over. Monsters and the rare animal scattered as it moved along.

It took Squall a moment to notice what Nida had.

Galbadia Garden had a loading dock on one of the upper stories. Squall could see that someone had made a great deal of modifications to it. Long tracks that pointed up at the ends. Resting on them were bikes with rockets. Green clad Galbadian soldiers – a color he didn't recognize – were moving around the machines.

Standing on a tall lookout over all of it, grinning into the wind, was Seifer.

Squall thought he would have been prepared for this moment. He wasn't afraid to face Seifer, he never had been. It always seemed like just part of his life that Seifer was constantly there. A force in opposition to his own.

Yet, despite how prepared he thought he was, Squall still felt a twinge of anxiety at seeing him. Not because he was afraid of Seifer, but because the last time Squall had seen him he had been strapped to electricity generator.

The memory of the pain hadn't dulled with time. Shiva, for all she hid his childhood memories, hadn't made even a dent on that episode of his life. As if the agony had burned the images into his mind so deep that even a GF's presence couldn't dig them out.

Squall's fingers tightened, the leather of his gloves complaining, as he beheld the smug smirk on Seifer's arrogant face. Not at all dissimilar to the last time.

“Seifer is in charge over there,” Nida said carefully. None but his friends knew what transpired between him and Seifer in the prison. However, everyone knew of the animosity between the two men. Nida was checking out Squall carefully to gauge his reaction.

“So he is,” Squall said, his voice neutral as he lowered the binoculars. All business. This wasn't a personal thing. It as a SeeD mission. He would react accordingly.

“They're heading right for us,” Nida told him, looking forward. “Orders, commander?”

“Just keep going,” Squall said calmly.

***

Seifer, _Sir_ Seifer, grinned at the sight of Balamb Garden rushing towards them. He had looked through the binoculars earlier, but he hadn't seen Squall at the helm. That didn't mean that his archenemy wasn't over there. He was probably gathered his evil SeeDs even now. How Seifer hoped that Squall was preparing for this battle.

They were almost on top of each other. Seifer could make out the panels on the hull of the garden. The distance was just right.

Seifer lifted his free hand and he heard the rocket cycles behind him rev their engines in response. The new air division of the G-Army preparing for their first official launch. 

This was his doing. He reveled in the power of it. Because he had created this. This was his to command. He had ultimate control over life and death and the thrill of it filled his veins like an intoxicating drug.

Come on, Squall. Let's dance.

Seifer threw out his arm. One of the technicians pressed the button turning all the lights green. Every rocket cycle's engine roared. The men weren't exactly in perfect formation. Some shot forward immediately, a few slackers hesitated for a second.

It didn't matter. They all took off. Seifer stood back, grinning at the smoke trails they left behind as the rocket thrusters burst into life at the apex of the jump. The cyclists roared forward.

A few second after ignition, the rockets fell away. Some of the cycles landed against the hull of the garden. Others landed directly on the balcony of the quad. The biggest opening this side of the garden and easier to reach than the low set front gates.

The cries of battle were too faraway to hear, but Seifer felt them nonetheless. He grinned at the indescribable feeling of power lighting up his mind.

***

“We're gonna crash!” Nida yelled as the last gap between the garden's closed.

“Go right!” Squall ordered.

Nida grabbed the control pillar and threw it right. The garden lurched and the two buildings side swiped each other. The groaning of metal vibrated through the entire structure. Squall threw out his leg, catching himself before he fell.

He cursed when he saw the fading smoke trails of the rocket bikes. His eyes traced their trajectory as he reached for the intercom mic.

***

“ _The enemy garden is right by us! Quad team! Watch out!_ ”

“ARGH!” Zell cried out as he snatched a passing rocket cyclist from his bike and threw him down to the ground. His bike, uncontrolled, destabilized and toppled over. It fell onto its side and its momentum carried it forward until it crashed into the wall.

“How you holding up, Rinoa?” Irvine asked as he took down another cyclist with a shotgun blast.

“I'm fine!” She yelled, shooting her Rising Sun. The bright red blade flew and cut through the metal wheels of one of the bikes. The soldier atop it cried out as it fell, out of his control, and he and the bike rushed by Rinoa so fast it upset her hair.

She caught her edge easily as the man and bike crashed into a fireball behind her. “But the students lines are destroyed! They're panicking.”

“Well, they are mostly students,” Zell made a face. “Fira!”

The large fireball was thrown from his hand like a ball. It raced along the balcony, super heating the dirt and melting the rubber tires of three different bikes. The men cried out as they began losing control of their machines. Irvine took down one with a gunshot. Rinoa took out two in a row with a single blast of her edge.

“Come on,” Zell jerked his head forward. “Let's go forward and hit them before they land. At least give the students more of a fighting chance.”

“Coming!” Rinoa caught her Rising Sun as she started forward. Irvine was already behind Zell, firing into the oncoming group of cyclists.

How many of them were there?! 

“Dead ahead!” Zell yelled, running towards the end of the balcony.

His fists were flaming as he brought them back. One punch, two into the air sent raging fireballs blasting through the sky towards the oncoming squadron. Two men, hit by the engulfing flames, fell from the sky. Irvine cocked his shotgun and let out two quick shots.

“Oh, yeah!” Zell turned as Rinoa drew even with him. He reached into his pocket and closed his hands around Squall's silver ring.

“Rinoa, here you go. I got it straight from Squall.”

Rinoa held out her hand and blinked when Zell dropped the gleaming band into it. She was honestly surprised. She hadn't believed that Zell would actually be able to get it. She knew he said that he would, but Zell postured a lot.

“Seriously?” She looked to him, a grin forming.

“Yeah,” Zell smirked. “Like I said, I'll make you one just like it. 'Til then, hold onto it for me, will ya? I need the original, but it feels kind of weird carrying it myself.”

“What did you say to him?” Rinoa laughed, holding up the ring to her eyes. The monster engraving matched the one on his necklace, his pendant, and his sword. Everyone in garden had come to associate the symbol with him. The open mouth with bared fangs was intimidating but beautiful. Not unlike the man himself.

Zell shrugged off her question coolly. “I just told him to hand it over.”

Rinoa bit her lip eagerly as she slipped it over the ring finger of her left hand. Her eyes lit up at the way the silver looked against her skin. Then she frowned at the way it sat awkwardly.

“I like it, but...it's too big.”

“It's not like you're gonna wear that one,” Irvine told her, tossing back his hair as he quickly reloaded his gun. “Now will you two stop gabbing and _help me!_ ”

“Right!” Rinoa nodded and quickly lifted the chain from her neck. Zell ran forward with Irvine as she carefully slipped the ring onto her chain. It clicked gently against her mother's wedding band, the two silver rings matching each other.

Rinoa smiled as she tied the clasp back around her neck. The new added weight was unfamiliar but not uncomfortable. She couldn't help but smile at the monster marking her. Squall's monster. It looked just right sitting there over the swell of the breasts he liked so much.

Grinning – could things be any more perfect? – she ran forward to continue the battle against Galbadia Garden and the Galbadian Army.

Irvine was standing back. He had better aim from a distance. He was picking off rocket cyclists like prizes at a garden festival. Rinoa joined Zell at his side closer to the edge of the long balcony. He was shooting fireballs.

“Alright, Diablos,” Rinoa grinned, thinking through her new magic. “Blind!”

She swept out her hand. Spheres of darkness erupted from her hand. All three hit the faces of incoming soldiers. Covering their eyes with sticky darkness. The men cried out, grabbing for their faces. Unable to see, they could no longer control their landing. 

Three bikes crashed and three men downed with barely any effort on her part.

“Nice!” Zell laughed.

Balamb rocked as Galbadia Garden rammed into its side. All three of them pitched forward. Rinoa caught herself on her hands, opening up abrasions on her palms. Irvine fell to his knee. Zell dropped back onto his butt.

The loud crack of breaking rock with the groan of warping metal filled the air.

Rinoa was pushing herself up as she felt the ground drop out from beneath her. Zell cried out, turning and running backwards. He had to jump over the large fissure that opened in the ground beneath their feet. He landed awkwardly, picking himself up at the last second.

Rinoa screamed as she fell down with the shelf of rock.

Pain burst in her hands as she scrambled against the newly exposed cliff face. A sharp ledge hit her palms and she grabbed on tight despite the pain of it. Her entire body weight jerked down against her arms and she clenched her teeth to avoid the desire to let go.

Panting, she turned over her shoulder and looked down in time to see the shelf of rock she had fallen with hit the ring beneath the garden. The anti-directional spinning of the three rings hit the enormous rock at the same time and shattered it into dust. 

Rinoa's eyes widened as she looked up. She could just make out Zell's face as he leaned over the edge of the cliff. 

“Dammit!” Zell yelled, reaching out pointlessly. They knew without needing to actually measure that his arms weren't that long. “I can't reach her!”

Irvine grabbed his arm and jerked him back before he could fall over. “Let's find something to pull her up.”

Zell nodded and looked over the edge. “Rinoa, hold on! We'll be right back!”

“Yeah, sure...” Rinoa mumbled as they disappeared. 

Diablos was already doing what he could. The master of gravity was loosening the grip of the planet on her body, giving her abused hands some relief. He couldn't take the entirety of her weight though and Rinoa didn't see anything to grab onto that she could climb. She didn't regret giving Quistis her float spells until just this moment.

Up above, Zell and Irvine were sprinting through the quad. Trees, shrubs, steps. There wasn't even a metal rail he could knock down to lower to her.

“C'mon!” Zell yelled, a horrible sink hole forming in his gut. Squall was going to kill him. And he was going to deserve it. “Isn't there anything we can use?!”

They dodged through students defending the area. They took out a few soldiers, both on and off bikes, as they ran. They didn't stop though. They were both looking all over for anything they could use to get Rinoa back up.

They ran straight out of the quad into the garden nexus. The glass rails here were totally useless. Benches, trash cans. More students fighting, though less so here. They were only fighting back against the soldiers that had broken through the defenses. The tunnel effect of lines along the paths was working though, keeping the fighting contained to one area.

Zell was breathing hard, panicking now as he ran further down the garden. Rope. Chains. Something! There had to be some useful tool they could use!

“Zell!” Irvine called out, pointing forward.

Squall, Quistis, and Selphie were running down the steps from the elevator dais. Xu was leading them past the directory.

“They're coming in from the front gate!” She was yelling, pointing ahead. “Squall, you have to do something!”

Zell and Irvine fell in line behind them, keeping up as they made their way forward.

Squall growled in annoyance. The lines here were holding, but barely. There was a courtyard in Galbadia Garden that was leaning over directly into the entrance here. Soldiers were jumping off their garden and onto theirs easily. 

“Blizzara!” Squall yelled, throwing out his magic.

Like a cage, long spears of ice erupted from the ground and embedded themselves into the ceiling. The soldiers were left pounding against an ice wall. It wouldn't last forever. But Squall hoped it would last long enough for the students and SeeDs here to beat back this current crop of soldiers. Then they could be ready for the next.

“Squall!”

Zell's voice filled him with dread. There was only one reason he would be here and not at the quad doing as he was ordered. Squall turned quickly, ready for the news that they had lost control of the quad and the soldiers were pouring in from there.

“Rinoa's in trouble!” Zell yelled immediately, panicked.

Icy fear clenched Squall's gut. He couldn't help but notice her absence. Where was she?

“We gotta hurry!” Irvine pointed back towards the quad. “She's gonna fall off the garden and we have no way of getting to her!”

DAMN!

“ _Squall!_ ” Nida yelled over the intercom. “ _The enemy is attacking the classrooms. The junior classmen are hiding up there! We have to do something fast!_ ”

“The enemy's breaking through!” Xu warned as the soldiers burned through his ice.

“Squall, did you hear me?!” Zell asked as though baffled as to why he wasn't moving.

“Yeah! I heard you!” Squall gave him a cold look. “But she's not the only one in danger!”

Irvine growled at him. “Didn't think you were so heartless, Squall. Rinoa is gonna die! Don't you realize that?!”

Heartless? What was he talking about? Of course Squall had to go save her. Everything in him was screaming at him to do just that. Abandon all his responsibility and rush to her aid.

But these feelings were still new to him. Squall had been training for nearly a full decade to be a mercenary first and foremost. He couldn't abandon his responsibility. Rinoa was in danger, yes, but so were children and students. She wouldn't forgive him for abandoning them. He wouldn't forgive himself for it either.

Think fast, Squall, he told himself. Quickest way to save a many people as possible...  
“Quistis, you stay here with Xu! You two defend the front gate.”

“Alright,” she nodded. The two of them jumped the turnstiles and ran forward to join the forces fighting the soldiers coming through his ice.

“Irvine, Selphie, you're with me,” he said to them. “We'll go to the second floor classrooms and save the underclassmen.”

“Right!” Selphie nodded along with Irvine.

“Zell,” Squall turned to him. Zell's back straightened guiltily. Squall gave him a freezing cold look that somehow burned. “ _You_ help Rinoa. Do whatever it takes, all right?”

Zell nodded, pounding his chest. “Leave it to me!”

It was the best Squall could do. Saving the underclassmen in an emergency situation took priority. He had to go up there. He was left with little choice but to trust Zell. 

As the blonde warrior was running off, Squall had to squash his feelings of regret. He couldn't save her himself, but he could command the force that did. So long as she was safe, that was what mattered more than anything.

“ _Squall, the enemy is coming in from the sky!_ ” Nida yelled as Squall led Selphie and Irvine back towards the elevator. “ _They're heading for classroom 2F!_ ”

Selphie hit the elevator first, slamming her hand on the button.

***

Personal flying machines. Expensive, still a bit glitchy, and so large that it was impractical to stock very many of them. The five men piloting these could only think about getting off again. None of them felt safe until they were docked on Balamb garden's hull.

Pierced by twin lances near the arms, the flight stands anchored themselves in place. With a push of the button, the green clad G-Soldiers began repelling down on the black cord that released from the back of the machine.

They moved down quickly, searching for the glass window somewhere along the metal hull. The silver of the tinting concealed the opening until they were almost on top of it.

 

Boots thudded against the glass. The men turned to each other and nodded.

In sync, they all jumped-

-SLAM!

Their boots crashed through the glass into one of the SeeD classrooms. Razor sharp shards fell all around them as they hit the ground, their cables swinging out behind them. They came up quickly, pulling out their sabers as they took in the room they had landed in.

Rows of computer terminals. A girl in SeeD uniform standing with a group of huddling children. They had all turned at the sound of the soldier's boots on the glass and were staring at them with wide eyes. It sat heavy in the soldier's bellies, being forced to kill children.

But it was either kill these children or allow the sorceress would kill theirs.

The door of the classroom slid open quickly.

“Blizzara!”

The first soldier, speared by so many spires of ice, fell down dead. 

Selphie cried out as she ran in, jumping up onto the backs of the terminals. She used them as steps to run forward, drawing back her nunchaku. 

“Sir?” One of the men turned to him as Irvine ran in after her, Squall just a step behind.

“Dispose of the garden as planned!” The captain ordered. He brought up his saber and caught Selphie's attack against the metal body.

“Dispose?” Irvine growled, angered as he moved to stand in front of the underclassmen.

“No way!” Selphie growled.

Face drawn in fury – she wasn't losing _another_ garden – Selphie slammed her foot into the captain's face. He cried out in pain as his lip started bleeding. Looping the chain of her nunchaku around his neck, she flipped over his body. The chain tightened as she landed. She pulled him backwards, over her body, and down to the ground.

The crack of his neck snapping was echoed by the blast of Irvine's shotgun. The third soldier fell, a large hole in his chest.

Squall sliced up, taking out one, then pivoted and sliced down, taking out the second. The soldiers' lighter armor, made for flight, not fight, fell easily.

“That's what I'm talking about!” Selphie giggled, jerking her Crescent Wish free.

Squall turned quickly to the SeeD caretaker for the underclassmen. She was standing, a look of relief on her face, as the younglings all looked up at him with impressed gazes.

“You all right?” He asked, referring to them as a whole.

“We're all okay,” she nodded to him. “Thank you, commander.”

“Take them somewhere safe,” Squall ordered. “The noncombatants are hiding out in the dorms. You should join them.”

“Yes, sir,” she saluted him. “Come on, kids. Hurry up.”

Still giving Squall looks filled with hero worship, the underclassmen followed her out. Squall let out a long breath as he sheathed his sword.

That was one problem dealt with. Maybe now he could-

“ _Squall!_ ”

He very nearly groaned. Now what?

“ _Squall. Come up to the bridge. Dr. Kadowaki is here._ ”

He frowned. The doctor? What did she want with him?

“Irvine, Selphie. You two check the second floor for any more enemies. Then go downstairs and help the others.”

“Got it!” Grinning, Selphie ran off after Irvine.

Squall sprinted from the classroom, heading for the elevator. He was glad he had sent the other two to deal with any other surprises. He could see students laying around the halls, injured and exhausted from similar fights. He had little choice at the moment but the run past them. If he passed out a few cure spells along the way...

Well, it wasn't like he used cure spells anymore anyway.

The elevator moved quickly up the shaft and Squall rotated his shoulder. He was starting to think he was getting too old for this already...

The doors slid open and he ran out. Quistis was already walking through the double doors as he did emerged. She looked back and the two of them stopped in front of Dr. Kadowaki who was standing at the base of the platform to the bridge.

“Has the infirmary been taken?” Squall asked immediately, fearing the answer.

“No,” she shook her head, easing his panic a bit. “I've got the medic students manning everything. They can handle it until I get back. What's the situation?”

Squall frowned, looking out the window. He could see the gardens had slipped past each other on the last hit. They were coming back around though. Nida wasn't giving any quarter as he charged down the enemy gardens. They would be on them soon.

“We were able to stop the first two waves of the attack,” Squall said, almost reporting it to her. “But our forces aren't looking good. Many are injured, a lot of them are tired. They're just students. We don't have enough SeeDs. If they send another wave...I don't know if we can hold them off.”

The doctor hummed noncommittally. She turned to Quistis. “And? How's your team?”

“Not good,” Quistis shook her head. There was a long slice along her brow that had already stopped bleeding and a large bruise forming on her shoulder, just above her glove. “The force at the front gate is still holding its ground, but barely. Squall is right, I don't think we can take another hit.”

Dr. Kadowaki sighed. “So...It looks like this is it...”

“Their garden has more experienced fighters,” Quistis sighed, touching her bruised shoulder with gentle fingers. “They have an actual army. On the other hand, most of our troops are students who are still in training. They have the will...but a lot of them don't even have GFs yet. Maybe we should just consider...retreating. Gather our forces. Attack another day.”

Squall crossed his arms, resisting the urge to growl in frustration. It killed him to retreat. It was just a tactical word for defeat. Besides, would the other garden even let them escape? Regrets began running through his mind, poisoning his thoughts.

Maybe he should have focused on attacking in the beginning instead of concentrating on their defenses. Maybe he should have been more involved in the battle, allowed Xu to lead. Maybe he had been wrong in attacking their garden in the first place, no matter that it was mutual. If he had run before they even met, no one would be hurt right now...

“Squall.”

His eyes focused on Dr. Kadowaki, looking at him with a strange expression on her aged face.

“Seifer is with them, right?”

His hand closed into a fist.

She nodded, accepting that as an answer. “You said it yourself. There's no way you can run from him.” A grin broke out on her face. “It's kind of your destiny to face him.”

“I wish people would stop talking about my destiny,” Squall turned from her. First Headmaster Cid, now her. Was there nothing in his life that was his choice?

Not that she was wrong. That was probably why it irked so bad to think of retreating. Because he was, in effect, running away from Seifer. It burned.

“Well,” Dr. Kadowaki hit his arm. “Looks like it's now or never! You've come this far already. What is there to think about? Surely you're not going to start running away now.”

Squall growled, his fists slamming to his side as anger and hatred filled his heart. “There's no way I'm gonna run from him!”

Like hell! Retreat? SeeD didn't retreat! You made SeeD because you were willing to give your life for the cause. There wasn't a man, woman, _or_ child in this garden who didn't share that feeling. From the commander himself down to the kids who trained daily to be in SeeD.

“Attacking them might be our only chance,” Squall said firmly. “We can't escape them, and it's not like the garden is capable of hiding. So we fight. To the last man standing. If we can't hold our lines here, then we take it to them. Do what we do best. The only problem is how we're going to board their garden.”

Quistis thought for a moment, frowning. “Well...How about if we crash into it? Like they're doing. I know it sounds crazy, but at least we'll be able to get in. Their pilot has been ramming us. I'm sure Nida can do it, no problem.”

Squall nodded. “We have no choice. Let's do it.”

The doors burst open and Zell ran in, panting. Irvine and Selphie were hot on his heels. Squall frowned, his heart sinking. The hatred faded fast, replaced by dread.

“Where's Rinoa?” He demanded to know, looking around quickly like she might jump out from behind the door.

Zell looked like he had swallowed something bitter. Guilt laid heavy on his face as he turned away, unable to look at Squall. “Sorry, man. There's nothin' I can do. There's no way to get to the quad. Those bastards have the area barricaded. Total shutdown. The only way we can get to her now is by climbing over the damn roof. Or flying...”

Squall's jaw tightened as his eyes shut.

Damn...

Damn.

Damn!

...Rinoa...

“Whoa!” Irvine yelled out, forcing Squall's eyes open. He was looking at him, face drawn in surprised dismay. “Wait a minute. You just gave up on her, didn't you!?”

Irvine leveled an accusing finger at Squall, stepping forward angrily.

Squall opened his mouth, but no words came out. He didn't abandon her...

He just didn't know what to do for her...

“Listen. Do me a favor.” Irvine put his hands on Squall's shoulders, shaking him slightly as though trying to knock sense into him. “You go help Rinoa. It may be too late, but don't give up until you're _certain_ that there's nothing more you can do. She's not gone yet, so there's still a chance to save her.”

Responsibility weighed heavy on Squall's soul. “I...I have to lead the attack-”

“I don't care what you have to do! Or how you feel! I may not be 'you' levels of good, but I have those three and Xu backing me up. I think we can be fine without you. Just...do it. _Please!_...For Rinoa. For yourself!”

Squall hesitated again. His heart warring with his head.

He couldn't leave his position.

He couldn't leave her.

“Listen to Irvine, Squall,” Quistis said gently, smiling at him sweetly. “She's one of us. One of your friends. And she needs help. Nothing can be more important than that.”

So many things were more important than his feelings.

“Yeah!” Selphie stomped, glaring at him. “What are you waiting for? I can't believe you! Don't you ever do something that's beyond your duty, Squall?”

He wasn't a machine! He could choose for himself. Right?

“C'mon, Squall!” Zell beseeched him. “Please. It's gotta be you. You can't just send someone else to do it. You're the one that has to save her. You're the only one who can now!”

Why was everyone ganging up on him right now? It wasn't like he wanted to leave her behind...

“Hey.” Irvine's call turned him from the others. He grinned at him, smirking with his hands on his hips stepping back in front of the others. “ _I'll_ take everyone inside Galbadia Garden. Don't worry. I know the place like the back of my hand. There's no one more qualified to bust inside than me. Not even you, commander.”

“We'll clear a path,” Quistis nodded, thinking quickly. “Once Squall and Rinoa arrives, we'll move in. Find the sorceress. Take her out.”

He stared between them. Unsure what to say. They were making their lives more difficult just so he could go save this one girl. There were so many in danger right now. His skills on the battlefield were unparalleled in this garden and they all knew it. But they were willing to pick up the slack so he could follow what his heart was screaming at him to do.

“Squall.” Dr. Kadowaki's soft call turned him back to her. “You're forgetting something very important.”

He blinked. What?

She turned and deliberately walked back onto the platform. Squall followed her quickly and the two of them rode up together. On the bridge, Nida didn't turn to see them. He was so focused on avoiding the next charge from Galbadia Garden that he barely heard their ascent.

The doctor reached up and too hold of the mic. She turned back and held it out to Squall with a caring smile on her face. “ _Talk_ to your men, Squall. Encourage them. As their leader, it's your duty.”

Squall frowned, staring at the mic wearily like it was a poisonous snake poised to bite him. Talk to them? Encourage them? He didn't really _do_ that...

When the silence dragged on, Nida looked over his shoulder. He grinned as the gardens passed each other smoothly, his piloting preventing another collision. “You probably don't know this, Squall, but everybody in this garden looks up to you.”

Squall frowned up at him. They did what? Why?

“They like you,” Nida grinned. “They know you're bad at talking, but you're great at being a SeeD. You're good at taking care of people. You're good at being there for others. You always help anyone who asks and you never turn your back because something gets too hard. If you talk, I know people will listen.”

Squall looked back at the mic as Nida turned the garden around. He could practically feel the presence of everyone below. Fighting. Healing. Hurting.

Slowly, he reached out and took hold of the mic. He took a deep breath as Dr. Kadowaki stepped back, smiling at him. 

That was her boy...

Squall clicked the button, turning on the intercom. Someone had disabled the cheerful jingle so he heard only the soft buzzing of feedback telling him it was operational.

“Everybody...this is Squall.” He hesitated, unsure of himself. He wished the Headmaster was here, he always knew what to say. Or Rinoa. She was good at getting him to talk.

If he closed her eyes, he could see her face. Encouraging him. Smiling, urging him forward.

He could lose her right now...

“How's everyone doing?” The question was soft, filled with his own emotions. “You're all probably too tired to even stand up after all the fighting. But I want everyone to listen to me...”

***

Slowly, the injured students in the halls that Squall had given his cure spells to turned and lifted their heads up to the ceiling.

“ _We still have a chance to win, and I need you help. This is going to be our final battle. We're going to attack them before they come in again. To do that, we're going to head straight into garden. So I want everyone to prepare for a major collision..._ ”

Irvine jumped the turnstiles as Quistis and Xu urged the remaining students into formation. Those who were too injured to stand were already being seen to by an overworked medical staff. No one was complaining.

“ _Take care of the junior classmen. Irvine, Quistis, Zell, and Selphie will lead the attack into their garden. Xu will coordinate the attack from here. As for everyone else, please support them if you can._ ”

Another student, healed enough now to get back up, got to his feet. His weapon was heavy in his hand, but he wasn't putting it down. No one would. They had trained too hard for too long to let something like this stop them. As long as they could fight, they would.

“ _SeeD was formed to fight the sorceress. At least...that's what I was told. And this garden was created to train SeeDs. So this battle is garden's destiny. Our destiny._ ”

Zell turned as the girl from the library stepped forward. There was a large gash on her arm, but she had never looked so determined. Her hair had fallen out, and she had never looked so pretty either. Zell felt his face flushing to look at her. She grinned at him, standing proud with the others students that were preparing to fight again.

“ _It's a grueling battle, and I'm sure you guys are all exhausted. But I don't want to have any regrets. I don't want anyone to look back and regret this day. So, just this once, I want you guys to give everything you got. For yourselves...and for me._ ”

Breathing hard, for some reason his heart racing in his chest, Squall lifted his finger from the button of the mic. He looked up, uncertain of himself.

Dr. Kadowaki was smiling. “You did great. That was wonderful.”

He let out a breath as she turned to Nida. Her serene face was fierce and grinning. “Okay! Nida. Let's bash into them! Really give it to them good!”

“Yes, ma'am!”

Tired of evasive maneuvers, eager to fight in his own way, Nida turned the control pillar quickly. The garden obeyed like it was an extension of his own body.

The pilot of Galbadia Garden, unprepared for the sudden offensive, didn't move in time. Balamb smashed into them, their magic rings colliding and sending up sparks of light. Nida growled, pushing harder against the resistance.

Galbadia Garden groaned as it was lowered forcibly by Balamb's weight. Its rings smashed into the dirt, grinding along the ground, digging out long trenches.

***

“Here it comes!” Irvine yelled, standing near the edge of the front gate ledge. He was standing back, holding out his hands. Waiting for the right moment. When the outer courtyard of their garden was lined up just right...

Balamb pressed down further, its ring slicing against the hull of Galbadia Garden. Digging into its mechanics. The garden let out a long groan as its ring was pushed further down into the earth.

The ring around Galbadia Garden snapped and shards of magic shattered. The garden crashed to the ground, Balamb pushing down against it still.

The front gate ledge was near even with the courtyard of Galbadia.

“Move out!” Irvine yelled, running forward.

Lake an avalanche, SeeDs and students poured out of the garden. They leapt between the space, landing on the dirt and charging forward towards the army that hadn't been prepared for them. Irvine and the others led the lines, the excitment of the battle singing in their veins.

“Oh yeah!” Zell yelled, his fists burning, his eyes smoking. “We're in, baby!”

“You ready, guys?” Quistis grinning, wind and electricity whipping about her hair.

“You betcha!” Selphie grinned. Ruby light was shinning from her eyes, her voice melodic, the water condensing around her body and falling into a puddle at her feet.

Irvine grinned, cocking his gun as the earth rumbled with each step he took. He let out the first shot. It ran out, loud and proud, over the entire area.

For me and Selphie!

For the world!

For Balamb and Trabia!

It's payback time!

The SeeD and G-armies clashed.

***

Despite Squall clicking the button for the first floor, the elevator stopped on the second. Squall found out why when, as the doors were opening, a frantic girl was already rushing in.

She slammed against his chest and her wide eyes recognized him. She grabbed his jacket, her voice eager and desperate.

“Commander! Please, help me! Mark is gone!”

“What?” Squall frowned, confused at the sudden attack.

“Mark! He's got blonde hair, green eyes, he's like _this_ big. He wears his uniform all the time! Please help me find him!” She held out her hand down below her waist to emphasize Mark's height.

Dammit. An underclassman. They took priority. He couldn't leave a kid alone. There were still flying soldiers around.

“All right.” Squall stepped out with her, pushing her hands off of him. “You wait here. I'll go find him!”

Her sobs of gratitude followed him down the hall. His boots echoed loudly in the empty, abandoned hallway as he sprinted down the circle. The doors on the classrooms had been left open, emergency procedures flipped the locks and trapped them that way.

It made it easy for Squall to peek his head in each one as he ran. Looking for a small boy.

It was the small hiccups of crying that caught his attention. Not in a room, but in the halls.

In the back, towards the emergency exit and the entrance to the second floor balcony, a young underclassman wearing his student uniform was curled up in the middle of the floor. He was crying, holding his legs to his chest and rocking back and forth. He didn't look up until Squall slid to a stop in front of him.

Squall reached out, pulling him into a sitting position and quickly checking for injuries. He saw none. Only fear in the child's eyes. Relief flooded his veins as he nodded at the boy.

In full commander's voice, he spoke softly but firmly.

“You all right, kid?”

The little boy sniffed pathetically. “Yeah...”

"Okay. Stand up.” Squall grabbed him by his thin arms and set him up onto his feet. The boy sniffed again, looking at him with sorrow.

“I'm sorry...”

“Why?” Squall asked, leaning back.

“You said to give everything you got. But I couldn't do anything...” More tears, big and wet, leaked from his eyes. He rubbed his running nose on his sleeve.

Squall opened his mouth but no words came out. This wasn't exactly what he meant. He hadn't considered this as a potential consequence of his words.

His immediate reaction, to tell the kid to forget about it, was quickly cut off. He could only imagine how he would feel if someone told him to forget about it when they had just told him to try his best and he had been trying. It would have felt like failure. He couldn't bring that feeling on a kid who had honestly been giving his all.

“Hey.” Squall reached out and took his shoulders, looking at him directly. “Sitting here isn't giving everything you've got. You want to give everything you got?”

“Yeah...” The boy's eyes dried slightly as he looked up, eager to hear his instructions.

“Then I need you to go back towards the elevator. There's a girl waiting for you down the hall. She's going to take you to the other underclassmen. What I need from you, and the others underclassmen, is to train. To learn. To help out in any small way you can.”

“What?” The boy frowned, confused. “That's not helping.”

“Yes it is. It's helping a great deal. Without you and the others, there won't be any new SeeDs. The best thing you can do now is learn. So, one day, you can fight without crying. Right?”

The boy sniffed, trying to straighten his shoulders. He nodded once. “Yes, commander...”

“Good. Go. On the double, cadet.”

The boy flashed him a tiny, messy salute. Then he turned and started running. Squall grinned after him, getting to his feet slowly.

Okay, that wasn't so bad-

The shifted of the large metal door to the second floor balcony was his only warning. Pain exploded in the back of Squall's head as he was rammed into from behind by something large and metal. His teeth cut against his lips as he fell to the ground.

The loud thrumming of the green flying machine went directly over his head then back against as the G-soldier tried to run him over.

Squall pushed himself up, spiting out the coppery taste of his own blood. Before he could even straighten fully-

WHAM!

The air was forced from him in a rush as the machine crashed into his chest. Squall's back and head slammed against the wall. Stars burst in front of his eyes, quickly banished by Shiva giving him a cura spell. The pain faded fast. The taste of his blood did not.

Squall glared ahead at the smirking visage of the G-soldier. In his hulking green flying machine, he had probably barely cleared the staircase down from the second floor balcony. Laughing at him, the man's fingers danced teasingly on the controls. Silently threatening him under the roar of the propellers keeping the personal flying machine up.

What to do? What to do? There was no way he was going to let Squall leave. And he could be smashed to a pulp by that machine before that girl down the hall could come to his aid. His fingers twitched for his blade but the smirk on the soldier's face dared him to try.

Squall's hand closed into a fist. Doing so, his fingers hit upon a strange shape. His eyes darted down quickly to see that he had been slammed against the emergency exit door. And his fingers were dancing right on the edge of the release switch.

The flying machine in front of Squall bounced gently in the halls. The wind it threw off was throwing about his hair and his jacket. The soldier, held in place by only the straps of the flyer, was still smirking at him.

And that perfectly good flying machine...

Squall smirked back. The smile immediately faded from the soldier's mouth and turned into a hard, suspicious glare. He rammed forward on the stick, not wanting to give his enemy the chance to try anything.

Squall's hand grabbed the lever of the emergency release. He twisted it and a loud puff of air was accompanied by the door falling backwards.

The soldier slammed into him, forcing it open. Squall grabbed onto the straps keeping him in as the two of them tumbled down the bright yellow emergency slide down into the empty air.

Squall's fingers froze the metal clasp tying the man in place. The soldier cried out from the freezing cold as Squall grabbed onto it. With a single, violent twist, the metal shattered under his grasp.

The soldier fell, dragging Squall down with him. The quickly spinning reel of the repelling line dropped them downward in the rushing wind. Squall and the soldier jerked against the end of the cord, both dangling from the end. Squall's boot was pushing the soldier's from the ring at the bottom. His hand was forcing Squall's up and into an awkward position.

Uncontrolled, the flyer just moved around the garden on no real course. Squall and the soldier both were left helpless to its whims as they grappled at the bottom of the repelling line.

“Worthless SeeD!” The soldier was saying, throwing wild punches that Squall was absorbing with his free arm. He felt the force of each punch, but none landed on his face. “How dare you oppose the sorceress! You will submit to Galbadian rule!”

He drew back and punched forward. Squall grabbed his fist in his hand. The soldier jerked back, struggling against his hold.

“I need your flying machine,” Squall told him, grinning.

He jerked the man forward. At the same time, his knee came up. It slammed into the man's gut, causing him to grunt and his hand to slip. It fell lower, allowing Squall to lower his own and get a better grip on the repelling cord.

The revolving rings of the garden were a bright backdrop as the flyer started descending. Squall frowned at the sight of it. He drew back his fist.

The soldier's glass jaw broke under his punch. Squall felt the bone give. The pain of it made the soldier's eyes roll back in his head. His hand relaxed involuntarily. His foot slipped out from the rung of the flyer.

His body dropped down onto the garden's ring. The sudden lack of weight sent the flyer rushing higher into the sky. Squall turned away before he could see the body land.

He focused instead on taking hold of the repelling cord and climbing back up. It wasn't all that difficult of a task as the line wasn't all that long.

With the restraints broken, he couldn't take control of it the way it was designed. However, what he could do was climb onto the side of the machine. The right side, where the controls were located on the arm. He took hold of the flight stick and frowned as he gave it an experimental push forward.

The flyer responded easily. It rushed forward. Squall turned it slightly and it began following the curve around the garden. It took him a moment to realize he could adjust the height of the flyer by using a secondary, smaller analog at the center of the first one. However, once he grasped that, he grinned to himself and began piloting it around like a pro.

Hanging off of the craggy face of what had once been the quad balcony, Rinoa's teeth were clenched with the effort it was taking to hold on.

No matter that Diablos was taking part of her weight. She had been hanging from the side of the garden for far too long now. She could feel a peculiar, hollow pain in her shoulders as it felt like they were slowly being stretched out of socket. The skin of her hands was raw and numb, making it that much more difficult to hang on. The blood she had shed grabbing the rock had dried and Diablos was preventing any new wounds from opening with a slow but steady supply of her old cure spells. But the pain relieving affects did little against new stimulus and it was constantly hurting.

Not for the first time, Rinoa tried putting her feet against the rock. To try to take at least some of the pressure from her fingers. There was nothing for her feet to grab. The uneven surface was rough but the ledges were too small to get a grip on.

Zell had been gone too long. Worse than that, Rinoa was able to watch Galbadian goons land on the balcony, slowly taking it over. While none of them had noticed her yet, she could hear them yelling up above about holding rank and keeping back the SeeDs.

Which meant she was well and truly trapped here. What was she even holding on for if there was no way that anyone was going to be able to get to her? For all she knew, this battle could wage on for hours more. How long until the strength in her hands finally just snapped and she was unable to stop herself from letting go?

Was this how she died?

Diablos protested in her head. Trying harder to take some of her weight. But he was already taxing his powers. There was little else he could do.

There was nothing else she could do.

Squall...

She was sure he was off right now thinking up some grand plan for leading the garden to victory. She would never get to see it. She would never even get their third date.

And if she fell right now...

Rinoa felt the pressure of his and her mother's rings pressing into her chest, squished between her body and the rock. His favorite ring. Entrusted to her for safe keeping...

The loud humming of the flyer didn't immediately catch her attention. She had heard many of them flying overhead. She had been praying that none would spot her. As yet, none had. Though, if one did, would she really be any worse off?

So she paid it no mind initially. She was biting her bottom lip, putting all of her focus into keeping her hands clenched despite the throbbing numbness.

The machine got louder. Unable to ignore it any longer, Rinoa's eyes opened. She turned around, her hair getting into her face, as she followed the sound.

She was expecting a smirking G-soldier. She was even sort of hoping for it. At least that would mean this fight would finally be over.

She didn't dare hope, she couldn't believe she was even seeing...

Squall's chestnut locks were whipping about wildly. His jacket had fallen open and his white shirt was pressed tight against his firm chest. He was steering the flying machine one handed, hanging off of the side. He was staring right at her, lowering in close to where she was hanging.

And his eyes were so ON.

Rinoa blinked. Not wanting to believe. Not daring to hope.

He had actually flown here to save her. How in the name of Hyne...

Squall got closer, hovering right above her head. The grappling cord dangled right near her. Rinoa spotted the dangling, weighted ring with such relief that it nearly brought tears to her eyes.

A cry of delight, a smile of disbelief, she reached out. Her numb fingers nearly missed the rope. Her eager and ready foot did not miss the ring. Her weight, freed from her hands and shoulders, sent painful cries of relief up her spine and into her brain.

She barely felt it. Rinoa was laughing with exhilaration as Squall steered the flyer away from the cliff and down towards Galbadia Garden. She could just barely see the edge of it, having been forced into the ground by Nida's superior offensive driving.

Rinoa hugged the grappling line, giving her abused fingers a chance to heal. Her head fell back and she looked up to see Squall gazing down at her.

His eyes, so intense, were quiet, but so focused. She loved being the focus of those eyes. It sent chills down her spine that banished the pain in her limbs. She took firmer hold of the line and stared right back up at him until he was forced to look ahead so he could see where he was landing.

Rinoa looked down as well.

Into the writhing mass of steel, magic, and bodies that was the battlefield on the Galbadian courtyard. The acrid scent of burning flesh and cloth, the coppery scent of blood, and the bitter scent of sweat hit her nose like a hammer. Rinoa's jaw tightened as she reminded herself that there was still a battle to be fought.

Squall lowered the flyer slowly. Rinoa's other foot swung out as the stone path of the garden came in closer. She waited until she was only a few short feet off the ground.

She jumped at the same time Squall did. She hit the ground just a moment before him. Squall came down next to her, his hand grabbing her shoulder.

He gave her a look. With those intense eyes of his. In the middle of a battle, that was the best he could manage.

He turned away, looking back to the battle.

Rinoa looked forward, towards the garden. Where the sorceress was. The head of the operations, so to speak. Take out the head. Take out the body.

“Over there!” She yelled over the sounds of fighting. “There's the entrance!”

Squall's gaze turned and followed her finger.

The two of them jumped to their feet. She felt his hand against her back, pushing her ahead of him. She sprinting along the ground obediently. She could feel the cold of his body, hear the stomping of his boots, directly behind her. He didn't grab hold of her, but she felt like he had taken her hand and was pulling her along.

In the open area, having surprised the G-Army, the SeeDs and students were faring far better. It was more of an even fight. No one worried about breaking their garden. The students were free to fight and the words of their leader rang in their ears as encouragement.

An enormous fireball whizzed past Squall and Rinoa. The ground rocked as a grenade went off, spilling dirt and rocks into the sky and falling over them. She caught sight of a guy being clotheslined by a saber off of his motorcycle.

When part of her was tempted to stop to help the garden students, Squall's presence urged her silently on. They had a much more urgent matter to attend to. Taking care of this part of the army would mean nothing if they didn't deal with the leader.

The two of them escaped the outskirts of the battle, leaping over the body of a fallen soldier. They continued on into the grass, following the outer walls of the garden around. They didn't slow until they were in front of a metal walkway leading to a back entrance into the garden. Only then did they stop and turn back, breathing hard.

From here, they couldn't see the battle. Though they could hear it. Echoing faintly in the distance, the sound of shells exploding and magic casting seemed so far off even just this short distance away.

Rinoa turned back to Squall first. He was looking over her head, his chest heaving with effort. His hand was on her upper arm now, as though trying to hold her in place.

She smiled gently and the movement turned his eyes down to her again. His expression softened slightly, but his eyes remained ON. She felt her skin tingling under that gaze. It felt even better knowing that she was alive to feel it again.

“Squall,” she breathed softly. “Thank you.”

Squall started at the sincerity in her voice. His hand released her quickly and he turned his eyes away. That did nothing to ease the soft blush on his cheeks and her smile widened.

She just loved it when her big, bad mercenary got flustered like that.

“It was, ah...” Squall cleared his throat, trying to adopt a professional tone. “Don't worry about it. It was my job. We're still under contract, despite my promotion. So it falls to me to keep you safe. And it was everyone else's idea anyway. And I just happened to find you. That's all. So, like I said, don't worry about it.”

Rinoa was laughing. Not at him, he knew that now. He recognized her happy laugh. She lifted her head again and he tried to ignore the way her eyes shined at him. Despite the battle raging behind them, she had never felt so alive.

“Of course,” she nodded, agreeing with his excuses easily. They both knew they weren't true. She was just allowing him to keep up the charade. And he was grateful for it.

Squall let out a breath and looked towards the door of the garden.

“You know something,” she said softly, drawing his attention back towards her. “I couldn't afford to fall off that cliff and die. I have something very important that belongs to you.”

Squall watched as she reached up and the tips of her fingers gently brushed the ring she always wore around her neck.

No. Not just one ring. There was a second one there now. Squall frowned slightly, trying to get a better look at the silver band.

“I can't die until I give it back to you, right?” She smiled up at him and her finger twisted the ring slightly. The heavier face side of the ring turned up and offered Squall a glimpse of the carving. “See? Zell gave it to me. I've been holding onto it.”

Squall was gonna kill him.

“That's my favorite ring,” he told her firmly, pointing to it. “You'd better give it back.” Don't you dare fall off of the garden.

“I'm sure it is,” Rinoa said, smiling at the gruffness of his voice. She knew that meant he was feeling something he was unaccustomed to. “It's a cool-looking ring. What's this monster on it anyway?”

Squall let out a small breath. “It's not a monster. It's an animal.”

“An animal?” She blinked, surprised.

“Yeah. From the old days. It's a lion. One of the last animal species to go extinct when the monsters arrived. They're known for their great strength and pride.”

“Hmm...” Rinoa put her hands behind her back, deliberately pushing her chest out in the process. She was rewarded by the lump in Squall's throat jerking as he swallowed at the sight.

“Great strength...” Her eyes moved up his chest, a strong defined chest that she had enjoyed the sight of many times already and still couldn't wait to see it again.

“Pride...” She looked into his intense eyes. Unyielding, unwavering.

“Kind of like you, Squall.”

Squall turned away, shaking his head slightly. He didn't see what she could see. “I wish...”

“Hmm...” She grinned, reaching up to touch the ring again. She took it between her fingers and got to watch out of her periphery as Squall stared at the way her fingers twisted the silver. “You do seem to like the symbol a lot. Surrounding yourself with your own kind?”

“It's just decoration.” It felt like a piece of armor.

“It's obviously important to you. It's the only thing I've seen you ask for. If it wasn't important, why would you keep it so close?”

Squall didn't have an answer for that. She smiled.

“So this... _lion_ of yours...Does it have a name?”

He grinned. “Of course. He's called Griever.”

“Griever.” She said the word slowly, like she was savoring the taste of it. Squall's eyes were trapped on her lips as she formed the word.

It was a huge concession for him to admit something like this to her. Owning to the name he had given the lion was a secret he had given no one else. He wondered if she knew how much it meant to him to share that with her.

She did.

"You know,” she smiled up at him, still playing with the band. “Zell said he'll make me one exactly like it. Who knows...Maybe I can become like a lion, too.”

Unable to help herself, she giggled, her face breaking out into a wide grin. Her cheeks flushed pink at the thought of her wearing Squall's ring. His mark. Having it in pride of place on her hand. Just the mental image was enough to make her giddy.

“That'd be crazy, huh?! I mean, everyone might, y'know, get the wrong idea about us.” Matching rings. Everyone knew what that meant.

Squall raised an eyebrow at her conflicting reactions. If it was so crazy, why did she sound so very delighted? Puh-lease. Everyone was trying to get them together. It was so obvious, even he could tell. He kind of wished they would all mind their own business.

He would make that step when he was very well ready.

“You sound like you want everyone to get the wrong idea,” he finally said evenly.

“No-no-no-no-no!” She hastened to say, even as the smile on her face contradicted her words.

Well...His ring was already around her neck. And he felt no great desire to take it back. He actually kind of liked the way it looked, right there on the swell of her breasts.

He cleared his throat, turning away quickly. Rinoa didn't miss the direction his mind had taken and she grinned slyly.

“Well...Everyone's waiting...” This was hardly the place to be fantasizing about resting his head on those soft globes, his ring right in sight, as her fingers wound through his hair-

Dammit!

“Rinoa...” he turned to her and had to force down the desire to tell her to stay here. To stay safe. This was not the place for her to be safe, next door to a battlefield.

And, just as before, he couldn't deny her the right to fight. No matter how much he wished he could just fight all her battles for her.

“Let's go,” he jerked his head to the side.

Her face broke out into a wide grin. She was almost laughing as she ran towards the side door. Squall followed after her more slowly. 

“Hurry up, Squall!” She laughed, hitting the latch on the door. 

So alive and free. Squall was almost smiling as he followed after her.

To where the sorceress waited within...


	30. Sorceress Edea

Galbadia Garden had been quiet even when it had been filled with students. There was just something about the place, it had the spirit of a library. Now that the soldiers had gutted it of the student population, it was downright eerie.

Squall's boots echoed off of the walls as he and Rinoa stepped within. He didn't know exactly where the others would be. He was fully prepared to need to search for them. 

Irvine, however, was better at predicting where they would arrive than Squall would have given him credit for. Either that, or one or both of them was very lucky.

The others were standing around in the front hall almost immediately inside the garden.

At the sound of their footsteps, they turned quickly. Hands automatically went to weapons, but none were drawn. Instead, bright smiles broke everyone's faces at seeing Rinoa standing healthy and whole right beside Squall.

“Rinoa!” Selphie beamed, running forward.

They both laughed as the smaller girl caught her up in a large hug.

“Are you alright?” Quistis asked, walking to her side quickly. She was smiling as well. She touched Rinoa's shoulder gently as Selphie pushed back, tears swimming in her eyes.

“I'm fine. Really,” Rinoa promised them. Her hands only felt sore now. 

“You're alright...” Zell seemed to deflate with relief as he sank to the ground. The guilt that had been slowly eating him alive finally ebbed. 

He had failed Squall by not protecting her. But she was alive now. And Zell swore to himself that he was never going to mess up like that again. 

Irvine grinned as he stepped up to Squall. Despite the hugs the girls were giving each other, he hadn't stepped back to give them room. Nor had Rinoa stepped away from him. Neither of them really even noticed.

But the others did. And that simple non-move spoke volumes.

“Nice work,” Irvine punched Squall's shoulder gently. “I didn't doubt you for a second.”

“Thank you, Irvine.”

“Wha-” Irvine turned quickly, but Squall was looking back at Rinoa. The words were soft spoken, so quick that one might of missed them. Irvine almost had. But that was definitely gratitude that had just come from Squall.

He found himself grinning as Rinoa turned back to Squall and smiled. The two of them did nothing more than share a look, but it was still somehow so very intimate and familiar. Not like the others were intruding. More like the others weren't even there,

Damn, if this were a better time, Irvine would be working to get the others away to give them some privacy 

“The sorceress should be here somewhere,” he said regretfully, pointing over his shoulder. “We're way far in the back. Mostly just dorm rooms around here. The classrooms are a bit further forward. Though I doubt she's hanging out somewhere common like that.”

Selphie stepped back, grinning at Irvine. “You know, somehow, I can't see you here. Quiet, obedient. In _uniform_.”

“Yeah, I got a lot of demerits. To tell you the truth, they were a little eager to be rid of me. I didn't even get a choice in the mission to join you guys. I was just told I was going. Gonna be honest. I'm not all that disappointed in the outcome.”

“Well, you know we're happy with it,” Selphie told him, beaming. “Without you, we never would have found out about...”

She paused, her voice trailing off.

They never would have found out of about each other. Or Matron. 

The air got heavy around them. It had been all battles and fast paces to get here. Now that they were here though, in the tomb like silence of the garden, the weight of what they were doing was pulling down on them.

But there was no turning back now.

“Forget about the past,” Squall ordered them, his voice hard. Necessarily so. No matter how it weighed on him, those fuzzy memories of the kind woman who raised them, he couldn't allow that to distract him from the mission. 

“She's our enemy now,” he continued, looking between them all. Pausing for a moment on each face as he came to it. Hoping to impress upon them the importance of what they were doing.

Not just for SeeD. But for the world. 

“Don't think twice for a second. There's no way we can fight her like that. I, for one, can't. She chose to fight and become our enemy. We chose to fight back. We have no choice. At least...I'd like to think so...” It would make it easier.

Squall trailed off, unsure what to say. Everyone was looking at him, their faces blank. Like they had no idea what he was talking about. Like he was the only one that was confused. Or maybe he was just feeling that way...

He shook his head, banishing the words. “We've come this far. I guess there's no need for me to say anything.”

The soft touch of Rinoa's hand against his caught his attention. She didn't quite grab and hold his hand, but her finger wrapped just slightly around his. She smiled at him encouragingly. 

“We're still listening. Squall, we want to know how you feel.”

I want to know how you feel. She didn't say it. But Squall heard it all the same. He saw it in the way her eyes beseeched him for more. She was always asking for more. And, though it was constantly hurting him to do so, he was always eager to give her more.

A slave to those brown eyes.

His jaw set. “I'll tell you later.”

Rinoa's mouth opened slightly in surprise at the intensity of the words. Promising her much more than she was asking for at this moment. 

“After we get out of this,” he vowed. His finger twitched. Not quite holding her back, but acknowledging her hold on him all the same. 

He turned to face the others, none of whom had missed the subtle exchange. His eyes were hard, Commander Leonhart back in place. 

“Irvine, this is your garden. Lead the way. We'll follow you.”

“You got it,” Irvine tipped his hat to him. “The entrance to the main garden is locked, so we've been looking for any lost keycards. We've already checked the doors on this floor. They're all locked. So let's head on up to the second. See what we see.”

Falling into formation, everyone stepped after Irvine as he started up towards the stairs. It was Squall's first instinct to try to keep quiet, but no on else was making a similar attempt. Selphie explained that, since they came inside, they hadn't seen anyone. Every soldier had rushed outside to join the battle. The students were either missing or hiding. And they were _trying_ to find to the sorceress, so if she found them that would just save them time.

“I think my dorm is down that way,” Irvine muttered, as he grabbed the railing on the stairs. “I can't say I miss it. Every room in this place is so bland and gray. You guys at Balamb have it good.”

“You wanna see bland?” Rinoa raised an eyebrow. “Remind me to show you some pictures from my academy later.”

“You didn't go to military school, right, Rinoa?” Selphie asked as they topped the steps.

“Yeah. But Caraway picked a private school that was so regulated that I might as well have.”

They stepped out of the stairwell and everyone froze.

Fujin and Raijin looked up from where they were standing on either side of the opening. Seifer's followers looked at them. Squall's fingers were already grabbing his gunblade, but neither of them made any move to return the gesture.

There was no fight in their gaze. They just kind of looked at him, frowning.

“Hey Fujin. Raijin,” Zell frowned, looking between them, confused. “What's up?”

Raijin's shoulder's fell a bit as Fujin let out a sigh.

“...FATIGUED...”

“You're not fighting?” Quistis asked, looking between them. 

“Don't really want to, ya know?” Raijin made a face. “Just...wanna get this over with, ya know?”

“What's with you two?” Squall asked, looking between them. “Where's Seifer?”

Fujin and Raijin shared a long look. The gray haired girl spoke first.

“REQUEST.”

“Yeah,” Raijin nodded, looking at Squall. “We're leaving Seifer up to you now, ya know? We don't even know what's going on anymore, ya know?”

“What's wrong?” Rinoa asked, feeling pity for these two. While she had never met Seifer's friends, he had talked about them during their summer together. 

Raijin slumped over, like he was already defeated. “We just want the old Seifer back, ya know? He just ain't the same anymore. Like he's not even Seifer.”

“SORCERESS.”

“Yeah. Don't know what she did to him, but he's different, ya know? Sleeps all the time until she starts pullin' on his strings. He lookin' really crazy lately. We're worried, ya know? Feels like we're losin' him.”

Squall crossed his arms, looking off down the halls of the garden, as if he might be able to see Seifer through the walls. At this point, Squall didn't know if Seifer was even capable of turning back. If he wasn't so lost to the sorceress's machinations, then he was lost to his own mind. Trapped in this 'dream' of his own making. 

He couldn't really blame Fujin or Raijin for feeling like they had lost him. At this point, Squall could barely see anything left of his old training partner in this Seifer. 

“Alright,” he nodded to their request. “Leave him to me.”

“Suppose it would be too much to ask you not to kill him,” Raijin looked at him, his eyes hurting.

“I'll do my best,” was all Squall would promise. Though his fingers were itching to bury his Punishment deep into his chest so he could watch the light leave his eyes...

That was the hatred talking. SeeD did not teach to find enjoyment in killing. It was a purely clinical affair meant to be as quick as possible. Seifer was the one who was wrong for seeking to derive pleasure from the pain of others. Squall had to resist the urge to be like him.

Raijin nodded and he pointed down the hall. “There's some students hiding out in the rooms. I hear they got keycards so they can move about without being found. If you're lookin' for a way into the garden, that's your best shot.”

Squall nodded to him. “Thanks...Sorry.”

Raijin shook his hand, refusing to watch as Squall led the others away.

“You sure about letting those two go?” Zell asked under his breath.

“They're no threat to us as they are.”

“Let's split up,” Irvine suggested. “This hall goes in a circle. Send half of us that way to check the rooms, then you take the other half that way.”

Squall nodded. “Alright. Irvine, take Quistis and Selphie. Zell, Rinoa, and I will go this way. We'll meet back by the staircase once you've checked all the rooms.

They nodded to him and everyone split to follow their halls. Squall led his team back across the staircase and down the hall. Rinoa stayed close to his side, frowning at the defeated faces of Fujin and Raijin.

“I feel like I know how they feel,” she murmured sadly.

“Will that be a problem if you have to fight him?” Squall asked. He needed to know. If she couldn't handle a battle, then he would need to make sure she didn't find herself in that battle. As the leader, that was part of his duty.

She shook her head, giving him a small smile. “I'm fine. I can fight as long as I'm not alone. I won't be alone, right?”

“Of course not.” He wasn't leaving her side for a second in the heart of enemy territory. 

It only took two rooms before they found a student. Hiding inside the bunk in one of the dorms, he jumped when the door slid open and Squall stepped in. He cried immediately, covering his head with his hands.

“Please don't kill me!”

Squall frowned. It hadn't even crossed his mind.

“I'm not fighting. See? No weapons. See?” He held out his hands in demonstration. “You're SeeD, right? I'm not your enemy. Promise!”

“Okay,” Squall said simply, staring at him. Making him more uncomfortable.

“No, seriously,” the student groaned, looking to Rinoa as she stepped in behind him. “Look, those bastards stormed in during class and just took over the place. I want nothing to do with this.”

“Okay,” Squall frowned. What hadn't he understood about the first answer?

“Where is everyone?” Rinoa asked gently.

“Most of the students were kicked out,” the guy explained, unfolding himself from his bunk. “They only kept guys like me to keep the place up and running and clean because they didn't want to have to do any dirty work.”

“You poor thing,” Rinoa said sympathetically.

“You guys are here to fight the sorceress, right?” the student looked between the two of them and Zell who was still standing out in the hall. “To kick her out? Here. Take this!”

He pulled from the pocket of his uniform a white, plastic card. Squall reached out and took it causing the guy to flinch. Annoying Squall in the process. He hadn't made a threatening gesture towards him, why was he acting so jumpy?

“That's a level one keycard,” the guy explained, backing up into his bunk again. “It will unlock any door on the first level.”

“Which keycard will get me into the garden itself?” Squall asked immediately.

“You need a level two to open the main door, but a level three to get to the third floor where the sorceress is staying. There are two other students with keycards hiding out. They told us to scram when the battle started and we all bailed so we wouldn't get killed. Please, man, I don't want to die.”

“Don't lift a weapon to a SeeD and you won't,” Squall promised calmly. “Keep hiding out here and my men probably won't even find you. We don't care about you. We're more concerned with the soldiers.”

“Your men?” the student frowned.

“Yo, commander,” Zell spoke up immediately, grinning.

Squall turned with a frown. What was with the formality? “Yeah?”

“The others are already back. Let's go.”

“C-Commander?” The student squeaked, trying to hide in his jacket.

“Zell!” Rinoa frowned, walking from the room. She hit his arm as she passed. “Why did you do that? You trying to give the kid a heart attack?”

“Trying to make him wet his pants, actually,” Zell chuckled as Squall stepped out and the door sealed behind them. “Did you see the look on his face? I think you took ten years off his life, Squall.”

“What are you talking about?” He asked, irritated. Completely unaware of the intimidating affect of his own presence.

Zell was laughing and Rinoa was shaking her head as they joined up with the others. Irvine's group hadn't found anything, but Squall held up his prize.

“A level one?” Irvine asked, taking it. “Sweet. This will open the doors downstairs. We can get across to the whole floor. Come on.”

“Get across what?” Squall asked, following him back down the steps.

The double doors Irvine unlocked let out a blast of cold air when they slid open. They all walked inside to find themselves standing at the edge of an ice rink. 

“What is this?” Squall asked as Irvine snickered.

“We are the fighting grendels. Go team!” Laughing, Irvine pointed across the ice to a door on the far side. “That will take us to the other half of the garden. Where the door we need is. So, the question is, who will make it to the other side first?”

“That's not the question,” Selphie grinned at him. “The question is what the winner gets for making it to the other side first.”

“Seven minutes in heaven?” He suggested, wiggling his eyebrows.

“We hardly have time for games,” Quistis told them primly, moving to the edge. “Let's just go.”

She made it about three steps onto the slick ice before her boots started sliding out from under her. She barely caught herself before face planting, finding herself instead standing at a rather awkward angle, both arms held aloft to keep her balance.

Selphie was laughing, Irvine was grinning.

“My turn!” Zell yelled, taking the entrance at a sprint.

His sneakers hit the ice and he started sliding on his own momentum. He didn't make it very far past Quistis before he toppled forward. His body continued along the ground, coming to a halt about halfway to the center line.

“Beat that!” he urged, throwing his fist into the air.

“That's nothing,” Selphie snickered, stretching her arms. “Stand back, amateurs. Let a real Trabian show you how its done.”

“What is happening right now?” Squall asked, his arms crossed as Irvine and Selphie both took to the ice. She was doing pretty well until Irvine pushed her over. 

He was trying – and failing – to run to the other side. His boots slipping on the ground meant he went exactly no where. Quistis was trying to walk, but she was making only a little progress. Still standing by Squall's side, Rinoa was giggling into her hand.

“Why didn't they just go _around_ the rink?” Squall pointed out obviously.

“Don't be such a party pooper,” Rinoa laughed, nudging him. “Come on. First one across wins, right?”

Squall gave her a look that she ignored. She continued past him. She put her boot onto the ice gently, already grinning as she took hold of the rail around the ring for balance.

Squall rolled his eyes and came forward after them.

He stepped onto the rink confidently. He reached out and took Rinoa by the arm. She flailed for a second before grabbing into his hand in return. Then she watched as he strode across the ice like it was concrete, dragging her along behind him.

“Huh?” Selphie blinked at him, confused as she continued to skate on her boots. 

“Hey!” Irvine pointed to him from the ground where he had fallen on his behind. “Cheater! You don't get to use Shiva's powers!”

Rinoa was laughing. She eased up her grip on him so she fell behind further. It was almost like they were dancing across the ice. Or at least, it felt like it to her.

The ice, so slick to everyone else, was stable and familiar to him. He was just as graceful on the slippery surface as he was anywhere else. Any ice that might have melted under the pressure of his boots refroze immediately because of Shiva's presence. Meaning he always had a dry, sturdy platform to push off from.

Squall stepped from the rink first. He pulled Rinoa right after him. They turned back to see the others had made it across the center line and were trying to rush for third place.

“So I guess that means you win,” Rinoa laughed, leaning against the rail while they waited. “You get seven minutes in heaven.”

“What does that even mean?” Squall looked at her, baffled at this whole 'competition' thing.

“Oh,” she laughed deviously. “I can't wait to show you.”

Squall blinked at the way Rinoa ran her fingers slowly up her belly, across her chest, in the pretext of playing with the rings around her necklace. Drawing his focus, once again, to her breasts. He didn't know what seven minutes in heaven was, he was starting to get an idea.

“You sure seven minutes is enough?” He asked without thinking.

Rinoa gasped, a smile breaking out across her face. Squall realized what he said too late and turned his face away. The damage was done, and Rinoa was smiling at him seductively, her tiny pink tongue darting out to caress her own lips.

Squall was staring determinedly out at the others, trying to force his body to be calm. Since he started using blizzara, the cold was not doing it for him anymore. He had to start running mental drills in order to take his mind away from the thoughts they had turned to.

“By the way,” Rinoa whispered, stepping in closer to him. “No. Seven minutes is not nearly long enough.”

She had put one of her nimble fingers on his chest. She was slowly stroking it downwards. Out of sight behind the railing of the rink. She left behind a curious burning sensation where her finger had been and Squall was busy mentally running down monster statistics to keep himself calm.

“Yes!” Zell landed on the edge of the ring. He threw up his hands in victory. “That's what I'm talking about! See that, you losers?”

“Um, Zell?” Selphie stepped up behind him, her boots splashing in the rink. “It doesn't count when you get across by _melting_ the ice.”

“Seriously,” Irvine gave him a look. “You're a worse cheater than he is.”

“You're just jealous because I won,” Zell told them, sticking his nose in the air.

“Technically, Squall won,” Quistis pointed to their leader.

“Yeah,” Irvine grinned. “Rinoa, make sure you give him the most out of those seven minutes.”

“Why stop at seven?” She asked, grinning.

“Aren't we here for a reason?” Squall asked over their knowing grins. “Can we focus?”

“Absolutely,” Rinoa nodded, trying and failing to be serious. “Irvine, get your mind out of the gutter.”

Still grinning salaciously, Irvine led them to the door out of the rink. The others stepped out as well, shaking the cold from their bodies. Squall looked around as Irvine made his way to the double doors across from the rink exit.

“Alright, we'll start here and work our way down. You three take that side of the hall, we'll take this one. Keep your eyes out for the remaining students.”

“Found one.” Irvine said immediately, pointing into the doors he had just opened as a cry of surprise and fear escaped from within. 

Frowning, Squall stepped forward and walked with him into an auditorium like classroom. There was a podium for the teacher to speak at, and rows of desks for the students. It was small, but still lacked the intimacy of the classrooms at Balamb.

Hiding behind the podium, another male student was poking his head out cautiously to look at them. He looked about as scared as the last one. Then he frowned.

“Irvine? Is that you?”

“Hey,” Irvine grinned. “Long time. How you been?”

“Uh...bad?” the student stood up slowly. “Are you with the G-Army now?”

“Nah. I'm in the SeeD program at Balamb,” he pointed over his shoulder to the others. “This is my commander. We're breaking in to take out the sorceress.”

“Seriously?” A look of relief came over his face. “Oh, man. Yes! That would be awesome! You're the SeeD commander? Yo, so nice to meet you, man.”

“Do you have a keycard?” Squall asked, getting straight to the point.

“Hm? Oh, yeah. Here...” He reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a card. “That's for level two.”

“I need level three,” Squall grumbled, taking the card nonetheless.

“Yeah, then you need level two. Bree has level three and she asked me to lock her behind level two so people couldn't get to her. I said yes because, honestly, I'm trying to get some. Anyway, she's hiding out in classroom 4B. You remember where that was Irvine?”

“Oh, yeah. No problem,” he smirked. “Thanks.”

“No, man, thank you,” the student said sincerely. “We don't stand a chance against those guys. I never wanted to join the G-Army, and now I'm starting to think that I don't want to join any army. All this violence stuff is too much. Please, commander, you're the last hope we have.”

Squall nodded, accepting his words – though not liking very much the weight he was putting on him in saying them. He walked out as Irvine bid his old friend goodbye. He walked out after Squall and held out his hand for the new card.

“So where's classroom 4B?” Squall asked.

Irvine frowned. “Actually, it's all the way on the other side of the garden. We need to get across the main hall.”

“Can we get there with level two?”

“Hm? Oh yeah. Three unlocks the upper floors for teachers and the headmaster. Which is where I would be if I was a sorceress. It's a bit of a walk though. And, uh, when I say it's possible to get there...well...”

“It is, isn't it?” Squall asked.

“Technically. If you don't mind a bit of a jump,” Irvine grinned.

Squall frowned, confused.

Up on the third floor, through a small door, Irvine led them to a balcony overlooking the outdoor recreation areas that wrapped around the garden offices.

“What is this?” Squall asked, looking down over the rail.

“It's the only way into the garden without a level three,” Irvine shrugged. “We have to jump. But, we'll have access to the main garden through there. And those doors aren't keycard locked so that's good, right?”

“Irvine, let's discuss what the word 'possible' means,” Rinoa gave him a look.

“Forget it,” Squall stepped back. “Let's just get this over with.”

“Yes!” Selphie laughed. 

She and Squall took the jump at the same moment, both of them leaping neatly over the low railing and falling down over fifteen feet to the ground below. Squall landed gracefully. Selphie had to take a few steps to keep her balance. Neither of them fell.

Squall turned and looked back at the others. He nodded. 

“Man...” Zell made a face as Quistis took the jump. She landed elegantly, lowering nearly to her knees before standing up calmly.

“Not so bad,” she smiled, straightening her skirt.

“Frickin' hell!” Zell yelled, throwing himself over the side. He landed hard, falling down to his hands and knees. But he got back up again no problem.

“Need some help?” Irvine asked Rinoa as she hesitated by the edge.

“I got this...” she said uncertainly.

Squall was looking up at her. Waiting. She was reminded fiercely of how he looked waiting for her to jump across trains to join him. He wasn't going to help her unless she needed it. He was going to allow her to do it herself.

That gave her the confidence to put her hand on the rail and vault herself over. Her stomach fell out as the ground rushed up towards her. Even as her mind panicked, her body was well trained. She hit the ground and her knees absorbed the shock, lowering her gently down. 

She heard Irvine land a moment after her and she pushed herself up. Her legs felt watery, but she had made the jump on her own. She beamed at Squall and he nodded. It felt like the highest praise she had ever received.

“This way,” Irvine pointed forward to the double glass doors.

The others followed after him, jogging inside. Through the doors, down a long hallway. Past doors that led into dark offices. Some of which had apparently been gutted by the less than respectful guests that had taken over the garden.

Then suddenly...

“Hey!” Zell frowned as they jogged past a staircase. “I know this place! This is where you made me do over three hundred push ups!”

Squall returned his glare with an even glance. “You mean the place where I caught you peeking up women's skirts?”

“You were doing what?” Quistis asked, Rinoa and Selphie joining her in giving him looks.

“Uh...” he laughed self consciously. “Must be mistaken...”

“The classroom is just through the lobby,” Irvine told them, pointing ahead. “We just turn left up here at the...woh...”

Squall stopped beside Irvine. His breath of surprise echoed out loudly in the large lobby. The massive beast that had been curled up in the center of the room lifted one of its three large heads and looked over to them.

Languidly, like it didn't even care, the three headed, gray and red scaled creature got to its feet and looked at them through eyes half closed with sleep. 

“A GF?” Zell gasped in surprise.

“Galbadia Garden doesn't use GF,” Quistis frowned. “Do they, Irvine?”

“No way,” he frowned, trying to work out the creature. “What's it even doing here?”

“Ah, who cares,” Squall shrugged. “Let's just take it.”

A low, rumbling laugh echoed from the beast. Not because of the acoustics of the room but because the laughter was coming from all three of the GFs throats simultaneously.

“ _Pretty confident,_ ” the three voices said in unison, amused at him. “ _Let's see how you do._ ”

“Irvine, you take Zell and Selphie for backup. Find that last keycard,” Squall ordered. “Rinoa, Quistis, you two help me take it down.”

“Yes, sir!” Irvine led the other two off. Quistis and Rinoa stepped forward. 

The former's whip unraveled to the floor. The bright red body of the Red Scorpion was tipped by a shining bronze end. Stronger, by far, than her last weapon. It hung heavy but incredibly flexible in her hand. 

Next to her, Rinoa's Rising Sun unfolded itself from her blaster. She took aim at the GF as Squall drew his Punishment from its sheath. The GF was grinning at them through three large mouths, each one filled with long, needle sharp fangs.

“Quistis, muzzle it,” Squall ordered her softly.

The GF charged before she could. Two mouths snarling, one mouth roaring, the dog beast GF was fast. Its large tail whipped around as it dove towards them.

All three jumped out of the way. Quistis landed on her hand, throwing herself back onto her feet and whipping her Scorpion forward. Rinoa slid to a halt, grabbing the ground to keep herself balanced while Squall landed back on his feet beside her.

“Quetzalcoatl, thundara on my whip!” Quistis ordered, jerking her weapon around again.

The tail of it hooked onto the far mouth of the GF. She yanked back on it, throwing it off course and sending its body down. She tightened her hand as lightning erupted from the hilt of her Scorpion and traveled down the body.

The bright flash of lightning was accompanied by a small boom of thunder. The GF's body tightened in response as the energy flowed through him. However, when he looked back down at them, it's three mouths were snarling in amusement.

The middle head reached out and bit the body of the whip. Jerking to the side, it lifted Quistis clear off her feet and threw her to the floor. Grunting in pain, Quistis rolled out of the way just in time to avoid being crushed under the large silver claws on its front paws.

“What just happened?” Rinoa asked, confused.

“It absorbed the lightening,” Squall responded, his mouth tight. “We made it stronger.”

“They can do that?!” Rinoa gasped, taken aback.

“Monsters with particularly strong affinities can. More than just being immune, like I am to the cold, they can actively absorb the energy of their affinities.”

“Crud...So what do we do?” Rinoa asked as the large GF turned two of its heads towards them.

“We defeat it the old fashioned way. Rinoa, find a weak spot in its scales. Quistis, you alright?”

“Of course I am,” the blonde growled, pushing herself up onto her feet. Her whip was gone now, laying sad and limp on the ground behind the GF.

“Ease up on your magic. But wrap it up.”

“On it,” Quistis said, edging to the side. One of the heads tracked her movement, the others kept their eyes on Rinoa and Squall.

It had the unquestioned advantage of sight. There would be no surprising this one from behind or ducking into a blind spot. They couldn't even separate to focus its attention on one of them. They would just need to fight.

“Blizzara!” Squall yelled, aiming for its three heads.

The spears of ice that began erupting around the GF had it moving erratically, trying to avoid them. Not just trying, succeeding. It was fast, agile and athletic. The ice that Squall summoned kept hitting around its body, none of them landing.

However, he bought enough time for Quistis to return to her weapon. She scooped it up as she ran past and turned quickly, bringing it around.

The snapping of the bladed tip hit the GF's side. It roared in pain but didn't stop moving.

Rinoa took aim as Squall and Quistis worked together to lead the GF back around into range. Her eye followed it around, her arm moving to just ahead of it. Accounting for the angle...the speed...

NOW!

Her Sun shot like a bullet, whizzing through the air. Up and around. The GF ran into its path as it was coming back. The dark red circular blade crashed into one of its heads, taking out the eyes. All three heads roared in shared pain as its body hit the ground. Blood was leaking from one of the faces, but the other two could still glare hatefully at her as she caught her edge.

Growling, the GF began charging at her.

Rinoa turned to run out of the way. Squall moved between them to defend her.

Quistis's whip shout out and wrapped around the middle neck. She jerked back suddenly against its charge, digging the tip of her blade into its throat. Making a choking sound, the GF was pulled backwards, landing on its side.

“Blizzard!”

Squall's ice encased the GF's body. Roaring from the uninjured head, the GF thrashed about against the hold of the ice. Squall frowned as he focused on keeping the magic intact. 

“Dark Messenger!” Rinoa yelled, her eyes burning red as she pulled the GF into the inescapable grip of gravity.

It crushed down on him. The ice groaned under the pressure. The GF chuckled, immune.

“Are you serious?” She gasped, stepping back. “Squall?”

Growling, Squall thought quickly.

It broke his focus and he lost control over his ice. The GF shattered it into pieces and, shaking the shards from his armored hide, got back to his feet. The red of Quistis's whip was still around his neck. The head that could still see reached back and took it in its teeth and jerked.

Crying out, Quistis was yanked forward. She didn't release her whip and she ended up crashing into the flank of the GF. His scales cut into her cheek, but she gritted her teeth and refused to release her whip. It loosened around the GF's neck, but as it was pulling it off, Quistis was vaulting up onto its back and shimmying up to the base of its necks.

Pulling back her arm, she threw her whip around the necks of all three heads. Starting in surprise, the GF jerked back. Quistis took hold of the end of her whip as it came back around, creating a sort of rein for the GF.

It began bucking, trying to dislodge her. Her hands tightened on the whip as her legs clenched against its shoulder blades to keep herself in place.

“Squall?” Rinoa moved closer to him, her hand on the trigger of her blaster. She hesitated to shoot though for fear of accidentally hitting Quistis. The same reason that Squall was now keeping his magic to himself.

“Hold,” he ordered her, his eyes following Quistis's movements. “Get ready to help if he throws her...”

The GF's bucking was falling into a pattern. As it threw its body around, Quistis's head and torso were jerked all over, but she remained seated. 

Gripping the ends of the whip, she yanked them together. Doing so pulled the three heads of the GF closer together, knocking their skulls against one another. It strained the three necks and threw off of his balance.

On the next buck, the GF crashed down to his side. Quistis barely jumped free in time to avoid having her leg pinned against the ground. She landed, rolled, and came up again pulling on her whip and tightening it around its face.

“Blizzara!”

Another ice case covered the GF. Growling, it tried again to free itself. With its heads pinned to the ground though, it made very little progress. Squall was able to focus better now, keeping it locked in place, as Rinoa came forward slowly.

“Do you yield?” Quistis asked, breathing hard.

The GF struggled again for a minute more, but it wasn't going anywhere. He finally relaxed down, breathing hard through its three muzzles. Its eyes lit up with amusement.

“ _You're good,_ ” he praised. “ _I will join you. You may call me Cerberus..._ ”

He disappeared into a flash of blue and pink lights that rushed Quistis's chest. Her immediate protest at his joining was lost as her whip fell, limp, to the floor. She could feel Cerberus rushing up her nerves and into her head where both Quetzalcoatl and Pandemona where resting.

She heard him growl in greeting as the two other GFs felt him curiously. She flinched, ready for a bad reaction between them. Cerberus laid down just behind her eyes, opposite of Quetzalcoatl and Pandemona. There was no immediate rejection from any of them. It was tense for a moment as her head became crowded, but no one was yelling yet.

“Cerberus?” Rinoa asked, smiling. “That's wonderful! Congratulations.”

“Oh, thanks,” Quistis smiled, standing. “I didn't know I could hold three GF.”

Rinoa grinned as Squall stepped to her side, his ice melting.

“Are you hurt?” He asked calmly, sheathing his blade.

“I'm alright,” she promised, jerking her whip back into her hands. 

She was hanging it back onto her belt when running footsteps announced the return of the others from the far classroom. Grinning in front, Irvine held another keycard in his hand. The three of them stopped in front of each other.

“How did it go?” Selphie asked, looking between them to see who had a new GF.

“He's mine now,” Quistis smiled.

“Three GF?” Zell asked, leaning back onto one foot. “How is it that you both have three, Irvine has two, and the rest of us only have one?”

“Well, I know why Squall and I only have one,” Rinoa smiled. “Shiva's possessive and I'm still a GF beginner. What's your excuse Zell?”

“Shut up,” he grumbled, crossing his arms.

The others laughed at him as Irvine passed Squall the new keycard.

“That should get us onto the executive elevator,” he explained. “The girl says that the sorceress's room is on the very top floor. I'm sure you're absolutely shocked.”

“Perfect,” Squall nodded, slipping it into his jacket pocket. “Are you all ready?”

His eyes moved around, checking everyone's faces. They were all varying degrees of determined and accepting.

Matron. The woman who raised them. Their headmaster's wife. She who was, essentially, their mother.

They were ready to kill her.

“Let's go.”

All of the rush and urgency was suddenly gone as they returned to the central hall and made their way up the stairs. They passed the door to the waiting room where they had once mistakenly mourned the death of Seifer.

Actually, considering him now, perhaps it wasn't a mistake it all.

The elaborately designed elevator doors were somehow menacing. Squall waved the keycard in front of the scanner. It beeped and the doors slid open with a soft 'swish'. The interior was professional, simple, and even more menacing than the doors.

Squall moved first, stepping over the threshold as he put the keycard away. Rinoa was just a step behind him. Slowly, the others filed in after them. The doors shut behind them and hands went to weapons as the anticipation built.

Selphie pressed the button for the top floor. The elevator jerked slightly then began quickly rising up through the floors. Rinoa had to bite back bile of nervousness.

“Squall...” she whispered softly, looking to him.

Squall was already looking at her. His eyes burning. She trembled slightly under that gaze. It did nothing to ease the anticipation. If anything, it only made it worse.

After this was over...

The doors slid open and a soft, sweet perfume filled the air. Squall stepped out first and began walking forward into what had once been the headmaster's office. It had been drastically changed since the sorceress had taken over.

Lounging back in a seat made of airy drapes that cradled her body impossibly, Sorceress Edea's eyes were closed. She almost looked like she was sleeping. She took up the entire dais so that her knight had to stand on the first step leading up.

Grinning at them, Seifer's hand was already on his Hyperion's hilt. As Squall and the others stepped into the room, he looked almost happy.

“Oh, you guys shouldn't have,” he said in a honeyed voice. “I was gonna come visit you in my old home.”

“Shut up,” Squall growled, pulling his Punishment out again.

Seifer. That damn smug smile. Squall could feel his hands shaking with the desire to run his old training partner through. Hatred, anger, the unquenchable desire for vengeance ran like ice through his veins. The room got colder as his anger deepened.

Seifer pouted playfully. “Did you guys come all the way here just to fight our Matron? After all she's done for us?”

No one responded as they lined up in front of him. Irvine, Selphie, Zell, Squall, Rinoa, Quistis. All in a row, hands to their weapons. Zell's jaw tightened. Selphie took a deep breath as Irvine leveled his gun at Seifer's throat. Quistis's gaze was hard. Squall and Rinoa stood tall, watching him without a hint of hesitation in their expression.

Seifer's gaze moved down the line then paused on Zell.

“Hey, chicken-wuss,” he greeted like it was an old, funny nickname between them. “A lot has happened between us through the years, eh?”

“Yeah,” Zell growled, tightening his gloves. “I'm dyin' to get even.”

Seifer tried again. “Instructor Trepe. I'm still one of your dearest students, aren't I?”

“Not anymore,” she assured him.

Seifer shook his head as though disappointed. When he looked up again, his eyes fell on Irvine and he frowned at the sight of him.

“Hey, you're a Galbadian student. Get over here.”

“Nah,” Irvine shrugged almost carelessly. “I'm happy right here, thank you.”

“Selphie, right?” Seifer looked right next to Irvine. “I wish we had more time to get to know each other.”

“Nah,” she said in much the same way Irvine had. “You're not my type.”

Seifer frowned as he finally looked to Squall. More importantly, to the girl standing next to him. A little too close to him. He knew that Rinoa was with them, he had been dully informed. However, it was the first time he had seen her with the others.

Why was she that close to Squall?”

“Rinoa, what are you doing here?” He asked. A tingle of emotion came to life deep within his heart, but it was quickly snuffed out. He grinned charmingly. “You're gonna fight me, too? Come on. Remember a year ago we-”

“Stop it!” She snapped. She refused to let him taint those happy memories she had of it. She was going to remember the confident, happy Seifer that had been his own man. She wouldn't allow this new, puppet Seifer to touch those memories.

“It's too late, Seifer,” Squall growled, stepping in front of Rinoa slightly. Not really defending her, but wordlessly laying his claim over her. “You can't mess with our minds. To us, you're just another enemy. Like one of those monsters.”

“You're comparing me to one of them?” Seifer growled, insulted beyond words to be put on the same level as such a common thing as a monster. “I ain't no monster. I'm the sorceress's knight. And look at you. Attacking like a swarm. You guys are the monsters.”

A difference in opinion. Two sides that believed two different things. Could Squall say that he was any less evil than Seifer?

It didn't really matter. He was obeying orders. Obeying his own heart that urged him to make Seifer pay for everything he had done to him.

Seifer stepped down from the dais and the two men glared at each other. Rinoa took a step forward but stopped. The gunblade masters were completely focused. She almost felt like she was walking into a place that she didn't belong. She would fight Seifer if she had to, she knew that about herself. But it wasn't her right to do so.

This was Squall's fight. Facing Seifer had always been Squall's fight.

“You've upgraded your blade,” Seifer admired. “I like the new design. You've still got that thing with that monster of yours though. Suitable, considering you are a monster.”

Squall didn't bother to correct him about the lion. He raised his Punishment, glaring at Seifer over the blade of it. His own quiet, seething anger was in direct contrast with Seifer's wild fury. The two of them were so similar, yet so different.

“Hope you've actually improved since last time,” Squall mocked.

“My sorceress has given me power you can't imagine,” Seifer grinned evilly.

They both moved at the same time. So fast that Rinoa didn't actually see who struck first. The loud clanging of metal on metal echoed loudly in the room.

Rinoa had been watching Squall fight for a while now. Both on the field and in training. She had always considered him to be incredible. Fast, smooth, elegant, and deadly.

But she had never, until this moment, truly seen him fight before.

Against another gunblade master, in fight where both men were intimately familiar with how the other fought, he moved like a god.

So fast she had trouble keeping up with him. Focused and still so damn beautiful. The only reason she knew they were even hitting each other was the deafening clash of metal that seemed to echo a second after they actually met.

The part of her that wanted to help was frozen in place by the part of her brain that told her Squall was on a completely different level than herself. She had always known that, but it was a totally heart racing thing to actually see it.

“Damn...” Selphie breathed in awe.

Rinoa couldn't take her eyes off of them to look over to her, but she still heard it. Then Selphie had never seen Squall like this before either.

“It's been a while since I've seen him really fight,” Quistis whispered, as though afraid of distracting him. As if anything could break his concentration in this moment.

“I don't think I've ever seen him like this,” Zell murmured.

Seifer wouldn't mind constantly fighting for an audience. Squall did though. He had made it a rule that if Seifer was going to train with him, they would do it away from public eye. It was one of the few stand offs Squall ever won outright because Seifer didn't have anyone else to fight. It was either obey that condition, or be left wanting for training partners. So very few people were actually privy to how Squall looked when he was giving it his all.

“Hyne...” Irvine shuddered. He had actually tried to fight him once...

Squall and Seifer were back into their old, familiar rhythms. It felt faster now. There was less time to think between each incoming blow. Squall moved quicker from experience. Seifer had lost a lot of that showmanship that had weighed him down.

What had once been a deadly dance was now raw energy and simple focus. They weren't trying to show off or one up. This was a straightforward contest of life and death.

Victory and defeat.

Honor and disgrace.

These things went hand in hand. Two sides of the same coin.

Not unlike Squall and Siefer.

One clash of blades brought their faces together between the crossed swords. Seifer was trying to grin through the effort on his face. Squall's teeth were bared, his brows furrowed. Both men's arms were shaking with the force they were applying to the other.

“Same old moves, Squall,” Seifer mocked, returning an insult once given to him.

“I can't say the same. Apparently, someone finally taught you how to fight without dancing.”

Siefer growled at him. He kicked out. Squall dodged the blow and turned, catching Seifer's next slash against his revolver. He drew back his fist and slammed it forward.

The explosion of ice from his hand against Seifer's cheek created a flurry of snow around them. Seifer fell back, flipped over, and came back on his feet. His lip was bleeding. His breath was frosting in the air. Squalls' fist tightened, cracking the ice coating the leather.

“Don't make me kill you, Seifer,” Squall told him, his voice as cold as the snow floating around his face. “Lay down your weapon now and, for the sake of our past, I'll spare your life. If you keep fighting me, I won't hold back.”

Chuckling, Seifer tossed back his head. “Ooh, scary. I think you've been too long without me, Squall.”

Squall's eyebrow raised curiously.

“You've forgotten what a challenge is. I'm the only one who can conquer you. You've been trapped with weaklings that offer you no real resistance. That's okay. I'll remind you what it's like when you're truly fighting a worthy opponent. I'll show you the power my sorceress has given me.”

The fire spell was so quickly cast that Squall didn't see it coming. Seifer knew that he was weak against that element. It hit his body painfully causing Shiva to cry out in pain. Smoke and ash floated down about him as Seifer twisted his blade.

The green energy glowed along the blade. Seifer took one slow step. Then sprinted.

Seifer moved so fast that the air rushed around him. Spinning his Hyperion around in short, fast, circles, he intended on slicing through Squall like a piece of meat. Using magic his mistress had given him, he became a tornado of blades.

Demon Slice.

Squall gritted his teeth against the wind and the pain of the fire that was already fading. He brought up his Punishment and gritted his teeth.

“Squall!” Rinoa took an instinctive step forward as Squall vanished into the wind and magic that Seifer had summoned. She truly lost sight of both of them and heard only grunts and the clashing of metal echoing from inside.

What was going on? Was he okay?

One particularly loud clang rang out. The tornado suddenly stopped and as the air calmed it showed both men still standing. Seifer jerked against his Hyperion. The gunblade was locked between the twin blades of Squall's punishment. Squall had twisted them so that Seifer was unable to pull his Hyperion free. There was a long gash along Squall's arm that was sluggishly bleeding, but he didn't appear to be any worse for wear.

Seifer glared, trying harder to escape.

Squall's eyes flashed darkly as ice began wrapping around the Punishment. The facets of it began capturing the lights in the room. Reflecting, refracting, magnifying. The power of the energy beam was painful and Seifer was caught right in the worst part of it.

Squall lowered the Punishment, forcing Seifer to lower down because he wouldn't release Hyperion.

Ice and light and raw energy. Blast Zone.

Seifer cried out as the ice shattered and the energy of the light exploded outward. He was thrown backward. The energy ripped through his clothing, burned his skin. His back slammed against the ground, his head bounced down, the Hyperion skidded from his hands.

The light faded and Seifer's body was smoking. Squall twisted the Punishment in his hands, watching Seifer carefully to see if he would stand. He was totally still.

“Squall!” Rinoa rushed towards him, skirting around Seifer's body without looking back at him.

She skidded to a halt beside him, raising her hands and hesitating over the slash on his arm. The bleeding had completely stopped, but she still worried over him. One of the things that Squall appreciated about her.

The others walked forward more slowly. They weren't looking at Squall or Seifer though. They were staring at Edea, still reclining at her ease.

As though she sensed their gazes on her, her eyes finally opened. Slowly, like she was being gently roused from sleep. She looked from Seifer's prone form then up to them. She sneered as she got to her feet. “Worthless child.”

All of the SeeDs flinched, grabbing for their weapons.

Edea didn't even look at them. She raised her hands. The floor under her feet started rippling like water and she began sinking down. Squall ran forward but too late. The top of Edea's head piece disappeared under the floor and she was gone.

“Where did she go?” Zell asked, turning his head.

“The auditorium is below this,” Irvine told them. “If we hurry, we can catch her.”

“Alright, go!” Squall pointed to the elevator.

None of them spared Seifer a glance as they ran for it. They didn't see his eyes squint open and glare at Squall's back as he followed Rinoa into the elevator.

The SeeDs worked their way quickly down through the halls and towards the auditorium. It was a large room filled with long rows of short seats all facing a large podium set high above it all. Holoscreens were flickering on the ceiling showing blueprints of Balamb Garden and outlining the plan of attack for the soldiers who had last been here.

“Where is she?” Squall asked, turning his head about as he ran inside.

Rinoa was right behind him, frowning as the others spread out. Squall turned about, confused.

What was up with this energy in the air? It almost felt...cold. And Squall didn't feel cold. It tickled along his skin, unnerving him.

“I don't like this...” Selphie frowned, turning about. Her knuckles tight on her Crescent Wish.

“Yeah,” Irvine agreed. “Do you think she escaped?”

It sounded like the loud thudding of a heartbeat from directly above them. Squall turned quickly, brandishing his Punishment. The holoscreen shattered as if it were made of glass. Down from the ceiling, her body twisting almost unnaturally in the air, Edea fell gracefully down.

She flipped over, her momentum stopping just before her feet touched down. The light clicking of her heels echoed loudly in the empty auditorium as she stood before the podium. She looked down at them all with a sneer of disgust on her lovely face.

Now that he knew what he was looking at, Squall couldn't stop his old, foggy memories from overlaying this woman onto the kind one that had raised him. They were exactly the same and couldn't have possibly been more different.

“So...” Edea rolled her head lazily, looking down on them. “The time has come. You're the legendary SeeD destined to face me?”

Squall's eye twitched. There people went talking about his destiny again. He didn't know that destiny had anything to do with it. No matter the reason, he was here now.

He stepped forward, lowering his Punishment towards her. She grinned and the smile was almost like that of Matron's. The images, the feeling attached to them, clashed in his mind.

“I must say that I am impressed,” she praised sweetly. Her voice soured again. “An impressive nuisance. Your life ends here, SeeD.”

“ _Squall, careful with that. I don't want you to drop it and break it. You could hurt yourself._ ”

Slow, unsteady footsteps echoed in the room as Seifer limped up to the podium. He looked a little worse for wear from their battle. Why wouldn't he just stay down already?

Edea sneered at him. “Worthless fool.”

“ _I love you all equally. You may not be mine by blood, but you're all still mine._ ”

Who was this woman? This wasn't their Matron. No matter that she looked like her, that she carried her face, this was _not_ Matron!

“All SeeDs must perish!” Edea threw out her arms, reveling in the declaration.

“ _Be strong, Squall. Grow into a great man. I know you'll make me proud._ ”

Seifer growled as he threw himself over the raised podium. He landed a little awkwardly but stood up on his own. He glared at Squall, nearly doubled over in pain from his injuries.

“I'm...the sorceress's knight...You'll never...get past me...”

“Seifer, stay down,” Squall growled at him. “I don't want to kill you.”

Squall hated him. He resented him. But, for better or worse, Seifer was part of the family. The black sheep, but still family. Squall would rather not run him through. But he would if he had to...

Sorceress Edea stepped over the small bump that acted as a rail for the high podium. Her body gently floated down, her heels clicking on the ground. She landed behind Seifer, continuing to use him as her human shield. One of her own children.

“I can't afford to lose,” Seifer stated almost like he was going mad.

A mad dog, too injured to fight. Too mad to stop fighting. 

“Seifer...” Rinoa's soft voice was filled with Sadness. Squall saw her lifting her Rising Sun out of the corner of his eye. “You could have been great.”

The 'tick' of the release of the blaster was too loud in this room. Seifer tried to lift Hyperion to catch it but didn't move fast enough. He cried out in pain as the serrated blade of the circular Sun sliced down across his chest. Blood spurted forth and he collapsed back as Rinoa caught the edge neatly. He was no challenge in his current state.

“Damn...” he murmured, staring up at the ceiling. His body wasn't obeying. Why was his body refusing to obey?! Just get up! You'll lose the dreams! You'll lose the peace!

His trembling body didn't move from the floor and the SeeDs began surrounding Edea on all sides. A circle of her children, all brandishing weapons at her with the sort of hardness in their eyes that only came from a lifetime of mercenary training.

“Defeated,” Edea growled at Seifer's downed body. “Useless fool. Enough play. SeeDs must die!”

The blast of energy that erupted from her body was formless and shapeless. Pure energy, the sort of magic only a sorceress could cast. Everyone cried out but stood their ground as it slammed into their bodies.

“Take her out!” Squall ordered viciously.

“ _Matron, why am I so different?_ ”

“Dark Messenger!” Rinoa cast first. The force of gravity crashed down upon Edea. She growled as her body fought against it. As it was wearing off, Rinoa raised her Sun and took the shot. The blade flew true and was knocked off course by Edea's claws.

“ _You're not different, Squall._ ”

“Hi-YAH!” Selphie leapt forward. Her Wish was a blur as she whipped it around her head and body. It was easily knocked aside by Edea, but the speed which she had to do so took her eyes off of the others giving them their chance.

“ _I_ am _different! Everyone else has parents and a home! Why don't I?!_ ”

Irvine lined up the shot. The new AP ammo freshly crafted just this morning was hot in the chamber, waiting to be released. It did so with an electric punch of thunder. Edea cried out as the bullets slammed into her back, transmitting the magical energy. Selphie's Wish smacked into her side. Zell cried out as he ran forward into the fray.

“ _You have me. And Cid. And Elle. We're you're family._ ”

Zell's fist slammed with a burst of fire into Edea's hand. She caught the blow, absorbed the energy, then turned and tossed Zell away like trash. He slammed into Selphie and the two of them crashed down to the ground. Quistis jumped forward to take their place, whipping her Tail around. The sharp bite of its brass tip struck hard against her claws.

“ _But where is my home? Why don't I have one like the others? Why...Why am I here?_ ”

Squall charged forward. Rinoa's recall mechanism on her blaster caught the edge and she took aim again, pausing when she saw Squall enter her frame of view. He sliced the Punishment up and, glowering darkly at him, Edea caught the edge of it in her claws. The two of them glared at each other over the shine of the dark blade.

“ _Oh, Squall...Baby, listen to me. Those people...Those people weren't your family._ ”

“Die, SeeD!” Edea's magic slammed into Squall's gut. He cried out as he was thrown backwards. He hadn't even landed before Shiva had a cura spell into his body. He caught himself on his hand, flipping over, and skidding to a halt on his feet.

Quistis jerked her whip up, wrapping it around Edea's hand. She pulled back, upsetting her balance. The witch's hand glowed with fizzling ice magic as she took aim at her.

“No, you don't!” Fists burning, Zell slammed into her side. Both fists landed true. One against her hip, the other on her rips. Edea fell back, wincing in pain. The darkness in her eyes didn't fade.

But the glow in Zell's hand told them he had trapped something inside an Odine capsule from Edea's body. He grinned as he bounced it in his palm.

“ _Quisty said...She said she looked up my name in her book...She said 'squall' means 'storm'. A storm that destroys everything. Is that what I am?_ ”

“Silence!” Selphie yelled, calling partially on Siren's power. The spell she threw out was strong, glowing vibrantly in the air. Edea dropped her shoulder, dodging neatly. Rinoa's cry of surprise was cut off when the spell hit her. Stealing her ability to cast magic.

“Oh, shit!” Selphie flinched. “Rinoa, I'm sorry!”

“I got this!” Irvine reached into one of his many pockets. “G-Garden students are always prepared with your non magical needs. Here, Rinoa! Drink this!”

Edea was twisting back and forth, taking turns dodging and blocking both Quistis and Squall's attacks at the same time. Her body was a blur, her black skirt flaring up around her legs. She didn't miss a single step.

“ _No! Squall, no! You listen to me. Those people were wrong! They were wrong for giving you that name! Nothing that happened was your fault!_ ”

Edea cried out, throwing her magic. The blizzard spell, in so much more control in her hands than Squall's had ever been, chased Quistis down. She cried out, trying to dodge. She couldn't prevent the ice from catching her ankle. She screamed in pain when it not only froze her leg but seemed to sap all of the warmth from the limb entirely.

“Close your eyes!” Zell yelled. He threw a punch, threw a fire spell. It crashed against the ice, shattering it. The powers negated each other and Quistis reached for her leg with trembling hands. It had only been a few seconds, but it already felt numb and dead.

“Over here!” Rinoa yelled, shooting her Sun to catch Edea's attention.

The sorceress caught the Sun in mid-air. She lowered it, growling in anger. She clenched her fist and the metal groaned before shattering in her hand. Rinoa cried out in despair and loss. It almost felt like Edea had removed her arm.

“ _I am your family, Squall. I love you. So much, my sweet boy._ ”

Squall sliced wide, going for her abdomen. Edea dropped back. Her magic retaliated and Squall felt like he had been punched in the face though nothing had touched him. Jaw now sore, he charged in again. Irvine's shotgun blasts echoed around him, peppering Edea with ammo coated with thunder magic.

“Quistis!” Selphie dropped down beside her. “Cura!”

“I already tried,” Quistis groaned through clenched teeth. “Irvine! Give me a potion! I just need something to take the pain away...”

“On it!” Irvine jerked back his wrist, opening the barrel of the shotgun. The empty shells fell out and he reached into his pocket. He pulled out first a bottle that he threw over to Selphie. She caught it deftly in the air as Irvine was reloading his gun.

“ _But you're not my real mother...are you, Matron?_ ”

Squall charged Edea down, bringing down his Punishment. Edea caught it on the claws of her gloves and jerked him in closer. Giving him a great view of her face. Once so serene and beautiful, now filled with hatred and malice.

“Worthless SeeD,” she growled softly into his face. “You are nothing more than a boy, pretending to be a man. A lowering storm that will only destroy everything in your path. What makes you any better than me, mercenary? Blood bringer. At least I fight for myself. When can you say you've ever lifted your sword for your own beliefs?”

“Believe this.” Squall's finger tightened on the trigger. The explosion of ice in the bullet created a spire to the ceiling. It also created a cloud of ice crystals from the revolver that shattered all over Edea's face, blinding her temporarily.

Squall kicked out, planting his boot into her gut. Edea let out a grunt of pain as she fell back. Squall jerked his gunblade up, slicing across her shoulder. Blood, hot and red, burst forth from the wound and Edea screamed.

“ _No...I'm not your real mother...but..._ ”

Squall brought the butt of the gun back around. The reverberation of the force up his arm as the pommel slammed into her temple made him grit his teeth. Edea dropped down, the bells on her head piece twinkling merrily.

“ _I love you as a mother does._ ”

The leather of Squall's gloved protested as he reached down and grabbed the front of her dress. He lifted Edea bodily from the ground-

WHAM!

Squall drew back his fist and pulled up for another blow. 

WHAM! WHAM!

Nose bleeding, Edea lifted her claws and placed them against Squall's chest. He reacted too slow and the blast of energy sent him flying. He landed on his back, skidding away from her. Edea got to her feet then continued going up, her body floating in the air.

“She's getting away!” Irvine yelled, letting off three quick shots.

Edea caught them easily as her body continued it's ascent, beginning to pass the podium.

Squall jumped to his feet and ran for the seating. He ran up the short steps and around, following the curve of the room to the podium stairs.

Squall landed and drew back his sword, ice coating the blade as he prepared to throw it.

“ _I will always love you, Squall. I will always be your mother._ ”

He hesitated. Squall's teeth gnashed together as his arm refused to move.

“ _Really?_ ”

“ _Promise. You and I are family, Squall. And we always will be._ ”

Matron...

“Squall, what are you doing?” Rinoa asked, running towards him, looking between him and the escaping sorceress.

“DAMN!”

Squall's entire body jerked forward as he threw his gunblade. It slipped from his hands, spinning in the air. The lion pendant gleamed in the low light. Edea turned, pulling up her hand to catch it with her shield.

Too late.

The twin blades of the Punishment slid easily into her chest. Edea froze in midair, her hand still outstretched as the lion pendant swung about to a halt.

The room stopped.

Edea's eyes looked down as the gleaming ice melted away. It was magical, it was Edea's own affinity, it did not harm her. But the sharp steel of the blade...

Edea coughed once, blood coating her lips.

Squall reached into his coat and pulled out his inventory. The quick release function deposited the last thing he had placed inside into the palm of his hand.

With a loud hissing, a purple, noxious looking gas burst forth from Edea's wound. From her blood. Her body dropped slamming into the podium. The others cried out and dropped back out of instinct of what that gas could be.

Squall drew back his hand again. The bright red and gold feather in his hand, slightly warm and pulsing with life, flew straight like an arrow.

He didn't wait to see if it had worked. He jumped from the platform stairs and started running. He called out for the others to get away.

A second later, the white light flashed. A familiar, strangely confining weightlessness fell over Squall's body as he dropped to the floor. It took him a moment to recognize the paralyzing action that had froze him similarly way back in Timber TV...

But it was different.

His body hit the ground ungracefully. He couldn't move. But this time...He could see...

Like the room was full of too bright lights, it was reflecting painfully in his eyes. He had landed near Seifer's still body but the light was so harsh he could barely see his face. Squall wanted to shade his eyes, to stand up. His body was locked in place like it wasn't even his to control.

What was going? What just happened? Had he messed up? He hadn't meant to do more damage, he just couldn't stand seeing the woman who raised him die...

Soft footsteps, almost weightless, echoed in the loud room. He didn't recognize them because Rinoa had never walked like that before. Until she stepped into view, moving strangely and awkwardly, he didn't even think of it as her.

Rinoa...

She dropped down beside Seifer. She paused. Then, gently, lovingly, she reached out and picked up Sefier's downed body. She cradled him in the crook of her elbow. One hand to his chest. She leaned over him and her hair fell, obscuring Squall's vision.

She bent lower. Squall could do nothing but stare as she kissed him.

Rinoa...Seifer...What...

Squall's body locked down as he watched Rinoa gently press her sweet kiss against Seifer. Helpless to do anything as she lovingly moved her lips over his.

Rinoa leaned back again as Seifer got slowly to his feet. His injuries were gone. Not healing, just gone. Like they had never existed. He started walking away as though he were in his own trance. Rinoa watched him go, still for a single moment.

The light flashed. Rinoa dropped.

Just like that, the spell holding him in place was gone. Groaning, Squall lifted himself back up. He had hit his head when he landed and his ears were ringing. It was hard to maintain his balance even on all fours.

“Rinoa?” Quistis, limping from the ice, moved over to her first. Grimacing, she lowered herself down and reached for the supine girl. “Are you alright?”

“Squall?”

Everyone froze. Then their heads all turned slowly.

Because that voice...That sweet, caring voice...

Edea lifted her torso slowly from the podium. Squall's Punishment clanged to the ground noisily. The hole in her dress was wide and open, but the wound was gone.

“Quistis?” Edea's eyes focused on her as her eyes filled with tears. “Selphie. Irvine. Zell...”

The five of them turned to her slowly. Barely starting to rise. Not daring to believe. Because that didn't sound like Sorceress Edea. That sounded just like their loving Matron.

Tears fell freely down her face as Edea beheld them all. “You've all grown...so much. And you've become so strong...”

Slowly, still wincing, Edea pushed herself up. Dried blood stained her gown, but her death blow was completely healed. Golden sparkles still lingered around the area. The soft glow the only remainder of the Phoenix Pinion Squall had thrown at the last moment just as she died.

“I have waited for this day to come,” Edea said, leaning back as her heartbreak showed on her face for the first time. “I have feared this day would come. Is today a joyous day? Or an odious day?”

She looked down at them all. Her precious children. So long she had been separated from them, but she still knew them all by name and face. She could still see their small selves smiling up at her through wide eyed, grown faces.

“Where is Ellone?” she asked them desperately. “Have I protected Ellone?”

What? Squall didn't understand. Who was this woman?

“Squall!”

He looked down again at Quistis. She was holding onto Rinoa, her eyes wide with fear. “It's Rinoa...”

Rinoa? What's wrong with Rinoa?!


	31. Matron

Is it over...?

What happened...?

Rinoa...

What happened to Rinoa?!

The gentle breeze coming in through the open window was stirring her hair. Birdsong was floating in through the curtains from the courtyard along with the soft chatter of the few people who chose to study in that area.

From the infirmary though, the only sound that could be heard was the gentle scratch of Dr. Kadowaki's pen on a slip of paper. There were no other visitors besides Squall because the doctor had banned anyone from entering unless it was a real medical emergency.

She had done it for his sake, Squall knew. He hadn't needed to ask, she had just taken the liberty herself and laid down the ban. Giving him privacy. Giving him peace.  
Because Rinoa still wasn't moving.

There wasn't anything wrong with her. She had no injuries. Her vital signs were all normal. She breathed on her own, technically. But it was so slow as to nearly be undetectable. Her temperature was dropping, like she was going into stasis. She was absolutely fine, but she was in a coma. Which, to Squall's thinking, wasn't absolutely fine at all...

Yesterday afternoon. All night. Now this morning. She wasn't moving. She wasn't reacting. It was almost like...

Squall had kept up his vigil through the night. He hadn't even showered yet. He had brought her here and hadn't left once. He couldn't eat. He couldn't sleep. He felt as numb as she acted.

Because she still wasn't moving.

Why wasn't she moving?

The intercom dinged gently overhead catching his attention. He didn't look away from Rinoa's still face but he heard Quistis nonetheless call out over the speaker.

“ _Squall, can you hear me? I have orders from Headmaster Cid. We're heading for Edea's House. We have the coordinates and Nida is going to be moving us soon. Sorceress Edea...Matron is back at the orphanage._ ”

The intercom dinged off. Had she told him this way to keep from being forced to come down? He probably would have reacted similarly even if she had told him in person.

He didn't move. His eyes stayed on Rinoa. Even as he heard Dr. Kadowaki's soft footsteps coming up from behind him, he remained still. His face closed off.

“Hey, boy,” she looked at him gently, her hands on her hips. “Look at you. You're a right mess. All bloody and dirty.”

Squall didn't stop her as she reached out and adjusted his jacket. Her hands were warm and Shiva wasn't in his head at the moment. Yet he had never felt so cold.

“Here now, standing around won't accomplish anything.” The doctor walked to the side of Rinoa's bed, reaching out to gently check the pulse in her hand again.

Her heart was beating slowly, but it was still beating.

“What happened to her, doctor?” Was that hollow voice his?

“I don't know yet. But we'll figure it out. Hey, now, don't look like that. I'll fix her. That's what I do, right? Commander, if you're going before the headmaster, you can't go like that.”

What did it matter?

“Here. Come on.” Dr. Kadowaki put her hand on his shoulder and pushed gently. “You go shower and shave. Change clothes, for Hyne's sake.”

“But...” Squall looked over her head to Rinoa.

She hadn't moved. He still expected her to. He wanted to be there when she did. Because she was going to. She wasn't going to leave him like this...

“Commander Leonhart.” The doctor's tone had his back straightening automatically. “You have to debrief the headmaster. You have responsibilities. And one of those is to personal hygiene.”

She sighed when he remained in one place.

“Listen, if she wakes up, if she so much as twitches, I'll have Nida light the beacon on top of the garden, alright? Now, go. You can even sleep here with her tonight, and that's not an offer I give to everyone.”

Squall's jaw tightened, his eyes still didn't leave Rinoa, but he allowed Dr. Kadowaki to push him from the patient room. Because she was right. He had a lot to do. Standing here, staring, was getting absolutely nothing done.

Still...

The quick shower he took did not give him the relief it normally did. He felt hollow. Like he was just going through the motions of everyday life.

By the time he had dressed in fresh clothes and was leaving to go down to the front gate, Nida was already announcing that they were stopping. He also ordered that no one was to leave garden without permission direct from Squall himself.

Galbadia Garden was far gone. Or, at least, it wasn't going to be a problem now. The ring below it shattered, it could no longer move. The ranks of soldiers destroyed and scattered, their sorceress being carried between Zell and Irvine, only Seifer was left behind. Squall had only cared about getting Rinoa to the infirmary. By the time he remembered Edea – Matron – she had already disappeared. Zell and Irvine had taken their eyes from her for one second.

But she owed them answers, and Quistis and Selphie had volunteered to go find her. She hadn't been hiding, but she hadn't thought it right to stay at Balamb Garden. The mercenary school she had helped found for the specific purpose of killing her didn't seem all that welcoming.

The old stone orphanage had been abandoned for ten years on a cape in Centra. Monsters had already looted it of anything edible. The stones were left to crumble, the house to fall into disrepair. When Squall and the others stepped onto the broken cobblestone path, it didn't even look like the same place from their memories.

“It's totally destroyed,” Selphie said sadly, frowning around.

“Well, it _has_ been ten years,” Quistis said, but her voice was just as full of sorrow.

Their childhood home, their place of safety and security, was little more than ruins now...

Squall stopped as they approached the front door. His eyes traveled off to the left, staring out into a wide field of pink and white flowers. It had been smaller then. The flowers had completely taken over the landscape now...

“Squall?”

Zell's call turned him back to the others. He was holding open the door and they were all looking his way, waiting for him.

His feet felt heavy, but he stepped after them. He was the last into the door, but the others all paused and made way for him to walk to front. The sound of their footsteps in the old house alerted the occupants that they were there.

Stepping in through a large hole in the wall, Headmaster Cid looked sheepish and guilty as he walked into view. He averted his eyes from them for a moment. Then, gathering his courage in a breath, he turned back and tried to smile. It looked like he had a toothache.

“Many thanks for your hard work.” He laughed. It was pained and hollow. The others couldn't laugh along with him and his voice faded.

His eyes downcast and his shoulder's sagged.

“Are you angry with me?” He laughed sadly now. “I don't blame you. All I can do is talk big, but in true times of trouble, I run away. I was in a no-win situation...Your defeat would mean the loss of my children. Your victory would mean the loss of my wife. I just couldn't bear...to face either outcome. I couldn't...I...”

Cid's voice trailed off. He took in another breath, slower this time. “How did you do it, Squall? How did you save her life?”

Squall's voice was soft, distant. “A Phoenix Pinion. A gift from the shumi. I couldn't...We couldn't bear to see her die either. It was all I could think to do...”

If he hadn't done it, would it have saved Rinoa? Even Dr. Kadowaki's magic wasn't saving Rinoa. Maybe a piece of the Phoenix could have...

“A Phoenix Pinion...” Cid breathed. “Yes...That would do it. Thank you, my boy. Thank you. Please, I don't care about myself. Judge me as you will. But...please...forgive Edea...”

Wincing in pain, Cid turned and walked back through the hole in the wall. The SeeDs followed after him slowly.

It was somehow a punch in the gut to see her.

Edea hadn't had a chance or opportunity to change out of her black gown. She had taken off her headpiece and her long black hair flowed freely down her back, but the claws on her gloves were attached to the dress. She looked a strange combination of Sorceress Edea and Matron. There was a faraway look in her eyes as she stared off into the gently rolling waves. A look that remained in place even as she turned to face them all.

The five SeeDs she had nurtured and raised stopped in front of her. They stood in a line, unsure of what to do. Salute? Cry? Run away? Was there even an answer?

Cid stood beside her, staring at her. The heartbreak in his eyes was mirrored in hers. Two people that had given everything and were left hollow and empty because of it.

Then Edea smiled. A broken, sad sort of smile.

“My children...Please, forgive me...” It was her voice again. That sweet, loving voice that had sung them to sleep at night and greeted them every morning. Hearing that voice, more than seeing her face ever had, brought back such strong memories. Fragments and echoes...

She took in a shuddered breath. “I raised you as my own...yet still, I...”

Edea trailed off, her mouth moving but words refusing to come. How could she beg forgiveness for what she had done? For the pain she had caused to her own babies?

“We know,” Squall said softly.

“We feel the same way,” Quistis smiled at her, trying her best not to make it obvious that she was still favoring one leg.

“We fought, knowing the truth,” Irvine promised, just as sadly.

“If anything,” Zell frowned at the ground. “We should be apologizing for attacking you.”

“You're our Matron,” Selphie sniffed back tears. “And yet we....”

“No,” Edea hastened to say, then fell silent because she wasn't sure what to tell them. She shook her head, her smile becoming more genuine. “You're SeeDs. You cannot back out of a battle, I know. You were magnificent. Everything I had ever dreamed of you being and still greater than I had imagined. I didn't think it would be possible to stand and face you again...”

Edea had to force back tears. “I'm so proud of you, children. However, it's not over yet. At any time, I may...”

They all frowned, looking at her. Edea shook her head and lifted her eyes again.

“I have been possessed. All this time. It was not me you've been fighting. I would never...” Edea paused and tried again. “I have been at the mercy of Sorceress Ultimecia.”

“Ultimecia?” Squall frowned. The name tasted strange on his tongue.

“I didn't know that there were any other sorceresses left,” Quistis frowned.

Edea shook her head. “There's not. At least, not here. Ultimecia is a sorceress from the future. A sorceress many generations ahead of our time.”

“What?!” Zell drew back. “Are you serious?”

Edea nodded solemnly. “I'm afraid so. Ultimecia's objective in our time, the only reason she came back at all, was to find Ellone. She is after Ellone's strange power. Yes, I know about her power. I helped raise her. I know her very well.

“Ultimecia is a very fearful sorceress. Her heart is filled with anger and hate and bitterness. There was no way I was going to let her get a hold of Ellone. The only thing I could do...was surrender my body to Ultimecia and let her have control of that. Doing so allowed me to protect my mind. To keep the information I had about Ellone safe. It was the only way I could save her. I was successful...to a point. The result of my actions...Well, you all know. The sorceress that appeared in Galbadia was Ultimecia...inside my shell...She used my power to conquer that nation and take control of its resources so that she may find Ellone herself.

“The good news is that Ultimecia has yet to achieve her goal. But, that is also bad news. I don't know why, but she's not inside me any longer. However, I believe she may attempt to use my body again to carry out her plans. I don't know where Ellone is any longer, so if she tries again, this time I plan to make a stand. To fight her for my own body. But...if that does not work...I may have to face you all in battle once again. I ask for your support, my SeeDs.”

She looked at them, smiling sadly. The threat she had given them in her soft voice hung heavy in the air. She could become that monster again at any time...?

“If she's not in you any longer,” Irvine frowned, “then where is she?”

“I would assume she's back in her own time.”

“Did she give up then?” Selphie almost sounded hopeful.

Edea shook her head. “No. She's obsessed. I believe...I think she might be trying to seek out a more powerful host than myself.”

“Who?” Squall frowned.

“Another sorceress?” Quistis frowned.

Edea nodded and hesitated only a moment before divulging her theory. “Have you all heard of Sorceress Adel before? She was the tyrant of Esthar during the Sorceress War.”

“Yeah, but she was deposed years ago,” Zell shrugged. “She's dead, isn't she?”

“I think...not.”

“What?” Selphie and Irvine shared a look.

“No one knows her whereabouts, but I'm certain she's not dead. If she was, we would have heard of someone inheriting her powers by now.”

“Didn't... _you_ inherit her power?” Quistis asked cautiously.

“The Galbadians must have thought I did. I don't blame them for that. Before this, I never made the habit of broadcasting my power so no one ever knew I had it. I didn't want the attention. However, I did not inherit Adel's powers. I received my powers from a sorceress when I was only five. Years before Adel even took power in Esthar.”

“I don't quite understand...” Irvine frowned.

“I believe Sorceress Adel, wherever she is, is still alive. And that Ultimecia released my injured body in order to...possess the body of Sorceress Adel instead. Sorceress Adel is...well, they did not call her the tyrant because they held her in such favor. She is not the type to hesitate to use her powers for her own selfish desires. She brought about the entire Sorceress War because of her own greed for conquest. Should Sorceress Ultimecia from the future bequeath her anger and hatred unto Adel, their combined power would be unimaginable...”

“Woh...” Zell shifted uncomfortably. “The tyrant is still alive? I can't even...”

“That's terrible!” Selphie shook her head.

“Squall? Where are you going?”

The others all turned at Quistis's question. Squall was already standing in the entrance of the hole in the wall. He looked back over his shoulder at them. His eyes were gone.

“Let's hear what else Matron has to say,” Quistis said, indicating to her.

Matron was staring at him, her long hair fluttering gently in the wind. The sad look in her eyes was calling to him, but just at that moment, he didn't care.

Squall had heard enough. He knew...Of course he knew that listening to what Matron had to say was important. But...Rinoa...

Frowning, Squall faced her fully. “Matron, do you know what's wrong with Rinoa?”

The others blinked before looking away from him. He didn't care if they were uncomfortable with the subject. He would ask anyone who might have any answer.

“Rinoa...” Edea frowned, sifting through the foggy memories she had from her time being possessed. It wasn't clear to her, and there were parts she would dearly like to forget. However, when she thought back to that last fight...

There had been more than just her five children. There had been another. A girl who's face had been drawn in sorrow at seeing Edea destroy her weapon.

“Rinoa is...the girl in light blue?” She guessed. “I only remember vaguely...What happened to her?”

“She was with us when we fought you. After the battle...” Squall hesitated, only because he didn't know how to describe it. “Her body...was cold...She didn't move...”

Cid gasped, his head coming up quickly in horror. “Did Rinoa die?!”

“NO!” Squall's roar of denial echoed out over them, causing the others to flinch. Cid let out a long breath of relief, but Squall felt only pinpricks of unease.

She hadn't died. She hadn't!

Edea blinked at him before looking down. She couldn't bear to see her son like that. Just as heartbroken as she felt inside.

“Forgive me, Squall. I don't think I can be of any help. I don't remember anything after you...I just don't remember...”

Of course. It was a long shot.

“It's...alright,” he said, the words grinding out through his teeth. Because it wasn't alright. It wasn't. She was laying up in the infirmary and he was all the way out here...

Cid and Edea shared a look. An entire conversation being held in a look. Because neither of them had seen Squall like this in all the years they had known him.

Well, Edea had seen something like it...Once...Many years ago now...

Cid let out another breath before turning to him. “Squall, I understand how you feel. I do. But you are in a position of leadership. The other students at garden have a right to know about the outcome of the battle and what's to come. It's your duty to take whatever information you can get here back to garden. Remember, it wasn't just Rinoa. Everyone fought.”

“I know that...but-”

“Tsk! Tsk!” Cid shook his head at him. “But, but, but...That isn't something a leader shoulder say. You have responsibilities, Squall. You must fulfill your duties first.”

Squall's fists were clenched tight, shaking. He knew that.

But...

But...

With a wordless cry of pain, Squall turned and slammed his fist into the wall. The stone broke under the force of the blow. The skin of his knuckles ripped in his glove but he welcomed the pain. He didn't even allow Shiva to try to cure it.

Rinoa...

“So, Ultimecia's objective is to find Ellone.”

The first time we met was the day I became a SeeD. You were my first mission. A mission I still haven't finished. That's where we met again...in Timber...

“Not because she wants Ellone. She wants her power. The ability to send one's consciousness back into the past.”

“So, Ultimecia wants to use her power?”

We argued a lot at first. But then...things began to change...I couldn't keep pushing you away...

“Oh, I get it! So like, Ultimecia wants to send her consciousness from this period further into the past.”

“What's she going to do in the past?”

You looked at me. You smiled when our eyes met. You laughed at my jokes. You were always by my side, even when I tried to prevent you from standing there.

“Time compression.”

“Time compression? The hell is that?”

It made me feel calm. Tranquil. Like, for the first time in a long time, I had something more important to me than the next battle. You were waiting for me. I was finally ready!

“It's time magic. Very advanced time magic that only a sorceress could use. The past, present, and future all get compressed together.”

“But...why?”

“And what would happen to the world? Why do something like that?”

“I can't even imagine a world where time is compressed!”

Rinoa, please...Give me another chance...

“Yo, Squall!”

His eyes opened slowly. His fist was still in the wall, the blood drying in his gloves. The others were looking at him.

“You're not even listening!” Selphie pouted at him.

“So, basically, all we to do is prevent Ultimecia from getting a hold of Ellone.” His eyes were cold and distant, his words dull and flat. But he had been listening...

“Well, yes, but...” Quistis frowned. It wasn't right for Squall to be standing back against the wall when they were being told something so vital.

“Then we're going back to garden,” he told them firmly. “We have to let everyone know.”

“Hey,” Irvine frowned at his attitude. “We're worried about Rinoa too, y'know?”

“Then why don't you-!” Squall cut himself off, lowering the fist he had raised. Because he had seriously thought about punching Irvine in the face. He turned from them. “Forget it. Stay if you want. I'm leaving. I have _duties_ to fulfill.”

Cid flinched. Having his words thrown back at him hurt. Even more so because that wasn't at all how he had intended them.

***

“...That about covers the update,” Squall was saying into the mic. It was the easiest, most efficient way to debrief the garden as a whole. “Our task at hand then is to find Ellone. Then we'll deal with Ultimecia. Training and classes are to resume as normal while we search. Based on our last available information, Ellone will be aboard the White SeeD ship. We're setting out to look for it, though I can't be sure as to where it is. For the time being, we're going to gather information. Be prepared for battle at any time.”

He hesitated just a moment.

“And...Sorceress Edea is back at her home. She's probably not our enemy any longer. Let's just...leave her alone.”

Squall released his thumb from the button on the mic. He heard the dinging of the system down below and Nida took the mic from him.

“Rough stuff,” he frowned, releasing it back to the ceiling. “I've never even heard of White SeeD before.”

“They're Edea's personal SeeDs,” Squall said, turning to step onto the platform. “Nida, you may retire. You're probably exhausted.”

“Thank you, commander,” Nida said gratefully.

Squall was already traveling down the platform. His boots echoed gently as he stepped from the office and started towards the elevator. He had to wait for it to come up, but he had it to himself as he traveled down.

The garden was moving on. The battle had been a big one, there had been many casualties both dead and injured. However, they were SeeDs and SeeD cadets. This was their life. They were already getting back into their old, familiar rhythms.

Some of them waved as he moved through the nexus. He almost didn't see them. They were used to his taciturn personality though. None were bothered as they moved about their business. If any of them were surprised as to his destination, no one mentioned it.

Squall stepped into the infirmary and the silence of the room settled over him. Never before had he been so uncomfortable in the lack of sound. Dr. Kadowaki was out on errands at the moment so he was alone as he moved into Rinoa's room.

She hadn't moved from her position. He couldn't help but feel let down because he had really hoped, even in the impossibility of it...

Squall moved to the side of her bed. Gently, he got down onto his knees, looking at her. In sleep, she had still looked alive. Right now...

Squall reached out and swept some of her hair from her face. Her colorless cheeks were cold under his gloved hand. He was forcing Shiva to not wrap him in cold air right now for her sake, so he knew it wasn't his fault. She was just...cold.

Are you going to be like this forever?

“Isn't there anything I can do?” Squall asked, his voice hoarse with desperation.

An enemy, he could fight. A monster, he could slay. Any problem he could face head on. But this...This nothingness was not something he could fight against. He had never felt so helpless in his life. There was nothing he could do and he knew it.

“You were so full of life,” he mourned running his hand down her shoulder. His ring glinted next to her mother's on the bed where they had fallen. “Now you don't even make a sound. I want to hear your voice...Please...”

Squall felt like he was talking to a wall. Hollow and empty and lonely. So very lonely. Painfully ripping at his heart. He couldn't even seek her out for comfort because she was right there. And not there.

“Rinoa...Call my name.”

Squall took her hand in his. His face leaned over hers. She didn't react. She didn't move. Like he wasn't even there. A ghost that couldn't touch her.

The loud, ear piercing high pitched tone was familiar now. Squall's teeth gritted as he fought his own consciousness was stolen from him. His head fell down, landing against Rinoa's arm. He felt himself falling into the darkness.

Into Laguna's past...


	32. Laguna Part 4

“Why the heck do _I_ have to do this?!” Laguna's cry was punctuated by him crossing his arms and kicking a rock off of the narrow mountain path he was standing on. The rock clicked against the ground as it bounced down.

“'Cause we have no money,” Kiros reminded him, crossing his own arms. He was standing just below Laguna, frowning up at him.

Standing just above _him_ on the path, Ward crossed his own arms. He nodded his head in agreement but no words passed his lips. He didn't talk anymore. He couldn't. The only thing that escaped when he tried was a breathy sort of wheeze.

“Alright, I'm sorry!” Laguna threw up his hands, turning between his friends. “Yeah, so it's kinda my fault that we stayed at hotels so often.”

“Kinda?” Kiros asked as Ward raised an eyebrow.

“Okay, so it's totally my fault. But I'm not cut out to rough it! And I'm definitely not cut out to be an actor!”

Kiros grinned. “So you say, but we know you're really excited.”

Ward nodded and grinned along with him.

Honestly, when Kiros told him that he and Ward had found a job for him on a movie set, he had prayed for some kind of behind the scenes job. Desperately he had hoped that they hadn't picked a job in adult films to punish him.

Laguna still had some trouble believing that he was acting in an actual movie. Yeah, it was low budget and a little trite. Laguna thought it was based on a popular book, but he was thinking that the production was a passion project for someone. If it weren't for the respectable sum he was being offered, he still didn't think that he would do it.

If he was excited about being in a film...

Who was he kidding? He was totally excited. He was going to be captured on film forever. Even if it were a low budget passion project, he was still in film.

“Okay, everyone!” A loud yell echoed up the narrow mountain path. “Take your positions! Sir Knight, your scene is coming up. So get ready!”

The three friends looked away from the path and back towards each other. It was pretty cold up here, but Laguna was rather sure they were getting close to Esthar. At long last.

Or he was totally lost again. Either one was possible at this point.

“Man, I can't believe this director,” Laguna tossed back his hair. It was getting out of control with the length, but he didn't have time to cut it anymore. “Making a movie with me...I'm a total amateur...Just what the heck am I supposed to do?”

Ward gave him a long look and Laguna grumbled, looking away.

“Alright, alright. So we were lucky I got the job at all. As long as we make some money, right? Who is really ever going to watch this anyway?”

“Let's go, superstar,” Kiros grinned pushing against his shoulder. “Let's go get you suited up. I bet you're going to look fantastic.”

Ward was wheeze laughing as they moved towards the vehicle further up the path where the director had stored the costumes. Kiros was getting out the costume while Laguna quickly removed his clothes from behind the jeep. Then he got cold so he quickly put them back on again. Whatever. He would just wear the costume over his clothes. It was too cold out here.

Then Kiros handed him the costume.

“A-Are you serious?! What kind of costume is this?!”

“Ah, ah, ah,” Kiros shook his head, grinning. “No complaining, superstar. The money is good. Let's go, let's go, let's go.”

A few minutes later, Kiros and Ward were smirking as they watched Laguna tried to awkwardly walk back down the mountain path in his costume.

Sir Knight was a role the director had taken very literally. From who knows where, the man had procured a full body suit of armor. Only the helmet was suspiciously absent, meaning Laguna's face was readily visible. The metal of the armor gleamed brightly in the sunlight. And, in the holster at his side, Laguna had been given a gunblade of all things.

Thin and deadly, it had no ammo but the blade was still sharp. Laguna couldn't imagine where the director had gotten it, but if the dents and scratches were any indication, he would guess a pawn shop on the seedy side of town.

As Laguna was trying to awkwardly walk in the armor, he turned down onto the switchbacks where the scene was being filmed. The director/camera man/editor/special effects supervisor was standing near the bottom with a lovely looking young woman in a white dress with a red shawl. He whistled appreciatively on seeing Laguna.

“Hey, look at you. Not bad. This is your co-star, playing the part of the sorceress.”

“Hi,” the girl, who was clearly years younger than Laguna, waved brightly. “Nice to meet you.”

“Hello,” Laguna smiled at her.

“So all we need now is someone to play the dragon,” the director frowned.

“What happened to the guy who was supposed to play the dragon?” The 'sorceress' asked.

“He quit. Said his mother found out where the filming was supposed to be and she forbid him from coming. Overprotective matriarchs are the death of good cinema.”

“So what are we doing here?” Kiros asked, looking down from one of the upper switchbacks.

The director looked up and blinked at Laguna's friends. Especially the large one. A smile broke out on his face.

“Oh! Perfect. Hey, you two.”

“Yes?” Kiros raised an eyebrow.

“I'm kinda in a squeeze here. The guy playing the dragon is out. Do you think you could put on the dragon costume and kinda just...walk down here? I'll pay ya...”

Kiro and Ward shared a glance. Kiros looked back as Ward crossed his arms. “I...guess so.”

“Oh, great. Thanks!” The director beamed at him as the two walked back towards the car. “Come on, Sir Knight, Lady Sorceress. Let's go on standby over here. Have you been practicing your lines, Sir Knight?”

“Uh...” Laguna frowned as he followed him down.

Going further down the path, none of them heard Kiros let out a terrified scream.

***

“The lighting is perfect!” The director beamed, aiming his camera at his stars. The girl was a natural; the knight was rather fidgety. “Okay, people, here we go. Scene 12, 'Death of the Sorceress'. This is the big money shot, so let's make it good. Ready...ACTION!”

The girl went right into it.

“Oh, Sir Knight!” She bemoaned, her hand to her forehead in despair. “Save me from the wicked dragon!”

“Oh...okay...” Laguna said lamely. Crap! What were his lines?! Leg, stop hurting! “I...I'll s-save you from the dragon...”

Laguna drew the blade from his side. He didn't even have a sheath as that was an expense the director hadn't seen the need to include. He held up the long, thin gleaming blade trying to wrack his brain on how to use it. He hadn't touched one since training. Kinda like...this?

Swishing out the blade, Laguna was surprised by how graceful and easily it responded to him. To the point where it didn't even feel like it was his. He stopped in a pose, the blade in front of his face in such a way that the camera had it splitting his image in half.

What was that? Where had that come from?

It took Laguna a moment to recognize and remember the buzzing in his hands.

Don't say the faeries chose now to check in on him?!

“Hey, not bad,” the director gave him a thumbs up from behind the camera. “I'll just put in some voice overs. You keep it up with the physical stuff. Okay! Hey, you two! Bring on the dragon!”

Laguna and the 'sorceress' turned and looked up the path. Silence strung out and the director frowned.

“HEY! Come on, guys! The dragon!”

The loud pounding footsteps on the path had the director grinning. Quickly, he snapped the camera back onto the pass entrance as the large, ruby red dragon stalked into view. Gleaming claws and horns the color of obsidian flashed in the sunlight beautifully. The dragon looked even better than the knight, and the director had been proud of that costume.

“Alright! Here we go! Let's make it believable. I want heartache, desperation, and courage. ACTION!”

Laguna stood back so the director could get a good shot of the dragon coming down. It's wings furled, steam came from it's nose.

“Wo-o-ow! Just like the real thing!” The director's smile was wide. “Excellent work, Kiros!”

A strong, low frequency humming started in the dragon's throat as it faced Laguna. The dragon was taking up the entirety of the path.

“Wait a minute...” the director frowned looking over the camera as his excited faded in the wake of logic and reality. “Was the costume _that_ big...?”

Whoa! Laguna lifted his gunblade and faced the dragon. Kiros and Ward were really taking this seriously. And they were mocking him for being excited about being in a movie. This costume was the best on the whole production though. It looked like the real thing.

The dragon struck so fast that Laguna didn't even see it rear back. Sharp teeth scraped across the metal of Laguna's pawn shop armor. Crying out in pain from the strike, Laguna fell back a few steps. He gave the dragon a look.

Eyes darting to the camera he took his stance again. He whispered to his friends.

“Geez, take it easy, Kiros. You almost got me...”

The dragon growled at him, baring his teeth. Saliva glinted off the white and yellow bone as smoke unfurled from its nostrils. Long claws dug into the earth leaving deep marks.

“What the...” An alarm bell was ringing in Laguna's head. Not his own. The faeries whispering in his ear that this wasn't right. “Is this thing real?!”

“What?!” The director jumped back. “No wonder! W-Wait, what am I doin'?! I'm getting' outta here! W-Well, Sir Knight, it's all yours!”

Turning tail, the director fled.

“Huh?” Laguna looked at his back, confused.

“S-S-Sir Knight,” the 'sorceress' was going backwards down the path. “I must bid you farewell!”

“H-Hey! Don't just leave me here!” Laguna yelled after the two of them. Neither of them listened as they booked it towards the bottom of the mountain.

Laguna looked up at the dragon, laughing nervously. The dragon was glaring at him with glowing red eyes. The shine of his armor, so photogenic, also caught the monster's attention.

“You're not gonna let me go, are you?” Laguna asked rhetorically.

The weight of the gunblade in his hand reminded him that he wasn't totally unarmed. It was a substandard gunblade, in poor shape, but it was a weapon. It wasn't like Laguna had any better choice at this point.

“Alright!” Laguna got into his stance, raising the gunblade. “Let's go!”

Faeries, lend me your strength!

( _Guard. Now._ )

Laguna brought the blade, covering his face. Barely preventing the dragon's teeth from embedding in his cheek and jaw. They caught on the blade instead. A horrid metal screech echoed in his ears as the teeth bit into the metal, but the blade held true.

Laguna grunted, struggling against the dragon's strength. The only advantage he had was that the mountain path was too thin for the large monster. It made fighting awkward for the beast while Laguna faced no such restrictions.

Drawing back his fist, Laguna slammed the metal coated knuckles into the dragon's nose. Roaring, it drew back. Ruby eyes glared hatefully as it lowered its body menacingly.

“Uh...faeries?” Laguna wished he had room to back away. “I think that just made it mad...”

( _Go for the eyes._ )

The dragon lunged again. Laguna's arm swept up, deflecting the blow. Then sliced down. A long gash appeared on the soft scales around its eyes. He missed the actual eye by only a few centimeters, but just enough that it only made the dragon even angrier.

It chomped down on Laguna. He jerked the gunblade up, catching it by the teeth again. The dragon clamped down harder. The steel of the gunblade groaned in protest as it began to dent under the monster's strength.

Laguna cursed, gritting his teeth. The gunblade was going to break and he was going to be completely defenseless. 

No! It couldn't end here! Laguna hadn't come this far to be stopped by this thing! He had to get into Esthar! He had to save Ellone!

“Not today, scaly!” Laguna kicked upwards. The pointed metal boot of his armor slammed into the dragon's throat.

Roaring in pain, the sound altered by the strike, the dragon fell back. Shaking its head, struggling to breath. Laguna turned on his heel and ran down the path.

Cursing, Laguna started pulling at the heavy metal armor pieces covering his body. Get them off before they slowed him down so much he got caught again. Metal clanged against the stone as the pieces were shed from Laguna's body. The scratched and dented gunblade was tossed away. The chest plate fell loudly, Laguna leaped over it neatly.

Behind him, he could hear the now familiar thud of the dragon's footsteps. It was coming up on him again. Laguna wasn't going to make it to the vehicle. If the director and actress had even done them the courtesy of waiting. He doubted it.

Laguna stared through a valley made by two cliff sides. A path had been cut through the center of it. He couldn't be far from escaping now.

Growling loudly, the ruby dragon jumped from the top of the path. It's wings, too long to sustain extended flight, could still glide it into place. It soared over Laguna's head and dropped down onto the path between the cliffs. It growled at him threateningly.

“Da-a-arn!” Laguna took a couple steps back. He didn't even have that worthless gunblade any longer! “Kiros! Ward! Where the heck are you?!”

“You called, Laguna?” Grinning, Kiros jumped down from the top of the cliff. He landed neatly next to Laguna. His katar shined at his waist. Laguna's gun held fast in his his hand.

A moment later, Ward jumped as well. He didn't land nearly so neatly. But he got back up, dusting off his pants as he grinned. His harpoon was at the ready.

“Wait long?” Kiros grinned.

“Too long! I was almost supper!”

“Here!” Laughing, Kiros tossed him his weapon.

The machine gun was a familiar weight in his hands. Laguna snatched it out of the air and brought it up to his chest neatly.

“Wow! That was _awesome_! Please tell me you saw that?!”

“You don't get points when the faeries do the work,” Kiros laughed. He and Ward were both feeling the buzzing in their brains. The kind that made their weapons lighter. Their eyes sharper. Their minds faster. It was a good kind of feeling even if it was mysterious.

“Alright!” Laguna steadfastly ignored him. “Time to kick some dragon butt!”

The ruby had more room to move now. But Laguna had his weapon back. More than that, he had his friends again. With that and the faeries in his head, how could he fail?

Ward struck first. Charging forward, lifting the harpoon over his head, his feet pounded against the dust as he threw the harpoon forward. Like it was shot from a gun, the enormous metal spike flew fast and true, slicing clear through one of the wings, pinning the beast to the canyon wall like an insect. It roared, pulling against the injured limb. Hot blood peppered the ground as Kiros moved in after him, his blades shining bright.

The katar were deadly sharp. Even the tough scales couldn't stop their power. As Kiros struck out, multiple long lacerations appeared along it's neck and body. The dragon swiped out, obsidian claws gleaming. Kiros jumped back and away.

Grinning, Laguna pulled a grenade from his pocket. Grabbing the pin between his teeth, he jerked it free and lobbed the bomb across the canyon.

Skidding to a halt under the dragon, the shrapnel grenade exploded into the soft underbelly of the large monster. As it roared, its head coming up. Kiros ran forward and sliced his blade across it's neck. Blood came pouring out as the beast collapsed down.

Breathing hard, the three of them backed up. Ward had jerked his harpoon free and was resting it across his shoulders. Laguna shared a look with him, laughing in relief.

“Wow, that was sweet! I don't think any has ever taken one of these out so quickly before.”

“The faeries are very powerful,” Kiros nodded hooking his katar back onto his belt. Honestly, he didn't really think they were faeries at all. However, he had no other way to refer to them. It was just easier to go along with what Laguna was saying.

“Alright, let's get down to the car and-”

Loud growling and pounding footsteps cut him off. Laguna didn't need to see the dragon to know that another one was incoming.

“H-How many are there?!” He gasped, starting in surprise. “They just keep comin'! We're outta here! Come on, guys! Let's just cross the mountain!”

Kiros and Ward were right behind him as Laguna sprinted back up towards the switchbacks. They skidded on the dirt as they ran through. It wasn't like they really had a set destination anyway. No one _wanted_ to get into Esthar, so finding it was rather difficult. They had pretty much just been running in random directions since they started searching.

Once they were through the switchbacks, away from the dragons, Laguna stopped with his hands on his knees, breathing hard from exertion.

“Oh, man. Today is just not our day.”

“We didn't even get paid,” Krios grumbled.

Ward rolled his eyes back towards the path.

“Yeah, I don't think he's coming back either,” Kiros nodded. He was way better at reading Ward's facial expressions than Laguna. In fact, they both asked Laguna to stop trying. It had really been getting embarrassing how wrong he was.

Groaning, his back aching, Laguna stood back up. Honestly, he was getting too old for all this running and fighting all the time. He couldn't wait until he could just retire.

Back home in Winhill with his Elle and his Raine and that sweet little home above the pub. Yeah, everyone there hated his guts, but who cared? He had what he needed.

Laguna's eyes opened as he was scratching the back of his head.

The bright red light on the horizon made him frown. Perched at the top of an enormous...thing. Floating out there in the middle of nowhere.

He cocked his head, squinting and leaning forward. “What...is that”?

…

…...

….......

( _Huh? I can't disconnect..._ )

( _Disconnect? What are you talking about?_ )

( _Oh! Is that you, Squall?_ )

( _Yeah..._ )

( _Hm...This is weird. I've never been able to communicate with anyone in here..._ )

( _…_ )

( _Oh, yeah. 'Connect' is just what I call it. When I use my power. Weird though. Normally it's really easy to just disconnect. I don't understand why I can't...hold on..._ )

( _…_ )

( _Oh! I know! Duh...I must be asleep. That's why I can't control it. Sorry, it's just weird sleeping here, I get strange dreams sometimes. I must have connected without realizing it to make it easier for me. I'm sorry, Squall. Just let me use your spirit for a little while longer._ )

( _Let me go back. I need to see her._ )

…

Laguna frowned, the rain streaming down his face. The long haired, lovely woman standing on the porch of the old stone house frowned at him. He was soaking wet but he refused to come inside and dry off. He said he didn't have time.

“She ain't here either, huh...” Running his hand through his hair, Laguna had to admit that it had been a long shot. A lot of the kids that suffered from the tyrant's reign wound up here, but of course, she hadn't...

“If I may ask,” Edea looked concerned, “what happened to this...'Ellone'?”

“She was kidnapped by Esthar soldiers.”

Edea gasped, covering her mouth. “Oh, no!”

“Yeah...I've been traveling, tryin' all I can to get inside Esthar, but...”

Edea frowned. “I think...If I'm not mistaken...Esthar is further north of Centra.”

“North, right...” That was which way? The sun set in the east, right? Or was it the south?

“Why was she taken?” Edea asked gently. “I heard that there was another search for the successor to Sorcess Adel...”

“Yeah, yeah! That's exactly it! I'm so stupid!”

“You didn't know?”

“No, I knew, it's just...” Laguna frowned. “I don't know. I was away when it happened. We were picking up a friend of mine, taking him back home. And while I was gone, Elle...I can't face Raine again until I get Elle back.”

“Is she your daughter?” Edea asked, smiling gently.

“Nah...” Laguna laughed sheepishly, scratching the back of his soaking wet head. “She's just so cute. I failed her...I wish...I could hear her voice!”

( _I want to hear Rinoa's voice._ )

Laguna made a face, scratching at his ear. He hadn't been expecting the sensation so it was a little more powerful than he had remembered.

“Is something the matter?” Edea tilted her head.

“No...Just the faeries...”

…

( _I don't care if it's in the past or wherever! I want to hear Rinoa. I want to see Rinoa. That way...That way there might be a chance to save her..._ )

( _You can't change the past. I think I just...I think I just realized that. I can't make it past this moment now..._ )

( _Ellone?_ )

( _A long time ago...When I was kidnapped...Uncle Laguna went on a journey to find me...But...Because he did, Uncle Laguna wasn't able to be by Raine's side when she died..._ )

( _?_ )

( _Raine wanted to show Laguna her newborn baby...Raine kept calling out for Laguna. That's the last memory I have of her...So...no matter what, I wanted Laguna to stay in the village. I didn't care about myself, but if things were right, the way they should have been..._ )

( _Ellone?_ )

( _But it didn't work._ )

( _I want to go back! Send me back!_ )

( _I can no longer make it back to that moment. And I can only send someone I know now into someone I knew then. Oh...I think I hear...I'm sorry, Squall. I'm about to disconnect. To wake up. I'll try again to speak to you this way._ )

( _Sis! Ellone! Please, wait! I need-_ )

***

Squall jerked awake back in the infirmary. His heart was racing with anticipation. Rinoa was still laid out before him, unmoving and cold, but he had an idea now. He had an idea for how to fix this! A plan of action. Something he could actually _do_!

He wanted to hear Rinoa's voice. He wanted to see her again.

“I can see you, Rinoa, if we go back in time,” he promised, touching her face gently. “Maybe...I can even change things! Keep this from ever happening. Ellone! Ellone!”

Squall jumped to his feet, roaring at the ceiling. “Can you hear me?! Send me back to the moment Rinoa went into a coma!”

Silence.

Ellone didn't hear him. As she said, they were disconnected now.

Ellone...Why won't you answer? Please...I'll go back into Laguna however many times you want, just give me this one thing...Give me this chance...

Ellone was on the White SeeD ship. Edea's SeeD ship...

Edea's SeeD?

“Then...Maybe...Edea would know where the ship is!” Squall looked at Rinoa, a determined expression on his face. “If she does, then I can see Ellone. I can go back. I'll save you, Rinoa. I promise. I won't let this be the end!”


	33. Edea's SeeD

Squall had attempted to leave the garden on his own to seek Edea. Not because he felt he had to, but simply because he forgotten the rules he himself had put in place. The garden was remaining stationary, waiting for Squall's orders to move, so they were still right beside the orphanage.

In a way, right beside the birthplace of the garden itself.

He would have really left on his own, too. If Selphie hadn't spotted him running towards the exit and ran off to tell Quistis. Because she did, he ended up having the two of them with him as he went down. Not that he really minded. He almost didn't even notice their presence as he ran for the entrance of the old orphanage he had been raised in.

Edea was still out back with Headmaster Cid. Not even a single day had passed yet so she was still in the same spot, going over the last few weeks. The two of them were standing together, hand-in-hand, looking out over the ocean and speaking quietly to themselves when Squall stepped through the open hole. Edea turned first and frowned at him. Not because she wasn't happy to see him, but because their earlier interaction was still weighing heavily in her stomach.

A thick layer of guilt. Edea hadn't even met this Rinoa girl, and she had taken her from Squall. And the girl was obviously important to him. Cid had been telling her that Rinoa had changed their taciturn and withdrawn boy.

And whatever Edea had done to her...

“Squall,” she greeted calmly as he stepped in closer. His eyes no longer looked so lost. They were razor sharp and focused now. “Is there...anything at all I can help you with?”

“The White SeeD ship,” Squall said without preamble. “The one Ellone's on.”

“Oh, yes,” Edea smiled gently. “What about them?”

“Where are they?”

Edea frowned. “Those children are...very cautious. They would never remain in one place for long. They know what happened to me so they are actively avoiding me right now. As I told them to. It was for their own safety.”

“...I see,” Squall frowned. So they could be anywhere in the world. That was...a lot of ground to try to cover. 

Well, for Rinoa...

“Oh yes,” Edea smiled. “However, they seemed to have taken a particular liking to Centra's landscape. I think because I myself liked it so and spent so much time down here when I was aboard.”

“You were on board?”

“Of course. Where do you think I disappeared to for over ten years?” Edea chuckled gently. “If I know them as I think I do, I imagine they might have stationed their ship by an inlet somewhere on the Centra continent. I know that's not much, but...”

“No, thank you. That narrows it down.” To an entire continent. But if he was willing to search the globe for Rinoa, a continent was nothing.

“They tend to prefer rocky cliffs. Some place they can hide in. They're used to avoiding people. So I don't know how much luck you'll have. However, if you _do_ find them...”

Edea turned to Cid and gestured with her hand. He pulled out his own INVENTORY, a model a few years younger than Squall's and pulled something out for her. Edea grabbed the white envelope in her hands and turned, passing it back to Squall.

“Please, take this letter that I wrote. It's an alert for them that I'm back to myself. With this, they'll know they can stop hiding and they shall welcome you.”

Squall reached out and took it from her hands. He nodded his gratitude and slipped it into the inner pocket of his jacket.

“Forgive me, Squall,” Matron said sadly. “I did not mean to hurt your lady...”

“I know that,” Squall frowned at the paper. “Honestly, I'm not even sure if you did. We can't figure out what's wrong with her. I just...”

Quistis and Selphie shared a look behind his back. They wanted to reach out for him. Comfort him somehow. Yet, it felt like he was further from him than he had ever been before.

Squall shook his head and faced the couple directly. “You know, both of you are more than welcome to return to the garden. I've already debriefed the students and staff of the truth.”

Edea smiled at him. “Thank you, Squall. But no. I'd rather...If Ultimecia does possess me again-”

“Then it would be best to have you in the garden. If you're out here on your own, I can't keep you from making trouble. Come back with us. Both of you. You can stay on the third floor. Students aren't permitted up there anyway.”

“Edea...” Cid rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb. “Listen to Squall. Our boy has grown a great deal since you last saw him.”

“I know that,” she smiled, pride shimmering in her eyes. “Very well, Squall. If you think it's best. I'd rather keep my distance though.”

“You'll stay in my suite, then,” Cid told her. “No one but Xu or Squall will bother us. Right?”

“Absolutely, Matron,” Squall nodded. “You'll have all the peace you need. And a chance to change into clothes that aren't quite so...uh...”

He trailed off, unsure how to say it.

Edea laughed, lifting the tattered edges of her destroyed, menacing gown. It wasn't like there was anything left in the old stone house to wear.

“Of course. Lead on, my boy. I'll put my faith in you.”

***

“Three days...and nothing,” Quistis frowned, lowering the binoculars. “This is getting ridiculous. Just how big is Centra anyway?”

“Apparently, very big,” Xu said calmly, putting another mark on the map. She was keeping track of where the garden was going and where it had been. Nida, who had the garden's speed set almost as low as it could go and still move forward, was biting his tongue as he worked around the continent.

Centra wasn't a large land mass, but it was rocky. There were a great many inlets, capes, and peninsulas all around the border. Not wanting to risk missing the White SeeD ship, they were investigating each one as closely as the garden's size would allow.

“We might have to call off the search soon,” Xu told the other two regretfully.

“What? We can't do that?!” Nida shook his head at her. “No way. Squall's counting on us.”

“I know. Hey, I want to find that ship just as much as you do. But we aren't going to find anything if the garden stalls in the water because we're out of power. That battle did damage, Nida. We need to get back to FH for repairs soon or we're going to start drifting again.”

“Damn...” Nida grumbled. She was right, of course. But it felt too much like he was giving up, letting his commander down.

Squall was different now. Everyone saw it. He didn't train anymore. He stopped teaching. People barely saw him. He was spending all his time in the infirmary. Watching over Rinoa. Waiting for her to wake up with the sort of desperation of a man clinging to a shipwreck in a storm. It just didn't feel right seeing Squall like this.

So Nida had to succeed. He had to find that ship!

“Alright. Let's just keep it up until nightfall. If we don't find anything by then, we'll make our way to FH for quick repairs then right back out here.”

“Of course,” Xu nodded as Quistis brought the binoculars back up.

They had been at it for three days now. They barely got any sleep. Finding the SeeD ship was important, not just to Squall, but to the world. 

Ellone had to be kept safe for everyone's sake.

***

“Doctor, I've finished organized the medicine cabinet,” Squall told her over his shoulder, gently shutting the doors of the large storage unit.

“Oh, thank you, dear,” Dr. Kadowaki looked up from her paperwork. “I'm almost done here then I'll go get us some lunch. Do you think you can get started on separating my Odine capsules? They've gotten all jumbled up lately because I haven't had time to organize them.”

“Sure,” Squall nodded, moving over to that drawer on the wall.

He was here all the time now anyway, he might as well make himself useful. Dr. Kadowaki's words, not his. Though he didn't much mind the chores she set him. As long as he could always look over as see Rinoa still resting in her room, the work was a nice way to pass the time.

Three days. Three days and nothing. He knew better than to expect a miracle, but he was really hoping that finding that ship would be easier than this. He knew they would be on the move and that they were secretive, but he needed to find them...

Despite her promise, Ellone hadn't made any other attempts to contact him. He was waiting for it. For that shrill whistling that signaled the use of her power. He would welcome it if it meant the chance to speak with her again.

But nothing. Things were too silent around him lately. All those years he had spent wishing for this silence and now that he had it he would do anything to get rid of it.

If only Rinoa would wake up...

He continued working around the infirmary through the afternoon. As promised, Dr. Kadowaki went and brought back lunch for them. Hot dogs for herself and nutrition bars for him. He had denied when she asked if he wanted to try to reserve them this morning. Unlike Zell, he was perfectly content eating the garden food.

Honestly, everything tasted like ash lately anyway. Without Rinoa's voice lighting him up while he ate, everything was bland and tasteless.

The sun was starting to sink before anything finally happened. Dr. Kadowaki was starting to close up the infirmary, locking him in because she was allowing him to sleep in the spare room at night to stay next to Rinoa. And Squall was pretending he actually did so when they both knew he would sleep on the stool in the corner of Rinoa's room instead.

He was sweeping up the floor for her when the intercom dinged merrily overhead. He looked upwards as Quistis's voice – she sounded tired – echoed through the speaker.

“ _Squall, please report to the second floor balcony. We're on approach to the White SeeD ship._ ”

“Dr. Kadowaki-”

“Go,” she smiled, already holding out her hand for the broom. “I'll keep an eye on her until you get back.”

“Thank you,” he nodded to her and rushed out the door.

Irvine and Zell were waiting for him when he got up to the the exit onto the balcony.

“Hey, we're your backup,” Zell grinned at him. “Hope you don't mind.”

Squall nodded, walking past them and out the door. “Keep your weapons away. We're here peacefully. I don't want to start a fight.”

“Of course,” Irvine grinned. His Bismark was tucked safely out of sight.

The three of them stepped outside. The balcony was overlooking the deck of the White SeeD ship. He could look over and see that three of them had already gathered at the bow. They were looking up at him suspiciously.

“We're coming aboard,” Squall warned. “We're unarmed.”

Putting his hand on the rail. He jumped, flipping himself over and down. Zell took the leap in one motion. Irvine vaulted over. The three of them landed neatly on the deck. Squall came up first and the leader of the White Seed ship was looking at him through guarded eyes.

“We meet again,” he said cautiously. The suspicion was clear. Squall didn't blame him. He had treated him the same way when they last met.

Squall nodded to him. “My name...I am Commander Squall Leonhart of Balamb Garden, leader of the SeeD forces. I'd like to speak with your leader.”

The man in front nodded. “I'm in charge here. My name is Weiss. State your business. Depending on what you have to say, I may ask you to leave immediately.”

Squall and Weiss looked at each other carefully. Squall turned his words over in his head, weighing them carefully. Finally, he decided he didn't care. Just go for it.

“I want to see Ellone.”

Weiss started. He looked over his shoulder at the female SeeD behind him. She gave him an unreadable look. All three SeeDs looked back at them. Their gaze wasn't exactly friendly.

“We pose no threat,” Squall assured him. “We received information of your whereabouts from Edea herself.”

Weiss and the other gasped. “Edea? How...?”

Squall nodded. “Edea is no longer under Sorceress Ultimecia's control. She is our ally once again. So there's no reason for you to hide Ellone from us. We want to take her back to protect her from Ultimecia. I have access to a far larger force than you. I can assign more man power to her safety.”

The White SeeDs shared another long look. Weiss looked back to him, folding his hands in front of himself.

“Thank you for coming and telling us. But we have no reason to believe you. Please leave.”

Weiss turned on his heel and started back into the ship without waiting to see if Squall obeyed the command. It was that kind of carelessness that made Squall doubt the ability of these people to protect Ellone. They were good at running and hiding, but little else. There was no way he was going to let Sis stay here under this thin layer of defense.

He followed after Weiss confidently. The White SeeDs that they spotted along the body of the ship didn't attempt to stop him. He wondered if it was because they were sister SeeDs or because they didn't want to challenge him.

He spotted Weiss walking down into the cabin at the prow of the ship. He was followed him with single minded determination. So much so that he didn't notice the other man coming down the steps from the helm until he called out.

“Sir!”

Squall and Zell, both recognizing the voice, jumped and turned. On the steps, Watts was grinning down at them with amazement.

“Wow! Long time no see, sir! Zone, come here!”

Watts finished coming down the steps. A moment later, Zone appeared at the top of the staircase as well.

“What's up, Watts? Whoa! Look who's here!”

Grinning, Zone came down the steps. He walked up to them happily, Watts just behind him. “Squall, man. How's it goin'? You're looking good.”

“Can't believe you're here!” Watts nodded eagerly, waving at Zell. “Everybody doin' good, sir?”

“Hey, you two,” Zell waved to them. “What the heck are you doing here?”

Zone laughed sheepishly. “Well, after you guys left Timber, those Galbadian buttheads came after us. We barely managed to escape to this boat. It was just good luck that it was even there. And they're so nice here. They took us on even knowing we're Galbadian fugitives.”

“I was sure we were goners, sir!” Watts nodded quickly, snickering. “Zone went nuts and was thinking about swimming across the sea to escape!”

“Seriously?” Zell dropped his head back, laughing.

“Hey, it was a plan!” Zone defended himself, his cheeks burning red. “All you were doing was whining like a big baby. 'We're gonna die, we're gonna die!'. And who jumped in first? You! You numbnuts. I've never seen a grown man doggy-paddle that fast.”

Squall blinked at them. How on Gaia did these two keep surviving? Seriously, how lucky could a person be?

Laughing good naturedly, Zone looked back at Squall.

“So, how's Rinoa? Where is she?”

It was an innocent question. One he should have seen coming. Irvine cleared his throat awkwardly as Zell looked away uncomfortably. Squall's jaw tightened.

He didn't want to tell them, but he owed them an explanation. Rinoa was their princess too...

“Rinoa fought with us against Sorceress Edea,” he told them, looking away in his shame. “We were victorious...”

“Woh, seriously!?” Zone gasped as Watts clapped. “Man, that's awesome! I knew you were good, I didn't think you were that good.”

Squall and the others didn't celebrate with them. He didn't even look back at them.

“We were victorious...but, for some reason, she went unconscious after the fight.”

“W-What?” Zone's smile slipped slightly as he looked at him in confusion. Like Squall was speaking words he didn't quite understand.

“She's resting in the garden right now. I don't know what happened. We couldn't protect her. I'm...I'm sorry-”

“YOU SON OF A BITCH!” Zone's fist grabbed the front of Squall's shirt.

“Hey!” Irvine and Zell started forward but Squall held up a hand, keeping them back.

Zone shook Squall, his face burning with fury. “What did I say?! WHAT DID I SAY, HUH?! I told you to take care of her! I told you that nothin' better happen to her! SCUMBAG!”

Zone's fist was slammed across Squall's cheek. Squall didn't roll with it, allowing it to do more damage than it needed to. 

“You pathetic-”

BAM!

“-lyin'-”

BAM!

“SCUMBAG!”

BAM!

The last hit grazed Squall's cheek, not hitting him fully. Zone was already getting tired and Squall barely felt any pain at all.

Zone pulled back again, fully intending on keeping going. Until Watts grabbed his elbow.

“Zone! C'mon! Easy, sir! Easy! She's not dead. They just dunno what's wrong with her, that's all! Ain't that right, sir? Squall would never give up on her. Am I right, sir?”

Watts looked at Squall, his eyes wide and full of sorrow. Unlike Zone, his immediate reaction wasn't one of violence. He was reaching for the hope of the situation. Not in the desperate, grasping way that Squall did, but in an honest and real way.

“We came here to get Ellone,” Squall said, his voice soft. “There's still someone after her and we want to protect her. And...If I can get Ellone and Rinoa together, maybe...we can get Rinoa back.”

Zone was shaking with the desire to punch him again. But Watts was smiling brightly.

“Really?! See, Zone?! I told you, sir. Rinoa's gonna be fine! She promised she would come back. We all have to free Timber together. Don't worry, sir.”

Zone continued glaring at Squall. The bob in his throat worked up and down as he ran Squall's words over in his head. Baring his teeth, Zone dropped Squall's shirt, pushing him back in anger.

“Alright. Fine. But I'm gonna say it one more time...If something happens to Rinoa again, I swear...”

Zone couldn't finish. He shook his head before turning around and returning to the helm. Watts let out a long breath, looking between the two men.

“I'm sorry about that, sir.”

“Forget it,” he said calmly. It didn't even really hurt. Not nearly as much as Squall wanted it to.

Watts bowed to him just slightly before running after Zone.

“Squall?” Irvine frowned at him.

“Forget it. Let's go. We still have work to do.”

Squall continued forward towards the door to the cabin. Weiss turned as they came down, frowning to see they were still here. Squall was already pulling Edea's letter from his jacket before he said anything.

“Here.” He held it out.

Weiss looked down then up again. Cautiously, he took the envelope and ripped it open. With one hand, he pulled the letter out and unfurled it. Frowning at seeing the words, he touched the ink with shaking fingers.

“This...This is Matron's handwriting. She really gave this to you?”

Squall nodded once. “She told me you wouldn't trust us. She's back in the garden if that's not enough proof for you. But she wants to be alone for a while. I'm willing to grant her that but if you must see her to believe us...”

Weiss shook his head, reading the letter with a soft smile on his face. “This is Matron. I would recognize her words anywhere.”

“You call her Matron too, huh?” Squall's mouth turned up slightly.

“Yes. Ever since we were little. Matron saved all of us, brought us on this ship and gave us a family. She's important to us.”

“We were raised by Matron, too. Fighting against her was...difficult. But we're not SeeDs because we can't handle a battle. We're only lucky that everything turned out well. Most everything. Whatever happened, Edea is no longer possessed. She's back to her old self again. The kind Matron who saved and raised us.”

Weiss nodded, gently folding the letter back up. He put it into his uniform, right next to his heart. The relief on his face was readily visible as he held it close for just a second.

“Squall...Commander Leonhart, thank you. We owe you and Balamb Garden much.” In respect and deference, Weiss raised his right arm, showing the back of his hand in the SeeD salute.

“Even out salute is the same,” Squall mimicked him. Edea really was something else.

“Matron told us that our sister SeeDs were very similar to us with a greater emphasis on battle while we're more based on stealth and speed. We don't have the same hierarchy as you so I don't think we have your equivalent in title, commander. However, I'm the eldest and so I'm mostly in charge when Edea isn't here. If I can do anything for you-”

“I need to see Ellone.”

“Yes, of course...”

“Well?”

Weiss sighed, holding his hands behind his back. “I'm sorry. Ellone's no longer with us.”

“What?” Squall's heart fell. She wasn't here? No! She had to be here! “Where is she?”

“Well, after we picked her up from your garden near the FH coast, we headed east to get as far away as we could from Edea. We were only following orders to protect her. Edea had promised us she would try to keep us safe, but Galbadia is a superpower. We only got so far before we encountered the Galbadian fleet. They weren't looking for us specifically. I don't think they knew about us. But they were under orders to stop everyone. There were a lot of them. Too many. We should've been more careful. I take the full blame for what happened.

“We fought off the ship who pulled alongside us and got away. But they pursued us in full force. We're far more familiar with the Centran coast though and once we got here we were able to escape. Unfortunately, immediately afterwards the ship broke down and left us stranded. There was no way were going to let the Galbadian's take Ellone, of course. When they did find us again, we had no choice but to prepare for battle.”

“What did you do?” Zell asked, in the grip of the story.

“We did nothing,” Weiss shook his head. “As we were preparing to fight, forcing all the children and Ellone into the cabin, an Esthar ship appeared. Of all the things.”

“Esthar?” Squall started. “What do they have to do with this?”

Weiss shrugged. “I don't know. We were left stranded as Esthar jumped into the battle. There were less of them, but they were better equipped. We were caught in the middle of it all. If I didn't know better, I would think that Esthar was defending us.

“Then...everything got really weird. Another Esthar ship, a smaller one, came up beside us. The Esthar soldiers came aboard and ordered us to evacuate onto their ship. They told us they would take us to safety. Of course we refused. We didn't trust them anymore than the Galbadians.”

“Of course,” Squall nodded. He wouldn't have trusted Esthar either.

“They were trying to convince us when the tide of the battle began changing. Galbadia's numbers were starting to overwhelm them despite their superior tech. They were forced to leave or risk being sunk themselves. But...as they were pulling away...”

Weiss paused as he thought back to the moment. “Ellone ran to the bow. She climbed up onto the rail and yelled something out at them. I couldn't hear it over the battle and the waves. I started running over to get her off the rail when she...jumped. She just jumped onto their ship. It wasn't like her at all. To this day, I don't understand why she did that.

“The small ship was fast. It ran from the battle quickly. The other ships started pulling back as well. They made sure to do it slowly though to keep Galbadia from attacking us instead. They drew them away from us. We've been here ever since trying to fix our engine. As soon as it's fully repaired, we plan on going to Esthar after her. I'm sorry, Squall, we couldn't protect her.”

Squall shook his head. He had what he needed. “So Ellone's in Esthar?”

Weiss nodded. “We believe so. We can't let her stay there. What if she's in trouble?”

Squall understood completely. But by the time Weiss got there, Squall fully intended on already having her in his hands.

***

“Oh, man...” Nida ran his hand through his hair. “Xenophobic Esthar. That area's terrain is not really suited for flying the garden, Squall. And by that I mean I physically can't drive the garden there. Too mountainous, too many cliffs. The garden just won't go there.”

Squall frowned, crossing his arms. “You make a good point. What do you recommend?”

“Well, personally,” Xu spoke up, “I would recommend going to FH.”

“Why?” Squall frowned at her.

“Well, firstly, the garden needs repairs. We can't put it off any longer.”

“But Ellone-”

“ _And_ you can apparently reach Esthar from FH. It's on the other side of the tracks. If you want to get into Esthar, you might have to walk, but it's better than nothing.”

Squall nodded. “Alright. Nida, set course for FH. Make it fast.”

“Yes, commander,” Nida saluted him.


	34. The Great Salt Lake

FH was happy to have Balamb Garden again. Even broken and in need of power and repairs, the students and staff were welcomed. They had even kept the improvised walkway up to the second floor balcony. Nida pulled into dock as Xu made her way out to negotiate payment for services and parts. Quistis was going with her to serve as a diplomatic arm to Mayor Dobe and his wife Flo. She was the calmest of them and the leaders of town were...trying.

Zell was intentionally staying in to keep away for just that reason. He didn't want to go back down to that judgmental town. Selphie, on the other hand, was excited to go see the mechanics who had designed the stage of her dreams again. Irvine, of course, stayed with her.

No one bothered to check in with Squall. They all knew where he was.

Fresh from a shower, changed and his INVENTORY in his jacket, Squall stepped into the infirmary to see Dr. Kadowaki packing her medical bag.

“Oh, Squall, there you are. You're late today, dear.”

“Yeah, I took a shower before coming,” he said, pausing before her. “Going somewhere?”

“Yes. I have to go upstairs and give Edea a physical. She's finally agreed and I want to do it before she changes her mind. I was waiting for you to show up though. Will you watch the infirmary for me until I get back?”

“Of course,” Squall nodded.

“Thanks, dear.” The doctor closed the bag and lifted it over her shoulder. She walked close and patted his cheek. “You're a good boy. You should take a vacation.”

“When I'm finished with this, I will,” he promised, feeling like he wanted one himself. He had never felt so old in his life and he wasn't even twenty yet.

Smiling at him, Dr. Kadowaki continued out. Squall didn't watch her go as he walked into Rinoa's room again. She hadn't moved. Of course she hadn't. But he was going to get her moving again. And he wasn't waiting until Ellone came here.

“Let's go, Rinoa,” he said softly, reaching for her.

Cupping her head gently in hand, he lift her up. He took her legs and swung them over the bed, maneuvering her into a sitting position. Holding onto her so she wouldn't fall back, Squall turned and pulled her arms around his neck.

Ordering Shiva to turn off the cold so Rinoa wouldn't freeze, Squall reached back and took her hips in hand. He scooted her close to his back, cupping her thighs. Then he stood, leaning forward slightly so she was laying against him, her chin on his shoulder.

Let's go meet, Ellone, he said to her silently. Ellone will bring us together again.

There was no one to stop him as he made his way to the second floor. All the students were eager to get out and into FH so the garden was cleared out. The elevator was his alone. The classrooms were even more deserted. The garden was almost eerily quiet as he moved to the second floor balcony. Even the docking station was empty as all the technicians had made their way inside to get a better look at the damage.

I'm sorry, everyone. I can't go on like this.

A few people spotted him in town, but none of them questioned him. He worked his way to the closed train station and jumped from the platform down onto the tracks. West would take him into Timber. East would lead to the edge of the Esthar continent.

“It's a bit far,” Squall said to Rinoa, adjusting her weight.

She wasn't heavy. It was actually pretty comfortable to hold her like this. The only thing that would be better was if she was conscious and able to lock her legs around him. Tighten her arms and whisper into his ear as she laughed in delight at the way he carried her.

When she was awake, he would do this again, properly. He would do everything he had stupidly resisted before. He wouldn't let her leave him again.

With those thoughts in mind, he kept walking.

And walking...

And waking......

It was far. Squall didn't think it was going to be this far. Though the garden had docked before noon, it was nearing sunset and Squall was still walking.

What was he even doing? Leaving everything behind...Not telling anyone...What was he really hoping to accomplish here? 

Go to Esthar.

Find Ellone.

Talk to Ellone.

A simple, three step strategy. He could do that. It was a plan. He liked a plan. Something that he could do. An action he could take.

Of course...There was no guarantee that everything would be resolved if he talked to Ellone.

Even so...He had to try. He had to go. He couldn't just leave Rinoa like this. Never see her smile again. Never hear her melodic voice. He had to do something for her. He...He...

He sure had changed.

At some point down the tracks, Squall had to take a break. Gently setting Rinoa against a lamppost, he sat next to her with his feet dangling off the end of the bridge. The ocean stretched out seemingly infinitely in all directions. He couldn't see FH anymore, nor could he see the continent yet. It almost felt like he was suspended in the middle. In more ways than one.

Looking out over the sparkling water, into the bright sunset, he somehow didn't feel very alone. Even if she was unconscious, Rinoa was there. It felt nice for her to be there. He was going to go bring her back.

What was everyone else doing? They were probably laughing at him. Or maybe they were angry for the way he abandoned the garden. He couldn't really blame them either way.

“What do you think?” He asked the silent Rinoa as though she were privy to his thoughts. “To tell you the truth...I worry too much about what others think of me. I hate that side of me...That's why I didn't want anyone to get to know me. I wanted to hide that part of myself. That weakness. I hate it. 'Squall is an unfriendly, introverted guy.' It made it easy for me when people perceived me that way.”

Grinning, he looked at the still Rinoa. “That's a secret between you and me. Got that?”

Her hair rustled in the breeze. His smile slipping slightly, Squall stood and returned to her side. That was enough rest. He had to keep going.

“Rinoa...” Reaching out, he stroked her hair from her face. “Come on. We're losing daylight.”

It was a little awkward getting her back onto his back without the help of her elevation on a bed. But he managed it after a moment and returned to his walk across the tracks. Even as the sky darkened, he kept walking. Night fell and stars lit up the sky, he kept walking.

Only when his legs couldn't travel any further, and he was at danger of dropping Rinoa or himself, did he finally stop. The moon was high in the sky overhead when he stopped at another lamppost. He set Rinoa down gently before sitting down next to her.

Reaching out, he took her by the shoulders and pulled her in close. Keeping her otherwise cold body warm with his own. Shiva wasn't complaining at the relative warmth. 

It was the first time Squall fell asleep with someone in his arms. If she had been awake, the moment might have been perfect...

: _Squall..._ :

***

It wasn't until the next morning that Squall finally reached the end of the tracks. Tired and a bit sore from an uncomfortable night, he was still undeterred. His eyes were on the ground, focusing on his footsteps, so he didn't immediately notice that he wasn't alone.

Until he heard a soft, familiar laugh.

“Squall, you're late,” Quistis greeted him, crossing her arms over her stomach. “We've been waiting all morning for you to catch up.”

Squall froze, looking up in confusion to see not only Quistis but Zell as well. He was grinning, hand to his hip cocked out to the side. He came forward, smiling peacefully. As if they had planned this all along. He leaned in close to where Rinoa's head was resting against Squall's shoulder.

“Is the princess still asleep?”

Quistis grinned. “She might wake up with a kiss from the prince.”

Trying to hide his blush, Squall jerked back from them. “Is that why you came all the way out here? To tell me that? How did you even get here?”

“We took a boat from FH,” Zell smiled.

“You're going to Esthar, right?” Quistis asked. “We're coming, too.”

“We're Edea's escort,” Zell pounded his chest proudly. He stood back and pointed.

Sitting at an old wooden bench in the old train stop, Edea stood to her feet. She was back in her black gown, mostly because she didn't have anything else to wear in her size. She didn't think it would be professional to leave the garden in Cid's clothing. At least the black gown had been repaired in the garden so the large hole was gone. And someone had the foresight to cut back the claws on the sleeves, reducing them to wrist cuffs.

She made her way over to him, smiling gently. “Evening, dear. I was worried we wouldn't catch up to you. It took a few hours before we even noticed you were missing.”

Squall moved over to the bench Edea had been sitting on. Gently, he set Rinoa down onto it, leaning her side against a post, before turning around to face the others.

“What business do you have in Esthar, Matron?”

“I must go see Dr. Odine,” she said formally, crossing her hands in front of herself.

“He's number one when it comes to magical goods,” Zell grinned. “And there's no one more knowledgeable about sorceresses than he.”

“Why do you need to see him?” Squall asked.

Edea frowned. “Sorceress Ultimecia is still alive. She is able to take control of my body at any time. If that were to happen...I would once again bring terror. I, too, value my well being. I want to protect myself. Though it would no doubt be strange after a lifetime, if it were possible, I would like to rid myself of the sorceress's power. Dr. Odine may know a way. He may be able to save me.”

It was a good plan, Squall nodded along with her. One that would solve at least some of their problems at the moment.

“I understand,” he said. “Let's all go to Esthar then.”

“Well, we're actually waitin',” Zell said.

“For what?” Squall frowned.

It took almost another hour for Selphie and Irvine to return. By then, Squall was anxious to get moving again. Edea was doing her best to keep him from leaving despite the others' absence by telling them all stories of when they were young. The half remembered tales were interesting to hear and highlighted a part of his life Squall would probably never have back.

Not that he cared to overmuch. What mattered was right now.

Finally, when he was about to order them out anyway, Zell pointed down the dry plains that stretched out beyond the train station.

“Yo, they're back.”

“They went ahead to scout,” Quistis told Squall. “Trying to find us a way in. I wanted to just send Selphie because I thought she'd be faster. I knew I was right. But Irvine insisted she needed back up.”

The couple were running up on them quickly. Squall frowned. Selphie's face was flushed and she was moving a little strangely. Irvine's grin was wider than normal and, Squall didn't think he noticed, but his shirt was on inside out under his coat.

“Why did you have to send those two alone?” Squall asked Quistis in an aside.

She sighed as they caught up.

“How's it goin', Squall?” Selphie greeted, beaming as he moved over to pick Rinoa back up.

As he was settling her on his back again, Selphie leaned in. “Is Rinoa still asleep? She's so cute when she's sleeping, don't you think so?”

“Whatever,” Squall grumbled. He was pleased though that everyone kept saying 'sleep'. Like she still might wake up at any moment.

“Woo!” Selphie drew back, clasping her hands to her cheeks. “Are you blushing?! That's adorable!”

Squall turned from her deliberately and looked at Irvine. “So how is it? Can we make it to Esthar.”

“He's totally blushing! Someone please tell me they have a camera!”

“Selphie, don't make Squall angry,” Irvine said, his voice very chill and mellow. Life was all good for him and he was happy to spread that joy to others. He looked at Squall calmly. “So, Esthar's definitely on this continent, right? It's supposed to be huge. At least that's what I've heard. I don't know why, but we can't seem to find it anywhere.”

“Nothing but cliffs up north,” Selphie shrugged.

“And nothing but smooth trails down south,” Irvine grinned salaciously.

“More cliffs!” Selphie snapped at him. “Anyway, that just leaves east. It has to be that way, there's no where else to go. Thing is, that way leads through the Great Salt Lake. And I don't know much about it, but the sign we found that said 'keep out' in really dark and scary letters was promising.”

“East it is,” Squall said. They weren't SeeDs because they were afraid of danger.

“Right this way, Matron,” Quistis said, indicating forward. 

***

Squall didn't know if the Great Salt Lake was once a real lake, or if the one who named it thought he was being hilariously ironic. There wasn't a drop of water in sight. However, there was more salt than Squall would honestly have thought possible. The rocks, the path, the cliffs all seemed to be made of nothing but the glittering white crystals.

It even coated the multiple, enormous monster bones that had been left out in the sun. Hollow, cold, and old, the monsters were long dead. They made a rather eerie sight though. Mostly because they were so enormous.

Selphie frowned at the start of the path. She stood up on her toes, shielding her eyes to get a better look at everything. The sun reflecting off of the salt was doing weird things to her eyes. It almost made things look kind of...fuzzy.

But as far as the lake extended, she saw only more bones and rock.

“Hello...I don't see a city...”

Curious, she ran forward. Of course, Irvine was just a step behind her. He had been trailing her like a puppy since they began walking. He was quiet though. Squall wasn't sure if it was a bad or a good thing that he had finally fulfilled his desires.

“Looks like we are in for a long trip,” Edea sighed sadly. If they couldn't even see the city from here, it must be very far inland...

“Everything'll be alright,” Zell promised her, grinning. “We'll be by your side all the way!”

Edea laughed gently. “Thank you, Zell. But remember, you must stay alert even in my presence. As long as I can be myself, everything will be fine. But if Ultemicia gets inside me again...You all know what you must do...”

Squall's jaw tightened as Quistis and Zell turned away quickly.

They didn't want to think about it. Their Matron once again becoming that wicked woman...Or what they would have to do...

Squall didn't have a second Phoenix Pinion.

Selphie's footsteps crunching against the salt warned of her return. She looked between them, frowning with her hands on her hips as she stopped.

“What? What? Did I miss something?” She blinked at the tension. “Uh-oh. It's so quiet. The air's getting heavy. Guys? What's wrong? COME ON! We're all together again! We're gonna bring back Rinoa! It's like a picnic! With monsters! We're gonna have fun!”

Squall took in a breath. “I heard once that if you say bad things, they'll come true. I know it's a silly superstition, but right now I want to believe it. So let's not talk about it anymore.”

The others nodded in agreement as they started down towards the lake. Edea remained at Squall's side and, automatically, the others formed a protective circle around them. Edea and Rinoa were the helpless ones in this situation, so they were put in a cocoon of bodies.

Everyone was talking though. Asking Edea questions. Discussing plans. Complaining about the garden food, because that was always a favorite topic. But since Squall was in the circle instead of just a part of it, all that conversation flowed around him. He wasn't exactly taking part in it, but he was there listening all the same.

It almost felt normal at this point. Comfortable. For all of them. Squall not talking. Everyone else talking around him. Not excluding him. He was still very much part of it even if he rarely directly interacted with them.

“This place is creepy,” Selphie complained, rubbing her arms. “Not to mention dry! I think I'm getting flaky skin.”

“Want me to check you?” Irvine asked, smirking.

“I'm hosing you two down when we find water,” Quistis told them calmly.

“You have no room to judge me!” Selphie pointed at her accusingly.

“Alright, alright,” Edea chuckled, holding up her hands. “There's no need to argue about it.”

“Is there nothing else on your mind, Irvine?” Zell asked, irritated.

“Who could possible have room when you consider the vast variety of-”

Squall was never more happy to hear an ominous rumbling as he was in that moment. It cut Irvine off from whatever he was about to say. The salt flats around them started shaking. Hands went to weapons as everyone looked around. Except Squall who couldn't on account of the fact that he was holding Rinoa on his back. His gunblade was still in his INVENTORY because of FH's ban on weapons as he had been walking through.

He was already turning to Edea. He was about to tell her to step back and stay with Rinoa somewhere safe when Quistis stepped up. Like she had seen the thought in his head, she stopped him.

“Squall, you stay back with Matron.”

“But-”

“Look after Rinoa. We can handle this.”

Irvine, Selphie, and Zell grinned at her side. The four of them would be more than a match for whatever was coming for them. Squall knew that. Still, somehow it went against the grain for him to stand back and let someone else fight.

From the salt canyon just off the path, a large, bony hand erupted. Planting itself into the ground, it was immediately followed by a skeletal monster the size of a house. Partially torn wings on its back shimmering in the sunlight, flickering weakly. 

“An undead monster,” Squall frowned at the large beast.

Bright red antlers, ashen claws, big and ugly and strong.

“Let me handle this,” Zell said confidently, striding forward.

“Um, Zell,” Selphie frowned. “You'll need more than fire to take on an undead.”

“Oh, I know that. But I ain't gonna use fire. I'm going to use the gift I picked up from Matron. I've just been waiting to use this baby.”

“Gift?” Edea repeated, frowning. “What gift?”

Zell smirked. He had been training with both of them. Ifrit said the other one was too damn calm for his liking and they bickered like siblings. However, it didn't bother Zell. If anything, they felt like they were getting along in some strange, aggressive way.

Reaching deep into his mind, he grasped hold of the new GF that Sorceress Edea had been holding onto. Holy powers of life and vitality. The breathtaking beauty that made the world turn. Life. Death. And Renewal. The glorious wings of the legendary guardian.

Zell's eyes glowed white as he touched Alexander's power. “Divine Judgment!”

The white light, piercing and somehow cooling, seemed to erupt from somewhere beyond the far horizon. Zell brought his hands down, bringing the white light with it. The monster hissed and roared in pain as the healing, pure energy engulfed his body.

Old bones cracked and chipped. Wings fluttered madly while it tossed it's body in pain.

“Quake!” Irvine yelled, throwing out his hand.

The ground under the monster started shaking, pitching him up and over. It fell all the way back down the canyon it had just climbed from. Selphie ran to the edge and giggled when she saw it burst into fragments of bones.

“What did we tell you, Squall?” Irvine winked, blowing on his finger like the barrel of a gun. “You worry too much. Just watch the princess and let us deal with this.”

Squall nodded to him, thankful for the protection. If, for no other reason than he didn't need to abandon Rinoa and leave her helpless off to the side.

They continued forward down the path until they reached a tall cliff too steep to climb down. Selphie whistled as she looked out over the enormous lake before them.

“They weren't kidding when they called it 'great', huh?”

“How far do you think it goes?” Zell asked, rubbing his eyes. They felt weird looking out into the landscape for some reason.

“Let's just go around,” Squall nodded with his head. “We need to find a place to climb down.”

They started walking, looking out into the lake and back to where they came from. Maybe it was the sun beating off of the salt pillars, but it was so hard to stare into the lake. Their eyes were protesting at being forced to do so and it gave them a slight headache.

The first time the air fuzzed, Squall didn't think anything about it. The sun could play bad tricks and the white landscape was worse than looking at snow.

The third time, Squall finally focused. Because it hadn't been just a mirage of the eyes. It had definitely been fuzz. Like white noise.

“Squall?” Quistis turned back when he stopped. “Something wrong?”

Squall didn't answer. He stared at the air in confusion. Then, on a lark, he forcefully focused his eyes closer than where they thought they should in order to look at the landscape. And it didn't get blurry when he did so. Almost like what he was looking at wasn't far away at all...

The air fuzzed again as Squall reached out. His fingers splayed as he reached out. Moving close to the edge of the cliff, Selphie called out a warning.

“Squall, what are you doing?” Zell frowned, moving closer like he was going to pull him back.

Squall's fingers smacked against a hard surface. His hand flattened and he blinked. He pushed but the wall was hard and firm. He tapped against the 'air' and it tinked like glass.

“What?” Irvine frowned, leaning close. He pulled his Bismark out and knocked the 'air' harder. It was definitely the sound of glass.

“What's going on?” Selphie frowned.

“There's something there...” Squall murmured.

He ran his hand along the 'air'. He almost wanted to close his eyes to prevent the conflicting stimuli from giving him a headache. What he was looking for couldn't been seen anyway...

His gloves suddenly stopped as he detected a small seam in the air. A crack. Perfectly straight, going up at an angle. Then, above his head, it leveled into a straight, perfectly horizontal line.

Until his fingers hit another, smaller plate. He pressed it curiously. It went in. A button.

The effect couldn't be seen, but Squall felt it. The pattern of what he was touching changed. Like chunks were being carved out in the air forming footholds. Then, above his head, a doorway opened leading to a tunnel suspended in the air leading to nothing.

“A hole in midair?” Edea shook her head. It was only worsening the effect of staring at something that looked faraway but wasn't.

“That's weird,” Irivne tilted his head. “Is it a tunnel or something? Can you see inside?”

Squall touched along the invisible footholds. “This looks like the only way...”

Bouncing Rinoa up a bit higher, he released one of her legs to grab the holds. He climbed up with only one arm a bit awkwardly. The others gathered below, ready to catch Rinoa if she fell. Despite the strange climb, he made it to the top.

And found himself staring down a dark, metal tunnel leading...somewhere.

“It's safe,” he yelled out over his shoulder, walking forward slowly.

What in Hyne's name...

He stepped from the tunnel onto a catwalk. To one side was a control panel. In front of the panel, there was a serious of hexagonal, glass panels. All lined up in neat rows. Clear and innocuous. Squall turned and looked back towards where he had come from. Beyond the tunnel he could make out hexagonal shapes, all dark. The image on the other side blurring the glass, darkening the strange 'room' where they were standing.

He remained there as the others joined him.

“What is with this?” Zell frowned, looking around. “Who made this?”

Squall looked past the catwalk to another door. There was a small green light over the access panel. Did that mean it was unlocked?

He didn't need to press it to find out. The door opened automatically as they approached. He stepped out onto a platform, hexagonal and blue. Held in place by metal arms on opposing sides and set onto a metal track overhead.

“What's this?” Edea asked, stepping onto it. “Is it an elevator?”

Squall stepped to the edge and, as the last one came through, the door shut and the platform hummed to life. Without any indication from them, it began traveling along the track it was set into. Moving sideways along a long wall of hexagonal panels.

“Where are we going?” Selphie frowned, concerned.

That platform didn't move fast. It hit a point then started traveling upwards. Again, with no command from them, it stopped. And a small door opened on the opposite wall of the last one.

“Commander?” Irvine looked to him.

Squall tightened his jaw. He didn't know what he was doing. Where he was. He didn't know if they would even make it to Esthar at this point. But he didn't care.

“I'm not turning back now.” He went forward confidently. The others fell in line behind him. 

They traversed another short tunnel then stepped onto yet another blue, hexagonal platform. Just like the last, it started humming to life as they came aboard.

Unlike the last one, the wall of panels suddenly all flickered. Then, like ripples in a pond, all the panels suddenly went clear. Winking off, spreading outward in all directions. Multiple gasps of surprise, aw, and wonder echoed from behind him. Even Squall couldn't stop his jaw from opening.

There was no way that was a city. The sheer size of it...

Stretching too high into the sky, the buildings scraping the clouds themselves. Blue, purple, yellow, white, and green. As far as his eye could see in either direction. Squall had never felt so small in his life as he did looking at the enormous buildings in a style he had never seen before.

“Will you look at that...” Irvine gasped.

“Pretty!” Selphie beamed.

“THE HELL IS THIS?!” Zell drew back, his eyes wide.

“My goodness...” Quistis breathed in aw.

Edea looked to Squall. “What is going to happen now?”

The platform jerked to life as if answering her questions. It dropped an inch. Then just dropped. Like they were on a ride suddenly fell down. Selphie cried out and Squall had to steady himself as the platform sunk into a long, hollow, clear tube. 

There was no wind. They were just moving that fast. The platform followed a curve in the pipe then straightened horizontally. And they were racing along the city. Buildings passed so fast that none of them could catch more than a glimpse. Cars raced by on roads built into the sky of the same clear blue material as the platform.

The others were talking, gasping, and turning around him. Even Squall couldn't help but look around, his hands tightening on Rinoa as though to keep her safe.

An enormous city to the east. With tech years ahead of the rest of the world. Hidden behind an illusion of glass and light. There was no doubt in his mind where he was.

Esthar.

He knew, intellectually, how advanced they were. It was a completely different thing actually seeing the proof of it. He felt almost like a neanderthal in the presence of fire for the first time.

The platform exited the tube, slowing as it did so. The tracks led them down to a metal dock. The platform slid into place, locking down. Everyone stayed unmoving, blinking and looking around. They were almost all too scared to walk forward.

Squall swallowed and just plunged ahead.

“Judging from this, I would say they must know we're here,” he told the others, trying to remain confident. “It's possible we might encounter some hostility, so stay-ARGH!”

Squall's legs collapsed and he dropped down onto his knee as the familiar high pitching shrieking of Ellone's power took over his mind. Gritting his teeth, he tried to fight it. He had been waiting for this for days, and now when he didn't want it she took him back?!

No! Not now!

Irvine collapsed behind him.

This isn't the time, Ellone! Please!

Selphie hit the deck.

Squall tried to pull Rinoa around. He was going down, he could feel it. The most he could do was protect her from hitting the ground. He collapsed onto his side, still holding her in his arms. Her head nestled into his bicep.


	35. Laguna Part 5

The worst part about the hard and fast 'no talking' rule was Laguna being forced to push down his desire to hum. He liked to do so while he worked. Sometimes, he would just sing outright. It made working go by that much faster.

Of course, this might not qualify as work. Technically, Laguna thought it was more 'slave labor'. That was why there was a 'no talking' rule in the first place. Along with the harsh hours, terrible food, and lack of pay.

And now, on top of everything, the faeries were back.

Laguna tried not to make a sound as he scratched as his head. Alright faeries, settle down. This is hardly the time for your power right now.

He stood up from the platform he had been screwing into place, rubbing his sore back. He turned and looked out over his two coworkers. Some rather nondescript guy who's clothes were baggy from a long time without proper nutrition. And a flaming haired moomba. The guy was typing in commands into a terminal. The moomba was hanging out over the side of the platform, suspended on a tiny ledge over a fall so high Laguna couldn't see the bottom.

Honestly, he was surprised to see a moomba here. He thought they were all far up north. He felt really bad for the poor thing. He felt bad for all of them actually. The Esthar guard in the corner with the very deadly circular gunblade had them all under his watch.

Laguna had been there for hours already. Though he didn't know how many. It was hard to tell when there was no sunlight or clocks or anything here to mark the passage of time. He only knew it had been quite a while since one of the other guards had ordered Kiros and Ward down to the Lunitic Pandora to work in the crystal caves.

Which left Laguna up here with the guy who's name he couldn't ask and the moomba who couldn't tell him even if he could.

Letting out a soft sigh, Laguna moved over to where the elevator was docked. Fixing the tracking system was on his rather long to-do list of chores. Even as he was approaching it, his stomach started groaning bitterly.

Laguna had to bite his tongue to keep a moan of pain back. His gut had been complaining for a while now and it was only getting worse.

“I'm hungry...” he murmured softly.

Not softly enough.

“YOU! I said no talking!” The Esthar guard growled, leveling his gun at him. “It's only been three days, you wimp! When I was young, I worked all day, all night, without even sleep!”

Oh, Hyne. Not this again...

More hours passed and Laguna still hadn't finished the elevator. He probably could have by now if he wasn't so unfocused from hunger and sleep deprivation. The only thing they did have was water and that was because they needed that steadily to stay alive. A slave workforce was considerably more useless when everyone was dead from dehydration.

Laguna paused in his work to go get a drink. At least that would put _something_ in his stomach. It was a hollow sort of comfort, but one took what one could get.

He paused as he looked towards the door leading down into the Pandora.

“I wonder if Kiros and Ward are doin' okay...” Laguna didn't realize he had voice his thoughts until the guard snapped at him again.

“No talking!”

Laguna jumped in surprise. He honestly hadn't even been trying to speak.

The guard growled, coming forward. “How many times do I have to-”

A cheerful bell dinged from overhead and Laguna's face broke out into a wide smile.

“Oh, sweet! Meal time! Alright, it's time to eat!” He turned quickly, ready to run to the elevator. They got fed at irregular intervals. And the food was terrible. Honestly though, he could probably eat thrustie meat right now and think it a feast fit for a king.

“Uh-huh,” the guard's sharp denial stopped him. “You keep working. That's what you get for your big mouth! That beast over there, you too! No meal for you until your work is done!”

“What?!” Laguna gasped in indignation. The third guy looked at them apologetically but didn't stop going towards the elevator.

He felt bad, but what could he do?

“You can't be serious!” Laguna shook his head at the guard. “I'll be done in two or three hours, but...His job won't get done for days!”

The guard laughed derisively. “Well then, he just won't get fed for a few days. If he wants to eat, he should work faster.”

The injustice of it burned Laguna. But he was powerless right now...

A few hours later, the other guy was back at his post. He smelled like food. Laguna knew he didn't do it on purpose, but it was pure torture having to smell him. He didn't know when he would get a chance to eat again. It seemed so far away now...

But that was nothing compared to the moomba. That poor thing would have to keep working...

“Hey!”

Laguna jumped guiltily before he realized the sharp yell wasn't directed at him.

“Come give me a hand,” a guard said from the doorway, talking to their overseer. He jerked his head down towards the inside of the Pandora. “I can't handle the big guy alone.”

The guard nodded but turned to his prisoners. He pointed at them threateningly.

“Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone. The camera is still watching you.”

Laguna blinked as he ran down into the Pandora. What was going on?

“Psst!”

Laguna turned to see the other guy was holding a single, smuggled piece of bread in his hand. He was trying to surreptitiously pass it to Laguna. Smiling at him thankfully, Laguna took it and quickly stowed it into his pocket.

He nodded his gratitude and the other guy nodded back, a small half smile in place.

Then, instead of eating it, Laguna walked quickly over to the moomba who was still working on the platform on the small ledge.

“Hey, you alright?” He asked under his breath. “You look exhausted. Here. It's not much, but take it.”

The moomba looked up at him in surprise, then down to the bread Laguna was holding out, hiding it from the camera with his body. The other worker was staring at him from the panel.

The moomba reached out and took hold of the bread. Then quickly stuffed it into his mouth. He chewed and swallowed fast. The poor guy was probably starving. Laguna never got to see him eat because they didn't let him do so with the humans. Like he was a beast or something.

“Do they feed you alright?” Laguna asked, worried. “I bet not. How are you holding up? Do you have a fever? Or are you just scared of heights?”

The moomba made a soft growling/purring sound.

Laguna tilted his head. “Your stomach's goin' 'grr'?”

The other worker started laughing. “That's funny.”

“Huh?”

“I think that thing's 'grr' sound means 'thank you'. At least, he always makes that sound whenever I would think to say 'thank you'. You know what? You're the first one to care about his well-being. These moombas get worked to death for no reason. They only get half the food and sleep compared to us humans.”

“That's horrible...” Laguna frowned at the poor thing. He was already working again. “You need to get outta here...”

He smiled and struck a pose for him. “You know what? When we get bust outta this place, I'll give you all the food you want! Whatever strikes your fancy. And you'll get to nap all day! How's that?”

The moomba looked at him and made that growling/purr again. Now that Laguna thought about it, it was a sound he had heard a lot in the shumi village.

Smiling at him, a large rumbling echoed around the Pandora. They all wavered in place as an irate, heavily accented voice yelled from above.

“Experiment! Experiment! Let's just do zis! Bah! Zis iz a failure!”

“Sounds like Dr. Odine's up to something again,” the other guy shrugged, looking away from the viewing platform high above their heads.

Laguna shrugged. He had been here for a while but he hadn't yet seen the famous doctor. He had only heard him, yelling from about. Not that he was all that curious. He had more important things to worry about.

As he was turning to get back to work so he wouldn't get in trouble again, the moomba started making soft purring noises, pointing across the platform.

“Huh? What's up?” Laguna asked him, following his paw. “Oh, you need a tool? I'll go get it. Wait right there.”

He walked over to the corner where his tools were laid out. He crouched town, grabbing for the wrench that the moomba would need on the bolts over there.

“Hey!”

Starting, Laguna looked over his shoulder to see that the guard had returned. He was panting, part of his uniform bleeding. He pointed at Laguna. “You over there! Yeah, standing next to the elevator. Go get the guards upstairs! Tell them there's an emergency!”

“Roger that...” Laguna stood and moved to the elevator. He pressed the call button and stood back, crossing his arms. 

An emergency? That guard had gone down there to help with 'the big one', right? Maybe the guys were...up to something? Did they feel the faeries too and decide to use their power to escape? Laguna was certainly considering it.

“Hey! Go now!” The guard turned and ran back down.

“Huh?” Laguna opened his eyes to see the elevator doors had opened. He had been lost in thought and hadn't moved. “Alright, I'm goin'. Oh. I almost forgot. Hey, buddy. Here, catch!”

Turning, he tossed the wrench over to the unprepared moomba. The moomba was just looking up when it smacked into his head. Laguna cried out as the moomba started falling over. Squeaking in distress, he barely caught himself.

Laguna sprinted over, nearly throwing himself over the rail. He grabbed the wrists of the moomba and jerked up quickly. The moomba pulled at the same time and, working together, they pulled him over the rails and onto the safety of the platform.

Letting out sigh of relief, then laughter and looked to the sprawled moomba who was shaking his head, sitting back onto his haunches.

“Geez, what was too close. I'm...so glad...” Laughing slightly hysterically now, Laguna wiped at his face to disguise his relieved tears. “I'm so...so glad!”

The other worker blinked at him in shock. He didn't just care for the moomba, he was crying in relief at his safety? If he hadn't been strong enough to pull him over and the moomba fell, he could have gone right over with him. And the food he had smuggled down had been immediately given out to the little friendly monster thing despite himself not having eaten in days.

“You're such...a nice guy,” he breathed in amazement.

Laguna calmed down, looking over to him. He smiled at the compliment.

“Not many guys like you these days,” he shook his head, still baffled at this man he had been working with for weeks now. “You seem like you'd be a good candidate to be our leader.”

“Huh? What leader?” Laguna blinked.

“That's right,” the other guy pressed forward. He looked around before crouching and whispering conspiratorially to him. “Listen, a lot of us are rather...dissatisfied with the way Adel's been ruling Esthar. We may be disorganized now, but someday we're going to gather our forces and remove Adel from her bloody throne.

“We're overthrowing the ruler of a country. A sorceress, far beyond our powers. A handful of disorganized rebels with a half-baked plan would never work. We're waiting for the right time. For the right guy to lead us. There' s a lot of us that are specialists working really close to her, too. It's easy to research ways to fight Adel. All the intel in the world won't be any good without a leader though. We've been looking for someone like you. Someone who's strong and righteous...”

“Wha-me?” Laguna pointed at himself in surprise.

“Hey!”

The three of them turned to see the guard back in the door. He was glaring at Laguna.

“Did you go tell them? What are you three doing? You're up to no good again, aren'y ya?”

Charging forward, the guard leveled his gun at them.

“Stop!” Laguna jumped to his feet.

The guard pulled on the trigger.

Laguna's hand snapped around his wrist, forcing his arm up. The shotgun blasted towards the ceiling. The moomba and other guy flinched, falling to their knees.

The guard and Laguna grappled for a long moment. Laguna was starving, but adrenaline was pumping hot in his blood. He only needed to remind himself of the abuse heaped on the moomba for some extra anger powered energy to put more strength into his muscles.

The faeries probably still did most of the work.

Laguna twisted the guard's arms out, he cried in pain. The shotgun dropped to the ground. Laguna kicked out hitting the guard's gut. Choking and sputtering, Laguna took that moment to push him over the edge of the platform and down the incredibly long fall.

Breathing hard, feeling dizzy now from the hunger/adrenaline combo, Laguna sighed.

“Darn it. I did it again. Well, too bad!” He turned with a grin and pointed to the elevator. “You two just get on and go. I've gotta get my friends.”

The guy nodded and he and the moomba moved to the elevator. They both walked inside and Laguna watched them ride up with a smile. At least the two of them were safe. Now he had to figure out how to save Kiros and Ward completely unarmed.

He didn't need to worry about it. Even as he was turning, the two of them ran up from the Lunatic Pandora. Ward was carrying his harpoon. Kiros had one of his katar in his hand, the other still on his belt, and Laguna's machine gun in his other hand.

“Kiros! Ward! Great timing!” He beamed.

“Here!” Kiros tossed him the gun and Laguna snatched it from the air, grinning. “Let's hurry up and-”

“Hey!” The three of them turned at the guards coming up the stairs. They had their shotguns leveled at their heads and were growling. “Stop talking and get walking.”

“Or should I say...bad timing?” Kiros corrected.

“Eh, it's not so bad,” Laguna shrugged. “Two is better than one, and four is better than two, right?”

Kiros frowned, struggling to follow that math. He could even see the guards puzzling over that one, trying to figure out what he was talking about. Okay, one made sense. When did it become two? And...

“So who's the fourth one?” Kiros asked for them, crossing his arms in worry. “Are you...starting to hallucinate? When was the last time you ate?”

“Yeah...I can see it now!” Laguna dropped to his knees, reaching out with a dopey smile for absolutely nothing. “Oh, my sweet Elle...You make your uncle so happy...”

“Uh, Laguna...?” Kiros leaned over him as the guards came in slowly.

The last guy who lost it had ended up biting a guard's ear off. They weren't willing to risk the same fate and were moving in carefully. Putting their guard up against crazy. But letting it down against a strategic attack.

As one started around him, Laguna dropped his gun and yanked on the trigger backwards. The barrage of bullets, coated in the faeries' ice magic, exploded through his uniform. The kind not destined to absorb magical attacks.

Ward and Kiros reacted much quicker than the second guard.

Kiros slammed his fist into the guards chest. “Water!” The spell poured into his helmet as Ward picked him up then threw him over the edge. The first guard dropped, ice spearing his body, as Laguna got back to his feet.

“Ja-a-a-a-il break!” He yelled loud and proud, laughing. “Yes! Thank Hyne for faeries!”

The three of them turned and ran to the elevator. The guy who had escaped had sent it back down again, just in case Laguna needed it quickly. The three friends hopped on board and road it up. They were trying not to celebrate prematurely, but it was a hard thing to avoid.

However, when they snuck into the control room, they did so silently. Dr. Odine, or what Laguna assumed was Dr. Odine – what the hell was he wearing around his neck? – was standing beside two of his assistants. They were talking to themselves. Laguna only caught pieces of the conversation.

“...vat iz...

“Luna...weep...”

“...moon...listen...”

What the heck were they talking about? That Dr. Odine was a strange one..

Laguna stood by the door with the other two, eavesdropping without shame.

The assistant on the left was shaking head. “To use the Lunatic Pandora as a weapon...You would need a system to move it. Are you researching that now?”

“But ov course!”

“How do you come up with such bold ideas? I could never come up with such brilliant plans.”

“My genius knows no bounds.” Dr. Odine was rather...arrogant.

“Lunar base was built in space to observe the moon,” the second assistant said, leaning on his hand as he typed on the counsel with the other. “So much money was spent on building it. Now why couldn't they give some of that money to this lab?”

“Zat iz ze way it iz!” Dr. Odine grumbled unhappily. “Accept it!”

The first assistant frowned. “I've heard rumors that little girls are being abducted for the sorceress research. I have a daughter myself. It disturbs me to hear such a story. How do you think their parents feel, Dr. Odine?”

Laguna's eyes widened. Yes! That was what he wanted to know.

Dr. Odine sniffed primly. “They will be proud to help ze research, ov course. Zat iz all zat matters.”

Laguna nodded to his friends as the assistants started arguing about a magazine. He had new lead on Ellone now. This was turning out better than he could have expected.

The three of them sprinted from the lab. As the doors slid shut silently behind them, they raced down towards the end of the walkway. Down at the bottom of the stairs, the scruffy guy and the moomba were standing behind a pillar. The guy broke out into a wide grin as they approached.

“You made it!” He cried happily, stepping out with the moomba.

“Hey!” Laguna waved at them. “You waited for me?”

The moomba growled softly.

“Thanks, buddy,” Laguna smiled at him.

The moomba nodded before turning and running off.

“Stay on your toes!” Laguna yelled after him. “Don't get caught again...Oh, darn it! I promised him a meal and a nap when we got out...”

Oh well. Laguna supposed he would be better off running free. 

“Laguna!” Kiros tugged on his sleeve.

Laguna turned quickly and started to see one of Dr. Odine's assistants coming towards them. His hand twitched on his machine gun but the scruffy guy stopped him.

“Hey, it's okay. He's also a resistance member. He's Dr. Odine's first assistant. All the hot info about the lab comes from him.”

“Oh...” Laguna blinked as the assistant stepped in front of them.

He nodded to his companion. “Is he a new member? Welcome to our group.”

Laguna shrugged. He didn't remember joining, but oh well.

Kiros and Ward shared a look behind his back.

“You three made quite a bit of noise down there. This is probably a good time for you to leave the facility while Dr. Odine rages at the guards. He's already grumpy today as it is.”

“Did something happen to the doctor?” the scruffy guy asked. “Did Adel stop funding his lab or something?”

“No, nothing like that. It's just...He's done it again. He's found a new toy he prefers over a big one like the Lunatic Pandora, but Adel won't let him play with her.”

“Her?”

“Yeah, some girl child named Ellone. I hear she's got-”

“Ellone!?” Laguna cried, stepping forward with Kiros and Ward. “You said 'Ellone'?”

“Why? You know her?”

“Know her?” Kiros laughed sardonically. “She's really the only reason why we're here.”

Ward nodded quickly.

“Where is she?” Laguna grabbed the assistant by the shoulders desperately. “Where's Ellone?”

“I don't know. I've been on the Pandora for months. Dr. Odine would know her whereabouts though. He's the one who had her confined.”

“So I just have to get Dr. Odine, right?” Laguna looked back at his friends. They nodded and he turned with determination in his eyes “We're going back. Thanks for all your help. You better go some place safe now. Adios!”

Laguna started running, Kiros and Ward on his heels.

“Wait a second!” The resistance guy called out, stopping him. “I still owe you.”

Laguna turned back and the assistance was smiling at him.

“If you're looking for that girl, Ellone, you'll eventually need help. As far as Esthar is concerned, she's property of Adel. Taking on a sorceress with just the three of you will be difficult. No, impossible. Why not let us help you? We can provide you with all the information you'll need.”

“It's not a bad idea,” Kiros told Laguna softly. “We don't know anything about Esthar. I never want to go through all this again. I'm sure Ward feels the same way.”

Laguna looked between his friends. They looked just as haggard as he probably did. He didn't want to put them through this again either. And if the resistance wanted to help...

Well, Adel was a tyrant anyway.

“Okay, fine,” Laguna nodded to the resistance members. “We'll accept your help. In return, we'll help you anti-'Azel' movement or whatever.”

Kiros groaned as Ward face-palmed.

“It's _Adel_ ,” he translated for the silent Ward. “Start listening more closely 'cause it's getting embarrassing. That's what Ward is saying. Can't you see it in his eyes?”

“Yeah, sure! I always see it,” Laguna assured him brightly. They all knew he was lying. “But...who cares!? I speak with passion, from the heart! That's what matters most!”

“Yeah...” the resistance guy nodded, smiling gently. “That's right! It all sounds crazy, but...I like you! I really do. And I want you to be our leader. Seriously.”

Laguna beamed at him, giving him a thumbs up. “Just leave it to me! Once we find Ellone, I'll take you up on that offer. Now if you'll excuse me, I need pay a little visit to Odine. You guys wait right there!”

Oh, darn it. He did it again! Why didn't he ever think things through before he answered? This was literally not something he should ever decide on a whim. 

Oh, well... Everything had worked out well to this point. He was sure that they would end up just fine. He had really good luck.

Kiros and Ward followed him back into the lab. He expected Dr. Odine to be right at the counsel, but the older man wasn't. Laguna frowned, looking around.

“Where did he go?”

“Below?” Kiros suggested.

Laguna nodded and ran to the elevator. They had to wait for it to come back up, but it was a short trip, equally long on the way back down.

They spotted him the moment the doors opened. He was at the computer terminal that the other guy had been working on. He was grumbling as he typed something out, that weird saucer around his neck wobbling as he did so.

“Dr. Odine!” Laguna yelled, running out. “Where's Ellone?!”

The guard standing in the doorway jumped. He looked at them in shock.

“Can't believe you guys came back-”

Laguna lifted his machine gun. It took only one shot to knock the guard back, pinning him to the wall with an ice spear through his chest. The faeries were still with him.

“You fools!” Another ran inside.

“Water!” Kiros threw out his hand. The puddle appeared in the floor. The guard stepped into it, slipped, and fell right over the edge.

Dr. Odine watched the whole thing with wide eyes. Laguna stalked towards him slowly.

“Vat are you saying?!” he said, his eyes darting erratically. “I do not know any...Ellone.”

Laguna pointed his machine gun.

“Okay! I vas lying! Ellone...I know Ellone!”

Ducking quickly under Laguna's arm, he ran past the three of them. He was short, but he moved quickly with his stunted, hurried steps. He ran into the elevator.

“Hey! Wait! Where's Ellone?!”

Laguna and the boys followed him into the elevator right before it closed.

“Answer me!”

The elevator jerked as it started up.

Odine turned to them, fluttering his long, billowing sleeves out as he worked to the front. He sent Laguna a dark look.

“And who are you?”

“Don't change the subject.” Laguna was this close. This man was the only one standing between him and Ellone and he was getting desperate.

The elevator came to a halt and Odine nearly dropped out of the door. Laguna, prepared for him to start running away, was already sprinting after him. Odine was fast for an old scientist. He was rushing out the door, forcing Laguna to run after him.

“Where did you take her?!” Laguna demanded to know as Kiros and Ward came out behind him.

Laguna jumped forward, grabbing Odine's saucer neck piece. “Tell me where!”

Odine struggled against him for a long moment. Kiros stepped up next to him, looking out to find the resistance members. He spotted both of them behind a bush. He deliberately stepped in Odine's line of sight for that direction so he didn't spot them.

“In O-lab!” He finally yelled unhappily. “Ellone iz there!”

Laguna released him and Odine scrambled to run back inside the workshop. As he disappeared, his assistant stood up and came over to them. 

“He means Odine's Laboratory. It's in the city proper. It takes a little navigating to get there.”

As the assistant explained the directions, the other resistance guy came around with a car. He opened the door and stood up from the inside as the assistant finished.

“Get all that?” The assistant asked kindly.

“I see...” Laguna nodded, touching his chin. “I didn't understand a word. Kiros. It's your show from here!”

Laguna ran off towards the car as Kiros rolled his eyes.

“Is he always like that?” The assistant asked.

“Regretting your decision to make him a leader candidate?” Kiros asked calmly.

“Actually no. I can appreciate a man who can delegate duties based on what he can't do. And, honestly, when I compare him to the current choice...”

“Fair point.” Kiros nodded to him as he and Ward followed him into the car.

“I'll join you as soon as I can,” the assistant said as the other guy got behind the wheel. “Until then, good luck. Please be careful.”

Laguna nodded to him as they pulled away.

He was this close...

***

“This is the place, right?” Laguna asked, looking around the room they had walked into. There was a weird podium/seat thing in the center and a large locked double door at the far end. “Man, this whole city is weird. Huh?”

He turned back and was surprised to see only Kiros and Ward. “Hey, where's the other guy?”

“I think he must be lookin' for us,” Kiros peered over his shoulder.

Ward raised his eyebrow, making a face.

“Yeah. You wouldn't usually jump out of a moving car.”

“Whoa, it just kinda sped off,” Laguna looked out the glass front doors. “I hope he's alright. I think we might have surprised him.”

“I think we have bigger problems to worry about.”

Laguna turned and followed Kiros's line of sight. Two guards were running down a pink tube on the ceiling. They jumped down out of the hole, charging for them.

“Get rid of 'em!” Laguna aimed his gun. He let off three quick shots and took out one guard.

Ward threw his harpoon. It rocked as it slammed into the man and, instead of slipping off as weapons usually did, it sank down through him. Laguna didn't know what magic the faeries gave him, but apparently it was powerful.

“Okay...” Laguna ran forward.

He stepped on the weird platform thing and it jumped at his touch. He started, falling back a step. It settled back down and Laguna frowned.

“What the? So many unusual gadgets here. Hm...”

Curious, he took a seat onto it. Once again, it jumped to life, starting to rise. Kiros and Ward almost weren't fast enough to sit next to him before the platform thing began rising. It carried them up into the tube, then down the length of it into the building.

It stopped outside another pair of double doors. These weren't locked though. They opened easily when Laguna stepped up to it. The swish caught the attention of the guard at the control panel. He jumped, looking over to them.

“Intruders!”

Kiros ran forward. Before he could hit an alarm button, Kiros stabbed his katar into his chest. Slicing out, the guard dropped dead.

Laguna was already running to the large window on the far side of the room. He pressed his hands to the glass, gasping as he looked down.

“Ellone! Ellone!! ELLONE!!!”

The tiny little girl in a tattered blue dress crying alone in the room below didn't move. She just continued sobbing into her hands. Laguna slammed his fist onto the glass but it didn't even thud that loud on this side of the glass.

“Darn! She can't hear me,” he stepped back, looking around.

His eyes hit the console. He ran over to it, slamming his hands down onto the buttons randomly. He didn't really understand Estharian technology.

A large 'error' displayed across the screen. Laguna kept smacking at the board.

“Um...Do you know what you're doing?” Kiros asked.

Laguna bit his lip and just kept beating at the buttons until, finally, a small message across the screen announced the door had been unlocked.

Laguna froze then. For just a second. Then he turned and sprinted back out of the room. Kiros and Ward almost didn't keep up. They sat back onto the platform and rode it back down.

The resistance guy had made it back inside by then. He watched them land, standing beside the double doors that led to the confinement room.

Laguna ignored him and his friends and ran towards those doors. They opened as he approached and the soft sobs of his sweet Elle washed over him.

“Ellone!”

She jumped as he ran inside. “Uncle Laguna!”

Tear tracks stained her cheeks as she stood up. Her pretty eyes were wide with disbelief as he slid to a halt in front of her. His hands were shaking as he took hold of her. Jerking her to him, he held her tiny body tightly, tears of his own building in his eyes.

“See?” he said gently, his voice breaking. “I told ya I'd come save you...Sorry I'm a little late...But...”


	36. Dr. Odine

Squall knew even as he was opening his eyes that he was the last one to return from the dream world. Irvine and Quistis were standing over him. The former grinned as he focused on their faces.

“Back from our adventure, Squall?” He asked, smiling.

Squall looked away from him, down at Rinoa. She remained right where the two of them landed. No one had bothered to move her. It almost looked like she was asleep.

Right there in the crook of his elbow, head resting on his arm. They looked like lovers having fallen asleep in each others' arms.

Being careful not to jostle her overly much, Squall got to his feet. He pulled her up gently onto his back, happy to be awake again. Even happier that nothing bad had happened. 

When he caught up with Ellone, he was going to have to talk to her about when the proper time to do this was. If she did that at the wrong time, he might find himself eaten by a monster.

“Sis sure knows how to get our attention,” Zell laughed.

“Hey,” Edea pointed to the large tunnel on their left. “There's something coming.”

Squall looked over. There were two lights coming towards them from the tunnel. Squall recognized that it was a vehicle before it pulled to a stop in front of him. The blue doors opened and a man in a long, flowing robe stood from within.

He looked directly at Matron.

“Sorceress Edea?” He asked.

“Yes,” she said surprised. “How did you know?”

“We spotted you coming through the barrier. Why have you come?”

She nodded. “We've come to see Dr. Odine.”

“Please explain what this visit is regarding.”

“Of course-”

“I want to see Ellone,” Squall interrupted. He didn't care that it was rude. “Where is she?”

The Esthar guy blinked. “Ellone?”

“Squall, calm down,” Edea touched his shoulder gently. “Trust me. I haven't forgotten Rinoa. Let me handle this.”

He hesitated then nodded reluctantly. Edea spoke quickly as she explained why she was here. It still wasn't fast enough for Squall's liking.

When she finished, the man nodded.

“Very well, I understand. Please, come with me. I'll take you to Presidential Residence. Dr. Odine will be there.”

Squall moved first. Setting Rinoa down gently into a window seat, he sat beside her. Only once she was secure did the others follow him in. The Estharian was the last one in. The door shut behind him and he nodded to the driver who took off back down the tunnel.

It was a short tunnel and they came out onto one of the blue roads over the city. The car was fast and the windows offered a marvelous view of the city. Selphie couldn't get enough. She was practically in Irvine's lap, staring out at everything. He didn't really seem to mind.

It was quite a distance to the palace, but there was almost no traffic here and the car sped along much faster than Squall would have expected from a personal vehicle. They were only in the car for a few minutes when the man announced-

“We'll be arriving at the Presidential Palace shortly.”

“I hope Dr. Odine will be able to help me,” Edea said, letting out a nervous breath.

They came around one of the tall buildings and they got their first glimpse of the enormous Presidential Palace. They didn't recognize it at first. It was such a massive, glorious building that it didn't really register as a building at all at first. It looked like the entirety of the town of Balamb could fit inside with room to spare for Dollet. Zell whistled, impressed, as the car aimed towards the structure.

“Esthar's president must be a real big shot,” Irvine said in awe.

The car stopped in front of the palace and the Estharian got out. He waited for them to follow him then led the way inside. The circular lift inside Squall recognized from the past trip with Laguna. He and the others circled around it then sat and rode it to the top. There, the Estharian led them to a small meeting room for guests where one of Dr. Odine's assistants was waiting for them.

He asked for Edea to explain again what she wanted. She told him as Squall moved over to the sofa in the room. He laid Rinoa gently down on the cushions and adjusted her so she looked comfortable. He really hoped she was.

When Edea finished, Squall stood and looked over to her. The assistance was nodding.

“I seek the doctor's help,” Edea summarized, pleading with him. “I wish to be free of Sorceress Ultimecia's control. I wish to protect the world.”

“Zat will be easy.”

Odine's voice hadn't changed even slightly in the intervening years since the beginning of the resistance to now. Squall and the others looked to the side door leading to a different room to find Dr. Odine walking out with a small smirk on his face.

There was more gray in his hair, more wrinkles on his face. He was still wearing that ridiculous neck ornament thing. How had no one told him how stupid it looked?

“We just exorcise the sorceress,” he shrugged like it was nothing. “There iz nothing Odine cannot do.”

Edea smiled and nodded to him. “I leave everything in your hands.”

“You said you wished to see Ellone?” The Estharian asked Squall, turning attention to him.

He nodded. “Where is she? I have to bring Rinoa to her.”

The assistant looked back to the doctor who merely gazed at Squall. Like he might be laughing inside at the request.

Stepped up to Odine, Squall's voice was hard as he demanded. “We need to see Ellone, now.”

Odine disliked him instantly. That look in his eyes. So similar to...

“So you will take Odine hostage? You are a fool.”

“I don't care,” Squall growled, hating this man. He had seen what he head done to his Sis as a little girl, and now he stood between them. Squall would happily dismantle this palace if it meant he got to see Sis. “Just take me to Ellone.”

Odine and Squall stared each other down. Finally, without looking away, the doctor said to the aid.

“Do as he says. I give ze permission. Alert the president to zeir arrival.”

“Very well,” the aid nodded.

“But under one condition.” Odine walked past Squall to where Rinoa was laying. “You must let me observer this girl.”

Squall growled. He didn't like that dissecting look in his eyes. Like she was a bug to be studied under a microscope.

“Well?” The aid looked at Squall. “We would need time to prepare before we take you to Ellone. I assure you, the girl will be perfectly safe with us. I will treat her with the utmost care and ensure her transport myself.”

Squall said nothing. He didn't want to leave her.

“Accept the offer, Squall,” Edea told him softly but firmly in her best mother voice. “I know how you feel, but this is for the best.”

Squall growled and lowered a finger towards the doctor. He growled warningly, the air freezing around him, “You better not do anything to Rinoa.”

Odine stared at him. The moisture in the air turned to snow around him, alerting Odine to the GF power he must have. It must have been a very strong one.

“We'll take care of her,” the aid promised. “There's nothing to worry about.”

Somehow, that wasn't very comforting.

“Please, head for Lunar Gate. It is east of the city, just past the lake. I'll send a message ahead alerting them of your arrival and giving them permission for you to leave. You may rent a car at any of the city exits if you wish.”

Squall gave Rinoa one last look as he was leaving. Odine was already staring at her, mumbling something to himself. It hurt Squall to leave her behind.

He swore if there was a hair out of place when he saw her again, he was going to kill Dr. Odine with his bare hands.

***

The Lunar Gate was a building out in the middle of an empty field. Squall frowned at the sight of it stretching out into the sky. Three long tubes, curved at the end connecting to a large building. He didn't quite understand what he was looking at. As he stepped out of the rented car, he and the others frowned at the shape of the building then to each other.

“Let's go,” Squall said before they could start discussing it.

Inside the building, there was a young woman in uniform holding up a portable holoscreen with his face on it from an image taken from one of the palace cameras. It probably would have been his name instead, but no one had asked it. Squall walked up to her and she smiled at him politely.

“Greetings, sir. You are the one preparing to leave?”

“Yes, that's me.”

“May I have your name, please?”

“Commander Squall Leonhart of Balamb Garden.”

“Oh, welcome, commander,” she beamed, lowering her holoscreen. “I wasn't told you were high ranking personnel. If I had known, I would have met you outside.”

“It's fine,” Squall waved the words away. He hadn't even meant to give her his full title. He was just in the habit of introducing himself that way lately.

“This way, please,” she said, indicating in front of herself. “If you need anything, commander, please let me know. I'll do my best to accommodate you.”

Squall fell into step behind her as she came around one of the large barriers separating the isles in the building. He was looking ahead of her, trying to see where he was going when a loud barking caught his attention.

He turned as the doorman cried out in surprise. Squall stepped back past the others as Angelo came running down the isle. The dog was coming towards him fast. Squall kneeled down as the fluffy animal stopped in front of him.

Whining, the dog looked up at him sadly.

Squall gave him a very similar look as he reached out and stroked his head. Angelo's fur was soft and Squall had never known that before because the dog had never let him pet him before. The two of them had been at odds since they had met.

But Angelo missed Rinoa as much as he did.

“How did he get here?” Quistis asked in surprise.

“He must have followed us from Garden,” Irvine breathed. “What a loyal little guy.”

It'll be okay, Squall told him silently. I'll take care of her. Stay here.

He stood and walked away. Angelo watched him go, planting his butt onto the ground. Squall stepped back in front of the woman. “Lead the way please.”

“Um, pets aren't supposed to-”

“He's fine. Lead the way.”

He must have accidentally sounded threatening because the woman paled slightly. He should probably feel bad, but he didn't at this moment. He didn't want to argue about the dog right now. The dog was well trained and fine where he was.

“Of course, sir. I apologize.” Turning quickly, she began walking away.

Squall followed after her down a hall and to a room with a large yellow tube against the wall. What was with Esthar and tubes? This one had a blue steel door and steps leading up into it. Standing beside it, a scientist in a long white coat was waiting. He smiled at them.

“Are you the ones taking off?”

Guess so. “Yes.”

“Great. Come on in. Let me give you the run down. Distance-wise, it's pretty far, but you'll be there in no time. We've gotten the ETA down to about an hour. A little less if the wind favors us. You'll be there by the time you wake up.”

“Where are we going?” Squall asked, his curiosity finally overcoming his determination.

The scientist smiled and pointed up. Squall frowned and followed his finger. His eyes came back as the man beamed.

“Let me give you a quick explanation of the whole process. It's very easy, we do all of the work. First, we need you to enter the capsule inside this pipe. Once in there, you'll undergo the 'cold sleep' process. Once this process is complete, which should only take a few seconds, your capsule will be automatically loaded into the booster. We'll keep an eye on your vital signs to make sure everything is going fine, but we haven't had a problem in fifteen years. After that, launch. The cold sleep wears off on its own after about an hour and a half, but you'll be woken by the reversal process once you arrive. That's about it in a nutshell. I won't say there isn't risk involved, but people take this trip all the time with minimal side effects or accidents. What do you say? Are you still ready?”

Space.

They were launching them into space.

Squall's jaw tightened and he nodded. “Let's do it.”

The scientist nodded. “Very well. We have enough space for three people in the launcher. The girl in blue has already undergone cold sleep, though I believe she was already in stasis when it was started. She'll be fine though. She's been loaded in. I assume you'll be going yourself. That leaves one more.”

“In the meantime,” Edea spoke up, worried. “Something must be done to suppress my powers.”

“It'd be too dangerous to leave Matron alone,” Quistis agreed. “She has to be watched. For everyone's safety, until Dr. Odine can help her.”

“Then let me be her escort!” Zell said quickly, beseeching Squall with his eyes. “C'mon, commander. What do you say? I can do it.”

Squall blinked at him, tilting his head slightly. Trust Zell? As squad leader? That would mean trusting him as the one to act as the official voice in this foreign city. To watch over Matron and be both her protector from everyone and the protector of everyone from her.

“Are you sure you can handle it?” Squall asked, his voice completely neutral.

“What? You think I can't!?” Zell asked loudly, brandishing his fists. “Why? Because I'm a chicken-wuss?! Let me prove it to you! I'm a SeeD, just like you are. No, I'm not as good as you, but I earned that title just the same!”

“I, too, would prefer Zell by my side,” Edea said calmly, smiling at her blonde boy. “It would give me a great sense of security.”

“I have no objection to Zell leading the security detail,” Quistis told him, vouching for him.

“Me, either!” Selphie beamed, raising her hand.

“That's a decision by vote, Squall,” Irvine grinned at him.

Squall continued looking at Zell. He saw the determination. The dedication. The weight of what he was volunteering for already weighing on him. He understood and he wanted, more than anything, the chance to prove his leadership skills to Squall.

Finally, he was growing up.

Squall nodded. “Okay. I'll leave the ground in your hands.”

“OH-H-H-H YEAH!” Throwing his fist in the air, Zell beamed at Edea. “I'll do whatever it takes to watch over you. Don't worry about a thing! Squall, I got this totally under control.”

Don't forget what she is. She's a sorceress. She's dangerous just by virtue of being what she is. Let down your guard and it could be your life.

He looked at the last three of his friends. He had to pick someone to come with him now. One that he trusted and one he knew had his back. One that he could count on to remain calm and cool no matter the situation. Even one as unfamiliar as outer space.

“Alright. Irvine, Selphie, you two stay with Zell on guard detail. Quistis, you're with me.”

“Yes, commander,” she nodded, smiling at him. She knew him very well. She knew what he was telling her without saying a word.

“Okay then,” the scientist said over them, “those who are going, get in. One person per pod, please”

Quistis moved first, walking over to the tube. The capsule opened automatically as she approached, the door lifting up. There was a a tightly enclosed space within, designed to hold a person in place while they were unconscious. Quistis turned and placed her back against the soft material. The door shut over her and the pod shot up the tube.

The second one came up from underground. Squall stepped up. He turned at the last moment and looked back at the others. They nodded to him. He took a breath and stepped into the capsule. He turned, placing his back against the padding.

The door fell over him, pinning him in place between the layers like he was being trapped between the foam of a mattress. All but the window over his face. He could see his friends and Matron waving at him. A small beeping started in the capsule as he shot up the tube.

He didn't remember what happened after that.

***

“All capsules are in place,” the male on the left of the control panel said, typing away. “Conditions inside the capsules are stable. All bodies are secured.”

“Boosters on standby,” the woman in the middle said, going over the levels on her screen. “Fuel at maximum. All systems are ready for launch.”

The third man on the left was doing quick math on his computer. “Launch error correction: plus two. Orbital correction: minus one. Corrections complete.”

The overseer nodded his head. “Final check phase.”

“Clear.”

“Clear.”

“Clear.”

“All right. Launch!”

Like a bullet from a gun, the three capsules burst forth out of the long tubes along the Lunar Gate. So fast and hot they left mirage lines in the air. It almost looked they were aimed at the moon.

On the ground, Zell could see the three pods shooting through the air from the high windows inside the lobby of the Lunar Gate. He let out a long breath and genuinely, seriously, hoped that Ellone could help Rinoa. For Squall's sake.

“Man, I hope everything goes well,” he said, concerned.

“I think they're in good hands,” Irvine assured him.

“They'll be fine!” Selphie laughed, all positivity and smiles.

“Let's pray for their safe return,” Edea smiled at her three remaining children. “Shall we go? Dr. Odine wants us at some place called the Sorceress Memorial to start the process of extracting my powers.”

Angelo started howling loudly.

Jumping in surprise, Zell turned quickly to see Rinoa's dog sprinting out the door.

“Hey! Come back!” Selphie yelled at him. This was where Rinoa was going to be returning to when they came down from space.

“What's up with him?” Irvine frowned.

Zell was shrugging as the building, the very ground, started shaking violently under them. Almost as if Irvine had accidentally cast a quake spell. They all stumbled as people around them fell.

“What the-? What was that?! Let's go outside!”

Zell led the way, sprinting out of the Lunar Gate. The others were right behind him. Zell skidded to a halt though almost as soon as he stepped onto the asphalt. His eyes went wide as he spotted what was shaking the very earth, what Angelo was growling at across the parking lot.

It was enormous. It speared so high into the sky that it actually blended into the blue of the atmosphere. It somehow floated in defiance of the enormous weight it must have. It moved slowly along the ground though. A giant wheel spun hypnotically at the base. On the side, emblazoned against the strange stone, was the official seal of Esthar. But judging by everyone's reaction around him, Zell didn't think they knew what it was.

The worst part though was that it was so far away that it was just crossing the far barrier and Zell could still see all those details. It was so enormous that Zell could plainly see everything about it. Like it was right in front of him. It filled him with chills.

“The hell is that?! It's humongous!” He yelled, stepping back slightly. Squall was gone for thirty seconds and Zell already felt like he was losing control.

“Um, hey,” Selphie frowned, “is is just me, or is the city in that direction?”

“It's flying over the city?” Irvine asked.

“Dr. Odine!” Selphie gasped.

“He might be in danger,” Irvine nodded, agreeing.

“Zell, we'd better head for the city at once,” Edea said urgently. “To protect Dr. Odine and try to find out what's going on.”

“Alright,” Zell nodded, pointing to the car. “Come on. I'll drive.”

“I remember how to get to O-Lab,” Selphie beamed. “Kiros led the way when we went there in the dream. I got this. Don't worry about a thing.”

***

O-Lab was still where it had been almost twenty years ago. Though Selphie had taken a few wrong turns because the roads themselves had changed, she still got them there faster than Zell would have just wondering around aimlessly.

The four of them rushed inside, sparing only one glance backwards to where the enormous monolith was starting to cross over the city.

Just in front of the door, one of the doctor's assistants was waiting. He looked surprised to see Edea here and not at the Memorial she had been ordered to go to.

“Sorceress Edea? Are you here to see the doctor?”

“Yes, please. It's rather urgent,” Edea said, wringing her hands slightly.

The assistant nodded, agreeing. “Dr. Odine is in a very good mood right now. He hasn't been this cheerful in quite a while. Come on in.”

The assistant took them to the lift. Then through the doors into Odine's lab. The old, short scientist was yelling at his other assistant as they came inside. Without anger. He was doing it like he was having the time of his life.

“Why iz the Lunatic Pandora here now? Who iz moving zat thing?!”

“Galbadians, sir,” the assistant said, looking up from his portable holoscreen. “Apparently, they salvaged it. We must sound the alert in the city now.”

“It will not attack us,” Odine assured him, looking away with a smirk. “This city iz not ze target.”

“I hope so...I hope you're right...”

“Tears' Point though...Hmm...”

Odine's eyes focused past his thoughts onto the SeeDs entering his lab. He barely glanced at Edea, but he smiled just a bit late. Just a bit fake.

“So, we meet again. This iz an exciting day.”

“What's so exciting about this?!” Zell asked, shocked. “Galbadia is being crazy again! There's a giant... _thing_ out there!”

“Lunatic Pandora.”

“Thank you for naming it for me. That's hardly the point! It's literally making earthquakes right now. And if I know the Galbadian army like do I know the Galbadian army, there to is literally nothing good about that thing.”

Odine hummed thoughtfully, stroking his chin. “It has been a long time since I last saw ze Lunatic Pandora. It was supposed to be have been buried for good.”

“That Lunatic...whatever! That big thing?! What the hell is that? What the hell is going on?!”

“Oh!” Odine smiled at him. “You vant to hear my story? Zat iz nice. I would be happy to tell you. I've been investigating ze Pandora since it was excavated out of the ground in Centra. It was broken though, old and partially destroyed. So we serviced it...”

Zell growled in annoyance. This old man talked so much slower when he was explaining.

“And investigated its purpose-”

“I don't care about that!” Zell snapped.

Odine frowned at him. “Vat do you vant from me?”

“What's going to happen? What do we do?”

“You? Vat does this have to do viz you?”

“The Galbadians have been our problem for a long time. Just tell us how take it down.”

“Zat iz what I'm about to-”

“Hey, old man! The enemy's comin', right? There's no time for you to slowly meander your way through this discussion. We're the best SeeDs in Balamb Garden and there's nothing we can't do. So we'll take care of this problem. Just tell us how to do it. And make it short.”

“Short, eh? Are you sure about zat? Zat iz too bad. You are not wrong, zough. Zis could be very unfortunate. You vant to go inside to stop it? Zen step zis vay.”

Odine stepped back to the side of the room. He gestured to his assistant who clicked a few buttons on the console. A blue holoscreen appeared above the floor showing a map of the Esthar continent. A few dots blinked, showing important locations.

“Zis is a map of the Esthar region,” Odine said, sweeping out his arm. “Norz iz up zere, Souz iz zis vay. Pandora's current location is here.”

The large monolith appeared over the map just to the west of the city.

“Judging based on anticipated destination, I am confident on saying zat zis is the Pandora's expected course.” A yellow arrow appeared, sweeping east. “Zoom in map.”

The holoscreen obeyed immediately. Now it showed a 3D map of the city. It looked almost like a spider with short legs and a very large abdomen.

“Ze city has one outer skyvay and two main inner skyvays. All of zem leading to ze palace. Lunatic Pandora will be heading east, from ze vacinity of zis lab here towards ze shopping mall zere. Ze estimated time it will take to cross the city is approximated at twenty minutes. Boarding ze Lunatic Pandora iz possible at ze following three contact points at ze highest points in the city.”

The Pandora on the map moved forward, nearly halfway across the city. It stopped there and a closeup image of that part of the city appeared near the top of the holoscreen.  
“Ze first contact point iz at ze center of the city. It will arrive zere five-to-eight minutes after it enters ze city. Ze second contact point iz a little harder to distinguish. Ve believe it iz where the two skyvays cross near the edge here.”

The Pandora moved forward a bit, stopping again as another image appeared. 

“Ve believe it will arrive zere ten-to-fifteen minutes after it enters ze city. Ze third contact point is just north of ze shopping mall. It will arrive zere seventeen minutes after it enters ze city.”

The Pandora moved one last time, stopping at the very edge of the city. 

“End of debriefing,” Odine said, banishing the map. He looked over to Zell. “Vat do you zink? It iz only possible at zese zree points. If you miss it, you von't get another chance. Too difficult for you?”

“Psh, please,” Zell gave him a look as Selphie chuckled. “We're SeeDs. There's no job too tough for us, old man. If you'll excuse me, you just yapped away a lot of our time. Matron, stay here with the good doctor. We got this covered.”

“I vant to talk some more,” Dr. Odine grumbled.

Zell wasn't listening. He was already racing for the door. He didn't hear the doctor speak

“Ze culprit iz not Galbadia.”

***

The hardest part about finding the contact point wasn't the time, as it turned out. It was trying to navigate in the huge city that was Esthar. Roads seemed to go in every direction. It was all connected in a circle, so it was easy to get back once they were lost, but that still made finding the correct road to turn off onto incredibly difficult.

However, they were SeeDs. They were good at this.

Zell was running along the path of the first contact point even as the enormous Lunatic Pandora was slowly crossing through. Slowly because there was no way this enormous monolith had any other speed but slow.

“This is it!” Zell yelled, grinning at the hull of the body.

He was just trying to figure out how they were going to get in when a door opened in the side right alongside them. Selphie grinned as a red wearing superior G-officer jumped out onto the skyway, charging at them.

“S'cuse me!” She laughed, jumping onto his shoulder and vaulting from him into the Pandora.

“Pardon,” Irvine pushed him to the side to leap after her.

“Thanks, guy!” Zell grabbed his head, leap frogging over him. He pushed down and forward sending the Galbadian face-planting as he landed into the Pandora.

“Nice jump,” Selphie clapped as the three of them ran forward.

They reached a flight of stairs and followed it up to a central area where three elevators were waiting behind three numbered doors. Zell stared around, pondering his choices.

“So now what?”

“Start at one?” Selphie suggested, shrugging. “We're on, who cares how long it takes? Let's just find whoever is controlling this junk, beat him up, and send this thing back to where it came from before they do whatever they're planning with it.”

Zell nodded in agreement and the three of them ran towards the first in the line of elevators. There was no call button, but the doors opened automatically as they approached. There were also no floor buttons, the elevator just shot upwards after they walked inside.

“I'm surprised there aren't more guards,” Irvine frowned.

“Yeah. Where are all the soldiers?” Selphie agreed.

Zell shrugged. “Let's just focus. We need to prove to Squall that we can handle this without him. I did not fight for this responsibility so I could let him down.”

The elevator opened on a long, clear orange tube-hall. Zell ran down, looking around in confusion at his surroundings. The tunnel split in two but they stayed straight. They would start there and work their way around.

They exited the tubes and came out onto an open, metal walkway. Halfway across that was a ladder that led to a platform. Just another thing they would have to check. Zell was going to either need to make a physical map or hope Irvine or Selphie could make a really good mental one.

As he was about to ask one of them to start making notes, from directly above them, something came crashing down. Something. Zell didn't really get a good look at it. All he could see was that it was some kind of machine. 

“The hell is that?!” He cried, dropping back with Slephie and Irvine. Shrugging, he figured that it wasn't important. It was a security system. In which case, there was only one thing to do. “No time to be ponderin'. Let's do it!”

Zell, Selphie, and Irvine charged. They only made it a few steps. Then something happened. Zell couldn't even say what it was. He was suddenly just lifted into the air. His body splayed because he couldn't get his limbs under control.

Screaming, panicking, Zell tried to at least turn in the air. “M-My body! I can't move?!”

Something like electricity shot through them. Then all three of them were shot backwards. Above the tubes they had run to get there. Straight back towards the wall of the Pandora. Selphie screamed as it came closer.

At the last second, it opened and the three of them were thrown out onto the skyway north of the shopping mall. Crying out in pain, their bodies bounced along the road. Free from whatever had trapped them, but now out of the Pandora.

Groaning in pain, Zell pushed himself up. He could do nothing else but watch as the Lunatic Pandora traveled beyond the city. Out of their reach.

Growling, Zell slammed his fist to the ground. “Dammit!...Kills me to let 'em go!”

Selphie and Irvine helped each other up. All three of them could do nothing but watch as the Pandora moved out towards the lake. Away from the city. To wherever its final resting point was. Now Zell had to go talk to that quack doctor again for more information.

“I guess we better fall back for now,” he said to Selphie and Irvine. “We need to talk to Odine. As much as I hate to. We owe Squall an explanation.”

Zell, Selphie, and Irvine began running back towards O-Lab on the far side of the city. The Pandora continued on unabated.


	37. Ragnarok

“Roger that, Lunar Gate. Over and out. Sir, we have three capsules on approach. Shall we recover them?” Sitting at a control panel on the lunar base, one of the technicians turned.

“Of course!” Standing behind him, a man crossed his arms in his space suit. “Did you think we were just going to let them float out there?”

“Are these the special personal coming aboard?” The second tech asked.

“Yeah,” the space-suit man nodded. It was awkward in his helmet. He actually almost only did that, forgetting his sun visor was down and they couldn't see his face through it. “Special packages from Odine. He forgot to ask their names, because of course he did. There's apparently a medical case on board though, so alert med-bay. He also said one was a bit hostile with him. I hope they don't cause any problems.”

“Shall we put troops on standby?” The second tech asked.

The man thought for a moment then shook his head, again forgetting they couldn't see him. “I have a feeling we won't need to.”

“Then we'd better station then all the more.”

“Hey!”

The man in the suit glared as the first tech pressed the intercom button. “Capsule recovery team, initiate recovery process. Med-bay, prepare for incoming patient, condition stable. Security, go to standby.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” he grumbled, turning from them. “Why do you always play me like that? You both suck. I'm gonna go check up on Adel. Take care of the rest, will you? I'll greet our guests when I get back.”

The technicians shared a fond smile over the man as he walked away.

“Yes, sir,” they echoed each other, laughing slightly. They didn't take any offense, nor did they fear for their job. For all that he was superior to them, they had never once seen, or even heard, of him abusing his power to punish in all the time they had known him.

The recovery process was a thing of beauty. Practiced, smooth, and flawless. The pods were on perfect trajectory. The recovery team didn't even need to adjust as they pressed the release casters.

Made of green lasers, a cross between light and magic, long rows of the nets burst into life. The pods, at escape velocity, slammed into them. The first two dozen or so shattered easily under the force, as they were designed to do.

Until, finally, close to the base but with plenty of nets left just in case, the pods caught and stayed. The recovery team was already moving in. All three pods caught on different net numbers, which was why they always accounted for more than they needed. As the laser grids collapsed back, the recovery team in their full space suits were grabbing onto them.

The jet packs on their backs were used for corrections only to spare fuel. They didn't need much though. In space, they only needed to start moving and their momentum did the rest.

Gently, with a great deal of expertise, the team moved all three pods into place. Sliding them into the open hatches on the recovery bay.

Squall was already starting to wake up. 'Cold sleep' wasn't named because it was so warm and cozy. In his head, Shiva had begun combating the effects before they had even left the atmosphere. She didn't intend to, it was just her nature. She and Squall simply weren't affected by the cold the same way everyone else was.

So he heard perfectly clearly when the technician called into their pods after docking.

“Initiating quick-thaw. It's gonna feel a bit itchy...”

A bit? Squall felt like ants were crawling all over him as a strange electrical pulse traveled down his body, waking him from a sleep he hadn't fully gone into. Then the pods released and he was ejected down – sideways? – into the docking chamber.

Squall was instantly disoriented because his body could no longer tell up from down. Even worse than when he had been using float spells because there just wasn't an up or down here. There was no real directionality.

“That was unpleasant,” Quistis said dully, scratching at her arm as she came out of her pod.

“You're telling me,” Squall rolled his shoulders. His eyes caught a flash of blue as Rinoa was pushed from her pod. She floated in the air, curled around herself helplessly.

“Quick-thaw complete,” the tech said over the intercom. “Locking onto rotation ring unit...”

Squall and Quistis floated uselessly in the air as they heard something loud banging around outside of the dock. Squall tried for a moment to reach for Rinoa, but he had nothing to push off from and it wasn't like swimming at all. He couldn't move even a small distance.

“Lock engaged. Generating artificial gravity. Nice and slo-o-ow...”

Almost immediately, the disorienting feeling of having no orientation went away as the machine kicked into life. Gently, the three of them floated down to the floor. Rinoa landed delicately on her side. Squall and Quistis touched down with their feet.

Well...They were here...

Squall let out a long breath, looking out of the high, thin windows. Into space. Where the stars somehow looked brighter...

The door out of the dock opened and a man in a white coat entered along with a security officer. The white coated man stepped towards the two of them. Squall was already pulling out the official letter, an electronic file, from his coat pocket.

“Here's the letter of introduction from Esthar's ambassador,” Squall said, passing it to him. It was their right to be on this ship basically. “I'm Commander Squall Leonhart of Balamb Garden. This is Quistis Trepe, one of my personal aides.”

Quistis bowed her head to the man, accepting the title without comment. It sounded better and more official than 'my friend'.

“How do you do?” he nodded to both of them. “I'm Piet, head of the medical staff here. I was told there was someone needing attention?”

“Wow...”

Squall turned to see the security officer had walked over to Rinoa. He was leaning over her, grinning at her pretty face. “What is she...17, 18?...Is she dead?”

“Don't touch her,” Squall growled darkly.

The security guard jumped like he had been electrocuted. Squall gave him a withering glance as he approached. The guard backed away, his shaking hand going to his electric baton as Squall leaned over Rinoa's body and he pulled her up onto his back.

As the officer was struggling to unholster the baton, Quistis touched his shoulder.

“I wouldn't if I were you,” she whispered apologetically. “He didn't mean anything by it. It's been a stressful week for him is all. He doesn't mean to be rude. But, I'm afraid, I can't allow you to hurt him either. And this won't anyway. It will only make him mad.”

Quistis smiled and touched the baton gently. The man blinked at her smile as she turned back to her commander, perfectly calm and composed. 

“I understand the situation,” Piet said, lowering his holoscreen where he had been reading the electronic letter. “Let's get her to the med lab and we'll talk there. Please, follow me.”

Squall, carrying Rinoa, and Quistis followed Piet out. The security officer was left, standing holding his baton. When it suddenly started beeping.

Jumping, he looked down and frowned because the display on the handle was telling him that the battery was dead. But...He had just pulled it off the charger...

***

The sick bay was surprisingly beautiful. The stasis room Piet had ready for Rinoa had a glass floor that looked out in the depths of space. She was surrounded by glass on all sides so it was like she was floating in the heavens. The bed that Squall gently placed her on was a pod that closed around her and kept her vitals stable and her body warm. It was a much more an elaborate setup than they had at the garden infirmary.

Once she was secured, Squall stepped from her single person room. The door shut and auto-locked behind him. More for his peace of mind than her safety.

“I've talked to my crew,” Piet told him calmly. “Everything will be all right with her. Come, let's go the control room. I believe the president is there and he'll want to speak with you first before you meet with Ellone.”

Piet led the way down the halls. There were bright glass walls everywhere. Made of the same durable glass that had created the barrier hiding Esthar from the world. So it was a space station, but it was beautiful and filled with people going about their life like this was a normal office.

The control room at the center of the base also had a window. Just at the moment, it was pointed towards the moon. The two technicians working at the control panel didn't even glance up as they came inside.

Squall and Quistis had to stare for a moment. They had never seen the moon this close before and the effect was absolutely breathtaking.

“Hm?” Piet frowned around, used to the view. “I thought the president was here...?”

“He was,” one of the technician's said. “He went out to check on Adel. He said he'll be back soon.”

“I see...” Piet frowned.

Squall barely listened to the conversation. He was looking around at the technology. Meanwhile, Quistis was walking towards the window. Letting out a breath of amazement, she breathed. “My goodness...Look at how close we are tot he moon! Squall, do you see this?”

“This is no time to be impressed,” the controller she was standing beside told her, his voice dark with warning. “Check out the monitor there.”

“This monitor?” Quistis asked as Squall joined her at the console.

The technician called up the first camera on the drone out watching the moon. From this spot, they didn't get a great look at it. But as he zoomed in with the droid, the two guests frowned, leaning in closer to try and figure out what they were seeing.

On the pale moon surface, like a black smear, the large red mass that writhed around on the surface made them frown. The camera zoomed in once. Then again. They still couldn't quite see what it was specifically, but...

The hell...Squall leaned back. That couldn't be what he thought it was...

“Monsters...” Quistis breathed in fearful awe.

“The lunar world is a world of monsters,” the tech nodded gravely. “Didn't you learn that in school?”

“Of course,” Quistis shook her head. “But...I didn't think that they all congregated like that...”

“Well, normally they don't. But as you can see, the monsters are gathering at one point. There's this weird, liquid stuff surrounding them too. We can't tell if they're excreting it or what. But they're all gathering into it. History's going to repeat itself. The Lunar Cry is starting.”

“Lunar Cry?” Quistis frowned at him.

“Oh. Sorry. You're not from Esthar, right? What do they call it outside?...The Cataclysm?”

“You don't mean...the one that destroyed Centra do you?” Quistis paled.

The man nodded, still frowning. “Hence the reason we're so worried.”

Squall turned from the console. 

It was disturbing, but not his problem. There was nothing he could do about it. The only thing he could do was the entire reason he had come here. Ellone was somewhere on this station.

“Piet, where's Ellone?” He wasn't waiting for the president.

“Hm? Oh, her room is up the stairs and down the hall in the Presidential Suite. 

Quistis turned and rushed after Squall as he left the room. He walked quickly back into the hall and up the stairs set to the side. And another window.

From this one though, he could see something strange floating out in space just beyond the Lunar Base. Two technicians were standing there, looking out at it.

“What is that?” Quistis asked them interestedly.

“That's Adel's tomb,” the man said, pointing.

“Adel's tomb?” Squall frowned, joining Quistis. “You don't mean...Sorceress Adel is there?”

“Yeah, that's right. She's sealed in there. See those men going out? That's the president and his aides checking on the seal on her tomb. He frequently goes out to do it himself.”

Quistis and Squall shared a look.

Then Matron was right. Adel did exist somewhere. In space, yeah, but she was there. And she wasn't dead or her powers would have been passed on.

“Where's the Presidential Suite?” Squall asked them. He felt suddenly like he needed to hurry.

“Right there,” one of the men pointed to the door at the far end of the hall.

“Thank you,” Quistis nodded to them. Squall was already walking in that direction.

The door opened with a press of a button. Seated on a capsule that served as a bed, Ellone turned as Squall walked quickly into her room. Surprise was replaced after a short moment by acceptance and a gentle smile.

Squall stopped in front of her. He realized only now that it was the first time he had seen her since he remembered who he was. Who they all were. The recognition was visible in his eyes and Ellone's smile widened as she looked at him.

“Squall, I'm so happy to see you again.” Her words rang with double meaning.

“Me, too,” Squall said and was surprised to find that it was true.

Finally. After so many years. His Sis was back again.

Her face fell and she looked away. “I'm so sorry. I got you involved in so many things...It's my fault you've had so many hardships.”

Squall shook his head, dismissing her apology as unneeded. “It's all right. I understand. I get what you were trying to do. Were we of any help?”

“Of course!” Ellone beamed back at him. “You were my eyes. Thanks to you guys, I was able to see how much I was loved. I couldn't change anything, but seeing it was more than enough. Thank you so much for that.”

“It's okay,” Squall nodded. “I came here because I need your help. You said you can't change the past, right?”

“You can find out things about the past that you never knew. And from what you've learned, you may see some things differently in the present. You're the one that changes. Not the past.”

“Really?” Squall pressed urgently. “There's no way to change the past? At all? No, I want to find out myself. Ellone, I need your power. I need you to take me to Rinoa's past. I need to see the past through Rinoa. I have to find out what happened to her. She's the only one who knows and she's trapped in a comma. I need to at least try to warn her...”

Ellone blinked in surprise. “You want to save her. You don't want to lose Rinoa.”

Squall nodded.

Ellone looked down guiltily. “Squall, I can't. I don't know Rinoa. I told you, I can only send people I know in the present into people I knew in the past. That's the rules for my powers. I can't get around it. Believe me, I've tried.”

“I brought Rinoa with me,” Squall pointed to the door. “She's resting in the med-lab. Please, just come with me. Meet her.”

Ellone knew it wouldn't help. But she couldn't deny him this. She stood and followed him out of the room. She had some trouble keeping pace with him. She was the first person he slowed down for since he had found a method for waking Rinoa.

***

In the silent med-pod room, the green light indicating the life support system winked off. The cover folded back.

Rinoa's eyes opened onto the stars.

***

Squall was halfway down the steps a red light suddenly burst into life. A loud ringing echoed through the halls as the three stopped in place, looking around.

“What's going on?” Squall asked, his stomach sinking in dread.

“ _RED ALERT!_ ” One of the technician's called out over the loudspeaker. “ _Red alert! All units report to the med lab! Stat!_ ”

“Med lab?” Squall frowned, icy fear soaking into his veins. “Rinoa?”

He turned to the girls. “I'll check it out. It doesn't look good. Ellone, you'd better go wait in the control room.”

“Okay,” she nodded. “You be careful, all right?”

Squall nodded as she started down the rest of the steps. He looked to Quistis. “Please, take care of Ellone. I have to...”

Quistis smiled gently. “I know. I've got this. Watch your back...”

Squall didn't bother to run down the stairs. He vaulted over the rail completely, startling one of the girls running below. He landed, crouched, and was already sprinting down towards the med lab. His footsteps were echoing hollowly around him. Everyone had evacuated the area to get away from the red alert. Except for the security personnel. As Squall had, they were running to the trouble.

Even as Squall was running up, the door on the med lab burst open. The security officer who flew out slammed his head against the far wall, knocking him immediately unconscious. Squall slid to a halt, his hand already reaching for the gunblade that wasn't at his hip.

Slowly, moving so awkwardly it was a wonder she was staying upright, Rinoa came limping out of the med lab. Squall had to squint to look at her because it was like something was wrong. Like an aura he could barely see was surrounding her body, throwing off his eyes.

As he watched, she turned and started down the hall. Her eyes were open, her body swaying so dangerously it looked like she might fall at any moment. But she didn't look at him, she didn't even glance his way. Her eyes were unfocused, faraway.

Rinoa...What happened to you?

“Rinoa!” Squall ran for her. His hand reached out to grab her.

He didn't even get to touch her skin.

Crying out in pain, his body was sent flying. He almost didn't protect his head and neck in time as he slammed into the wall. His back spasmed and he gritted his teeth in pain.

What was that? It almost felt like he had been electrocuted, yet not quite. Like the energy that had rushed into him wasn't even the same.

Pushing himself up, he looked back at Rinoa. She hadn't moved very far ahead. She was walking like she had all the time in the world.

Gritting his teeth, Squall ran to her again. His hand outstretched. If he could just grab hold of her-

He slammed into the wall. Forced himself up and ran again.

Cry. Slam. Again!

Cry. Slam! AGAIN!

Eyes having trouble focusing, muscles shaking, Squall ran at her once more. His grasping fingers hit that weird aura and he felt that energy slam into him. He forced another step and just barely brushed the skin of her shoulder.

BAM!

Squall didn't protect his head that time. It slammed into the wall and he slumped down against it. Shiva was crying something he didn't understand, giving him a cura spell. Squall's vision went black but he didn't really go completely unconscious.

After less than a minute, he was pushing himself up again. His body hurt like he had run full force into an electric fence. But something was wrong with Rinoa!

Limping slightly himself, having trouble focusing his eyes, Squall ran down the hall after her. She was closing in on the control room now. More officers had tried to step into her path and had met the same fate he had. None of them were so lucky as to awaken from it as quickly.

Though he was tempted to grab for her again, Squall did not. He walked just to the side of her, out of reach of that strange aura. She paid him no mind.

More security officers came charging from the other side of the base.

“Stay back!” Squall yelled at them, throwing out his hand.

A few of them hesitated, one did not.

“I won't spare her just because she's your girlfriend!” The over eager guard was the same one Squall had threatened in the docking bay.

Baton newly charged, he ran forward with a cry of anger.

“No! Stop!”

Too late. He hit her aura and was thrown not just back but up. He slammed into the high wall before crashing down to the floor. His arm was bent at an odd angle but he was unconscious and couldn't feel it.

“I'm not telling you to stay back for her safety! I'm saying it for yours!” Squall yelled, frustrated. None of the other guards were attempting to come in closer after that though.

Squall skirted around her, unable to do anything, as she walked into the control room. He tried giving her a cura spell. Tried one of Selphie' esuna spells. He even tossed a remedy at her in the hopes that maybe the cure-all for ailments would help.

The liquid fizzled away before it even hit her skin.

Rinoa continued, unabated into the control room.

“Rinoa?!” Quistis gasped. She could see she wasn't right. She put her hand on Ellone, pushing her back against the wall.

Rinoa wasn't interested in her. She continued on to the control panel.

“Stay back!” Squall yelled at the technicians.

They were loyal to their job. They jumped up to defend their place. These two didn't even have to touch her though. The aura reached out and took them out before they could come in close. Squall let out a breath of fear as Rinoa stopped in front of the console.

One hand slowly came up and began typing gently on the buttons.

“Squall!” Quistis looked at him, eyes wide. “What's wrong with Rinoa?!”

“No!” Ellone reached out for her under Quistis's arm. “Squall, stop her!”

Next to Quistis, Piet was shaking his head. “That's Adel's Tomb's Seal Deactivation Device! You can't let her turn that-”

“ _Adel's Tomb level 1 seal: Deactivated. Adel's Tomb level 1 seal: Deactivated. Adel's Tomb-_ ” The electronic voice garbled and faded as Rinoa put her hand down on the panel. A small, localized spark of electricity shot out of her fingers and fried the panel.

“Stop her!” Piet yelled.

Crying out, Squall ran towards her again.

He didn't grab with one hand. He grabbed with both arms. Trying to wrap around her. Almost as if he was planning on holding her.

The power in the aura slammed into him painfully. He clenched his teeth as Shiva cried out, trying to help him absorb the shock. His muscles felt like they were being ripped apart. His bones felt like they were shattering in his body.

BAM!

Squall's body slid down the central console. Piet cried out, running to him. Rinoa turned and began walking out slowly.

“Damn! Commander? Commander! Here...” Reaching into his lab coat, he pulled out something that looked like an Odine capsule. But smaller, about the size of a pinkie nail. He closed it in his hand and touched Squall's shoulder.

The healing energy that settled over his body was like a cool bath on a hot day. Shiva grabbed onto the energy gratefully, directing it to Squall's head where he had taken the most damage.

Slowly, his eyes finally refocusing, Squall's lids fluttered back open. He groaned as he stood up, Piet helping him, still supplying the energy.

“Take it easy, commander.”

“Squall!” Quistis turned from the large window, her face pale. “Come look at this. The moon's surface it's...It's changing...”

Thanking Piet with a nod, Squall walked over to Quistis's side. She pointed out to the moon's surface on the monitor. They could see it better now as the Lunar Base's orbit had brought it into better alignment.

The large glob of monsters was gathered, focused. Honed into a single, enormous point on the moon. It was a perfect circle. Writhing. Menacing. Actually starting to come off of the moon as a large, pulsating mass of...whatever it was.

“It's overflowing with monsters...” Squall breathed in horror.

They called it the Lunar Cry...

The mental image that brought up was not promising. He really hoped he was wrong.

“It's starting...” Piet said, shaking.

“The Lunar Cry?” Squall guessed. Please say no. Please say no.

Piet nodded once. “If the Cry is happening, then we definitely must stop her. If that girl plans to free Adel, she'll have to _go_ out there. The level 2 seal is located on Adel's Tomb itself. If the Cry occurs while she's out there...”

“Which way?” Squall asked.

“Up the stairs. The air lock is up there.”

Squall nodded and sprinted past him. Piet's hands tightened together in worry. Quistis and Ellone shared a look of concern and fear.

Squall took the stairs two at a time. His eyes were scanning about for Rinoa, but she had made it quite a distance while he was being healed and watching the moon.

As he was passing the long window, the tech standing there cried out.

“Oh, Hyne! Look! The moon!”

Squall stopped in his tracks, looking out the window with her.

The swelling was greater now. Nearly right beside the Lunar Base. Reaching out like an enormous finger towards Gaia. Squall's hands were shaking because he could only imagine the vast number of monster in there.

The Lunar Cry. What Esthar called the Cataclysm that had destroyed Centra and filled the world with monsters. Almost every animal species had died off, including the lion Squall wore so proudly. Only a very select few that were strong enough to fight back such as the chocobos survived. The human populations too had been decimated.

80 years later, and history was about to repeat itself.

As Squall stared, the protrusion expanded, tensed...pulsed...

Then burst.

Like a laser, the column of monsters shot out. Heading for Gaia. Squalls heart clenched as the enormous streak of red rushed towards them, blocking his vision of te moon. He could easily imagine what would happen next.

Please, be safe everyone.

“Tons of monsters...” one of the tech's breathed, shaking. “I...I think...they're heading for Esthar...They must be going for Tears' Point...”

“Then, that means the Lunatic Pandora is at tears point.” The scientist beside him frowned at his friend. That name caught Squall's attention.

That thing Laguna had been working on?

“When did this happen?!” The scientist cried, shaking his head.

“Hey,” Squall interrupted them harshly. “Have you seen a girl come by here? Probably walking funny.”

“Oh, yeah. She went into the locker room,” the tech nodded. “But she better not be heading out there. And you shouldn't either if-Hey!”

Squall ignored him and his warning. He ran into the room indicated. The door slid open obediently and Rinoa finally looked at him.

Through the glass walls of the airlock and the colorless visor of the space suit she had donned.

“Rinoa!”

The airlock beeped and the door behind her opened. Rinoa pushed out and floated into the outside of the pod docking bay.

Cursing, Squall looked around desperately. He had to go after her. Which means he needed...

In the second changing room he checked, Squall found a discarded space suit. One the recovery team had left there for refueling and cleaning.

Squall didn't care. He grabbed it and hastily pulled it on over his clothes. It fit kind of awkwardly. It wasn't really in his size. But the airtight seal locked and the suit assured him on the heads up display that it was ready for space. But it was low on oxygen and fuel.

Squall ran into the air lock. It was painful waiting for the room to seal. Then for the air to be evacuated so the door could open. He didn't even wait for it to slid open all the way. Squall put his foot on the edge of the door and pushed out with all his might.

There was no gravity here again. He was more prepared for it this time. Rinoa had a much greater head start on him. She was already moving towards the large bay doors at the far end. Squall hit the button for the boosters on his suit but he was out of fuel. This second hand suit had already been drained, it wasn't ready for another walk.

The doors were closed though. She couldn't get out. He had her trapped here.

Almost as soon as the thought was finished, the bay doors opened.

Of course.

Three men started floating in. All of them had their sun visors down to protect their eyes. The guy in the middle started in surprise to see Rinoa floating past him into the outside.

“Huh? What's this? Who was that?” He asked the men beside him.

The other guys were more focused on other things.

“The flood of monsters is drawing near Adel's Tomb.”

“Adel's Tomb? It's heading right for _us_! At this rate, the entire base is going to be destroyed. We have to announce an evacuation, sir.”

Twisting in the air, freaking out slightly, the man in the middle cried loudly. “Why is everything happening all at once? This is crazy! It's like someone planned the whole thing! Who set this up?! Why did no one see this coming?!”

Sorceress Ultimecia...

Squall drew even with the three men. The aides had already lifted their visors and Squall had never drawn his down. They looked at each other in passing.

The man in the middle stopped the hysterics as he looked at Squall. He had yet to lift his visor so Squall couldn't see who it was. He saw only his reflection in the glass. If the official symbol on his suit was any indication though, he would say he was looking at the president of Esthar.

“What? Who are you?” The man tilted his head curiously.

Then they passed each other and Squall looked away. Rinoa was out now. If he wanted to catch up to her, he had to be quick.

“ _Locking Bay Doors._ ” The computer announced. “ _All staff prepare for evacuation._ ”

“No!” Squall reached out but he was too late. The bay doors slammed shut. His hands smacked against them. Pointlessly punching at the wall. The suit took all of the force of the blows. Even if it hadn't, he couldn't punch through a metal wall.

Crying out, Squall twisted like he was in a pool. He put his feet to the wall and jumped off. He couldn't get out here. He had to find another way.

The float back was somehow even slower than the one to get here. The airlock was already open though, left waiting for him by the other guys. Squall landed within and the artificial gravity kicked on as the doors sealed shut. Air was pumped in and Squall rushed out of the room.

He hit the hall, looking left and right quickly.

He needed another exit. He needed a way out.

“It's much too dangerous here now, sir!” One of the aides to the president was saying. Squall looked over to see them pleading with their leader. “We must leave Lunar Base at once!”

“We have to evacuate. Please, hurry to the pods, sir.”

“Forget about me! Just go!” The man swept out his arm. “I'm gonna stay back and help the stragglers. I'm not leaving until I know everyone is off this ship.”

The aides didn't even respond. They were well used to their president and they had their orders from the VP in such situations. Even if they hadn't, they would have reacted the same.

Each man grabbed an arm and started forcibly carting the president away. Squall watched as the man cried out and struggled against them.

They were strong though and they kept yanking. At one point, the man fell and landed on the ground, reaching out for Ellone's room. The aides just took him by the legs and started pulling him that way, which, honestly, was easier.

“Hey, you!” The president pointed at Squall authoritatively. “Take care of Ellone! That's her room right there! She's a pretty girl with short hair and a sweet face! Don't you dare hit on her! Just get her off this thing and-argh!”

He reached the stairs and had to focus on not hitting his face onto the ground.

Was that seriously Esthar's president? Whatever, Squall had bigger problems.

He ran down the hall, heading for the control room. He arrived just as the aides were forcing the protesting president down the lift to the escape pods. Piet, Ellone, and Quistis were still standing around, freaking out. Piet was staring into space, eyes wide. Quistis had her arm around Ellone who was holding onto her like _she_ might be the younger sister.

“Dammit! The seal's gonna be broken!” Piet bemoaned as Squall joined him.

Rinoa was out there now. He could see her just as he had seen the president before her. She was floating in front of Adel. Putting one hand on the Tomb, she pushed herself down towards the control panel that the president had just been checking.

It opened with a touch of her finger. She only needed to press a few buttons. The locks weren't even that specific because the hiding place had been so completely isolated. Cold sleep gas rushed out of the Tomb as the seal deactivated and process began reversing.

Rinoa pushed herself backwards and away. She was right on time. The monsters slammed into Adel's Tomb, swallowing it whole.

One of the monsters' tails smacked into Rinoa and sent her flying back. Her limp body flew without even attempting to stop herself.

“RINOA!” Squall reached for her desperately, even knowing he couldn't touch her.

“Come on!” Piet yelled, taking Squall's shoulder. “We have to evacuate! NOW! They're heading this way! We'll be next!”

“We can't leave Rinoa!?” Quistis cried as Piet ran past her. “We have to do something.”

Ellone wasn't moving. Squall had to take her by the arm and pull her towards the evac lift. Ellone was shaking her head even as he was pulling her aboard.

“Squall, you should be protecting Rinoa, not me. You're the only thing on her mind right now. She's calling you. Can't you hear it?”

He couldn't get it out of his head.

“Ellone, take me to Rinoa. Please!” He was begging now. He didn't care.

“Last one!” Piet yelled as the lift landed. “Hurry!”

He and Quistis were already running inside. Ellone was shaking her head, frustrated tears in her eyes at her own limitations.

“I don't know if I can send you. I don't know!”

Squall chased after her into the evac pod.

***

The wave of monsters landed on the earth, darkening the sky. Spreading out over the planet. Widening from the force of the blow, spreading from the central point.

The Lunatic Pandora.

Threads of light were already reaching upward as, twinkling like a star, Adel's Tomb raced down. She had been protected by the very same sealing device meant to imprison her.

She slammed into the top of the Pandora. The hard metal rippled like water as she passed through as the filaments of light caught her and pulled her down into the massive moon crystal pulsing just inside the monolith.

***

Four individual stands. An escape pod made for four. Quistis and Piet were already in place. He was ready to hit the eject button. Ellone was walking into her spot as the door sealed behind Squall.

Helpless anger. Depthless despair. It was eating him alive inside knowing he was here and Rinoa was out there. In danger. Far from him.

“HYNE!!!” Screaming his pain, unable to think of anything else to do, Squall threw out his arms in desperation. The raw emotion plain on his face. “Rinoa is gonna die! I can't take it! Ellone, please! I've never felt this way in my life!”

He wouldn't survive it if she died. He just knew it. If she left him...if he was alone without her...

Ellone didn't say anything. She was shaking.

“Take me to Rinoa...” Squall's voice was softer, but no less pained. Raw and tortured. “Take me to her past. Let me see...”

Slowly, Ellone nodded.

“Okay. It may not work...but we'll try...okay?”

Squall let out a stuttered breath. It was the best he could ask for now. And not nearly enough.

“Come on! We have to go now!” Piet yelled at them.

Squall jumped into the fourth spot. The protective shields dropped down over their heads, locking them into place. Piet hit the ejection button.

It wasn't a neat or easy blast off. But it was fast and immediate. The pod rocked as they were blasted into space. The automatic honing device would take them down to Esthar without any help from them, though it wouldn't be an easy trip.

Ellone's eyes were closed. Squall shut his as well.

The high pitched whistle started in his brain.

For the first time, he welcomed it. And this trip wasn't nearly so jarring as any before it.

***

The heat of the desert was beating down on them, even inside the jeep. The only way of cooling themselves they had was the tiny fan in the corner.

Irvine, grinning without worry, was driving along calmly. He scratched at his temple only once, feeling a weird buzzing in his brain. He didn't think about it overly much.

Growling in the seat beside him, Rinoa's eyes were burning hatefully.

“Irvine! Go back to D-District! Right now!”

Calmly, he shifted gears. Rinoa was growling through his teeth. Finally, with supreme coolness, he answered simply.

“Nope. I've got orders from your father.”

“Don't call him that.”

“I'm taking you straight back to Deling City. It wasn't easy pulling the strings to get you out, you know? You should probably be gratef-ARGH!”

Rinoa's foot struck Irivne's face. He barely avoided running the car off the road. Jumping onto him, she ejected the Valkyrie from the blaster. Using it almost like a club, she started scratching at him violently without actually shooting it off.

“ARGH!” Irvine cried out painfully, slamming his foot on the gas as he tried to protect his face from her onslaught. “Are you crazy?!”

“We have to go back and help everybody!” Rinoa grabbed the emergency break and jerked it up. The car was brought to an abrupt and sudden halt. The door automatically opened and Rinoa jumped outside, landing neatly in the dirt.

She turned as Irvine poked his aching head out. He had a host of new lacerations that were already no longer bleeding thanks to the brothers in his head. Brothers that Squall had helped him get, she would like to remind him.

“They'll be fine,” he told her, annoyed. “They're SeeDs! I'm sure they can get out of their on their own whenever they very well please.”

“You don't know for sure!” Rinoa stomped her foot. “Squall might say 'but no one has ordered me to escape', and end up staying in there!” Her Squall impression was terrible. “We can't have that! We have to go back and help them! And I don't care if I have to force you.”

Glaring dangerously, passion lighting up her face, Rinoa reached for him. Irvine opened his mouth to protest again. He didn't get a chance.

Rinoa slammed her hands down onto his head and jerked her knee up into his gut Crying out from the pain, Irvine doubled over just as she wanted. She forcibly folded him back into the jeep. Into the driver's seat. Though she would happily take over if she had to.

“OW! OUCH! Okay! Okay! Crazy woman! Get off me! I'm going, I'm going!”

Irvine slammed the emergency break down turned the car abruptly. Rinoa was thrown back into her seat by the momentum. She nodded once, angry but satisfied.

“You could have killed me,” Irvine growled at her. “You know this is stupid dangerous right? You're about to try breaking into a prison. Full of guards. That's insane!”

“I don't care!” Rinoa glared at him, adjusting her Valkyrie back into the blaster. “We'll be careful, but we're saving them! Now punch it!”

***

“Winter proofing?” Rinoa blinked.

“Yeah,” Quistis nodded, holding up the yards of fur and leather she had brought up from the laundry area on the B2 sub-level. “We're in Trabia territory now. It's only going to get colder. I want to have a special seminar on ice monsters, and part of that lesson is learning how to winter proof your clothing. It would be helpful for me to have some 'before' and 'after' shots.”

“Well, I'd be happy to help, but I don't really know how to sew.” Frowning at the cloth, Rinoa gently closed the book she had picked out from the library and brought out here to the courtyard around the infirmary. Angelo liked it here and so she spent a great deal of time reading in the area. At least, time when she wasn't reading with Squall in the library.

“It's okay. We'll teach you.”

“We?”

“Yeah,” Quistis tossed back her hair with a flick of her head, trying to dislodge the funny buzzing in her brain. She couldn't do it with her hands, loaded down as they were. “Selphie is going to be joining us. I asked Xu, but she's working with Squall this afternoon on SeeD exam plans.”

“Well, okay.” Laughing, Rinoa stood, dusting off her clothes. She turned to her dog. “Angelo, you stay here and play, okay? I'll be back later.”

Her dog sort of coughed, snuggling in deeper against the emerald grass he so loved against his fur. It was so cute to see. It made Rinoa wish she had a camera.

“Come on. We're doing it in my room. It's not very big since I live in the dorms again, but it should be sufficient for the three of us.”

“I'm sure it will be fine,” Rinoa smiled, falling into step beside her.

The two were quiet as Quistis led the way. If Rinoa noticed any tension about the other girl's shoulders, she didn't remark upon it.

Of course she felt no tension. Rinoa had been nice to her since they got back. It was like she had completely forgotten.

But Quistis hadn't...

She wanted to say this before they met up with Selphie. To finally get it out.

“I'm sorry.”

“Huh?” Unprepared for the sudden apology, Rinoa started. “What? Why?”

“I'm sorry...for what I said. Back in Deling City.”

“What are you...Oh! You mean...Oh...” Rinoa trailed off, looking away. Honestly, things had gotten so crazy afterwards that she hadn't paid a bit of attention to it.

“I'm sorry. For what I said. For how I said it. I had no right to...What I mean...I was jealous. I was stupid jealous. And I let that effect me when you were only trying to help. Even if you were wrong, I had no right to snap at you the way I did.”

Smiling, Rinoa reached out and touched Quistis's shoulder. “Hey, don't worry about it. We all say things when we're mad that we don't mean. You should have heard the things I said to Squall when we first met. We're friends now though, right?”

Quistis beamed. “Of course we are.”

Rinoa smiled. “Hey, I was thinking about my float spells. I can't really use them. I've practiced and I still suck. You want to take them off my hands?”

Quistis laughed. Grateful at the quick forgiveness and change of subject. “Sure. I'd love them.”

***

“Underwear?” Selphie blinked, confused. There was a cookie hanging out of her mouth as she stood on her bed, trying to tack a YRP concert poster onto the wall.

“Yeah...” Rinoa shifted nervously in her doorway. “You know like...pretty undies.”

“Uh, maybe you should, like, close the door?”

“Yeah...right.” Stepping in quickly, Rinoa hit the button to slide the door closed. She smiled at Selphie sheepishly as she jumped from her bed, taking a bite of the cookie on the way. Rinoa was pretty sure she had stolen it from Zell's 'secret' stash.

“So, where is this coming from?” Selphie asked, grinning. “Are you and Squall...?”

“No! Hyne, no!” Rinoa was practically glowing red.

Selphie doubled over, laughing uproariously. “But you're thinking about it!”

“Ugh. I knew I was going to regret bringing this up to you. But your body type is closest to mine. And you're the most adventurous. I figured you'd be most likely to have something.”

“Well, yeah, we're close, but we're a little too different. You're a minus in the boob compartment compared to me. Hips too, now that I look at it. You're kind of...lean. You've lost weight since you started hanging with us. Maybe you could have fit back then, but definitely not now.

“You think I've lost weight?!” Rinoa cried worriedly, grabbing for her own body.

“Relax!” Selphie laughed, scratching at her head, trying to dislodge that weird feeling that started. Like a buzzing. “You're getting more athletic. Squall will dig that, I promise.”

“And how do you know that?” Rinoa asked sharply, eyes narrowing suspiciously. 

“I said, relax! He's so not my type. He's practically my brother, for crying out loud!”

“You know that Irvine would be your brother using that same logic, right?”

“Hush. No one asked for your hocus pocus 'logic'. Rinoa, honestly, I wouldn't worry about it.”

“But...” she frowned, looking down at her body that she suddenly felt so self-conscious about. Squall really liked her breasts...If they were shrinking as she lost weight, wouldn't he be unhappy?

“Stop worrying. Squall definitely doesn't care about your undies.”

“I care about my undies. I regret having this conversation with you. Just pretend it never happened. I'm leaving now.”

“Just so you know, the undies would be removed for what you're thinking about doing anyway!”

Selphie laughed loudly as Rinoa slammed the door shut behind her. Deliberately cutting off this conversation before it got any more embarrassing.

***

“Squall's ring?” Zell tilted his head curiously. “Um, I don't know where he bought it. I don't think Balamb's jewelry store sells that stuff. He might have bought it from like a catalog or something.”

Sunlight glinted down from above reflecting off of the glasses in the cafeteria. They were clinking together gently as the Garden moved along. No one paid it any mind though. They were all used to everything rocking just slightly since the garden started moving.

“I really want the same one,” Rinoa smiled a bit shyly, playing with her fingers. “It looks really cool, doesn't it?”

“Hm...” Zell tilted his head back, scratching at his ear. It was kind of buzzing a bit. “You mean that one with the weird monsters carved on it?”

“Yeah! That's the one!” Rinoa beamed brightly.

“Well, alright,” Zell laughed, getting caught up in her enthusiasm. “Hows 'bout I make you one? I'm pretty good at that kind of stuff.”

“Really?” Rinoa laughed. “I mean, I know you're good at sewing, but smelting too?”

“Yeah, totally! I'm 100% self sufficient, baby. I can make my own gloves from the hide to the metal plates. A ring shouldn't be a problem.”

“Well, then, sure! Okay!” Rinoa laughed excitedly.

“Let's go have Squall show us the original. I'll need to make a mold of it and stuff.”

Suddenly, Rinoa blushed red. She looked down shyly, crossing her arms in front of her. “We can't do that.”

“Huh? Why not?”

“...It's embarrassing.”

“Say what?” Zell made a face, staring at her in confusion. Realization came on slowly. Zell's back stiffened as he finally noticed what everyone in the garden had already accepted as normal. “Oh!”

“No!” Rinoa said quickly, face glowing bright red. “It's not what you think!”

Except it was exactly what he thought. Zell could see that when she turned, face still bright red and her heart pumping so fast Zell could see it in her neck.

***

Squall came back to reality easily. He was already shaking his head. Trying not to let it effect him at how good it was to hear Rinoa's voice, even echoed from the past.

“Ellone, that wasn't it. That was too far back. It was only about a week ago.”

“I'm sorry,” she said gently, her voice soft. “Let me try again...”

***

( _...Huh?...Where am I?_ )

Bright white light seen through closed lids. Lids that opened partially, slowly and stared up at the ceiling of Galbadia Garden's auditorium.

( _You're..._ )

Gentle footsteps to his left drew his attention. Rinoa's body dropped down onto her knees beside him and Seifer looked up into her strangely blank eyes. His body hurt. His head was buzzing annoyingly. It was far too bright in here.

He was shamed.

Rinoa reached out gently and pulled him into her arms. Her touch was gentle, almost loving, as she stroked him to full consciousness.

( _Rinoa..._ )

She smiled gently but it didn't reach her eyes. There was a deep darkness there, yet somehow strangely dead and dull. And looking at her hurt in a weird way. Like his eyes were trying to focus on two things at once.

( _This...This isn't Rinoa!_ )

“Oh, my loyal knight, Seifer,” she said sweetly, hollowly, to him. Her voice had that same empty, ringing tone that so haunted Squall's dreams. “Your Sorceress is alive. Your sorceress demands...”

( _Ultimecia?! The future sorceress is inside Rinoa?!_ )

She flickered in his vision. Like a channel picking up two images. He could see Rinoa, but superimposed over her features was another face. One he couldn't quite focus on. 

( _...Transferred...From Edea...Where's Rinoa?!_ )

“Find the legendary Lunatic Pandora, said to be hidden beneath the ocean. Bring it to Esthar. To a place call Tears' Point. Only then shall the sorceress provide you with dreams again...”

( _Rinoa! Where are you?!_ )

She leaned over him, pressing her lips to his. At her touch, all the injuries weighing Seifer down were blown away. Gone. Like they had never been. Seifer's eyes opened fully as the pain vanished in the wake of her power.

Seifer grinned as he pushed himself back up.

( _Rinoa! Answer me! Please! I can't help you if you don't answer me!_ )

“As you wish, Ulimecia,” Seifer replied eagerly, walking away from Rinoa. Leaving her behind without so much as glancing in her direction.

( _RINOA!_ )

( _...Squall...I'm scared..._ )

( _Rinoa! I hear you! I can hear you!_ )

: _Who's there?! Get out!_ :

***

“Rinoa!” Squall's heart was racing. His breathing erratic.

That presence. That dark, hate filled spirit. Washing over him. Shocking him with an energy that wasn't quite electric. He knew who that was. He had never met her, but he knew her.

A loud thud had his eyes focusing back on the present. To Ellone who had fallen from her safety lock in the pod and collapsed down onto the ground.

Of course. She had been in there with him. She had felt that evil witch just as strongly. If not worse.

Squall hit the release on his safety bar. It swung up over his head and he stepped out quickly, dropping down to his knee and reaching for Ellone.

She was already turning to look at him. Though she was breathing hard, she was more shocked than anything. But she was more concerned about him.

“Did you get to find out what happened to Rinoa? Were you able to change the past?”

Squall shook his head, his jaw clenching tightly. “It's like you said. I couldn't do anything. I...What should do I do?”

He turned to her, desperate at this point. He would do anything...Give anything...

“I remember those eyes...” Ellone smiled sadly, reaching up for him. She couldn't touch him inside his helmet, but she could and did cradle the glass. “You just looked at me with the same eyes you had when you were little. Those curious, innocent, puppy-dog eyes. I loved those eyes...My sweet little Squall...”

“That's in the past...” he said, his voice rough.

“That's right. What's important, what really matters, is right now. I think...I finally see that. The past...its passed. And, yeah, some of it was bad. But it is. And we can't change it. What we can change is now. Right now.”

“I have to help Rinoa now. That's the only thing I can do, right? Please...Sis...Nothing else matters to me. Not the past. Not the future. Just this.”

“Yes,” Ellone smiled at him, her eyes swimming with tears and emotions. The very same eyes she had looked at him with that first day in the infirmary, so long ago now. Seeing the adopted little brother she thought she had lost once again.

Reaching out, Ellone took his hand in hers. Taking a breath, she nodded.

“I'm ready. I can do it now. I can send you to her.”

“You said it was impossible.”

“What I said was that I can only send you into people I know. I know her now, Squall. I've seen her through everyone's eyes. Her passion. Her dedication. Her nerves, fear, and courage. I've seen who is she in the past. I know who she is now. Talk to her, Squall. Your voice may not reach her, but your heart will.”

Our hearts...

Rinoa, can you feel me in your heart?

“Are you ready? I'm taking you to the nearest past...To the closest present to the future...”

***

“ _Remaining life support system: 15 seconds..._ ”

Fifteen seconds...Was that it? Of course, the suit hadn't been fully fueled, the tanks more than half empty, when she had put it on, but still...

Fifteen seconds...

Could she...Could she still make it?

How? She couldn't do anything. Drifting...Endlessly...

Helpless...She was completely helpless...Unable to do anything more but watch the pinpoint stars in the endless sky twisting around the glass in her helmet.

Endless.

“ _Remaining life support: 0 seconds..._ ”

No...There was an end...

Rinoa's body trembled against the truth of it. Against the reality she couldn't accept. Because in her life she had never come this close to the edge before.

This was it...

I'm gonna...

I'm gonna...die...

“ _Life support has terminated..._ ”

It was hot in the spacesuit. The air had stopped flowing. Her own breath was starting to fill it up in its place. Slowly suffocating her. 

She was going to die out here. Alone.

Goodbye...Squall...

( _Rinoa! NO! Don't give up!_ )

Huh? What was that? In her ears...Like a buzzing...

( _Can you hear me?! It's Squall! Rinoa! RINOA!_ )

It was getting warmer. The oxygen was getting thinner. Instead of feeling panicked, Rinoa found herself actually calming down. Getting drowsy...

Slipping away...

( _Rinoa, come on! Remember what you said! Our hearts will always be together so long as we think about each other! Rinoa, I'm right here with you! Listen to me!_ )

Clink...

It was such a small sound. Almost insignificant. 

And yet...Rinoa found her eyes opening again to trace its location. 

Right there in her field of vision. Lifted by the lack of gravity. Her mother's wedding ring, bouncing softly against Squall's lion ring.

The lion. Proud and strong. Like him...

The buzzing in her head was that much stronger.

No...

Not a buzzing...

It was words. Half heard and distant. But growing stronger the longer she focused on them. 

She could hear his voice...His ring...His heart...

She was still alive...? She could hear him...

Squall...

( _There's an emergency air supply on your suit! Activate it!_ )

Her fingers reached for the control panel on her chest. She didn't know what button it was. She just pressed one. Letting him decide which. So long as she didn't think about it, it was easy for her to tell which way he wanted her to go.

Under a hood placed over it for protection. She pulled down on a latch, ejecting it into space. Revealing the square, blinking red button underneath. It depressed easily under her fingers.

A burst of air, cool and invigorating, rushed into her helmet, upsetting her hair and releasing her tears from her eyes. Rinoa was crying now, the droplets floating around her head, as she took in deep, grateful breaths.

“ _Emergency life support: Engaged. Time remaining: 15 minutes..._ ”

15 seconds...to 15 minutes...

( _That's it! Just wait for me! I'm coming! Hold on for me!_ )

***

Squall's eyes snapped open again, breathing fast in relief. Ellone was beaming at him, tears of joy falling down her face. Squall nodded to her once, standing up.

“I'm gonna go find Rinoa.”

Ellone sat back, still smiling in understanding. “You didn't need my help at all. Your hearts are already connected. She can still hear you...”

“I can hear her, too. Thanks, Sis.”

Squall walked past her grabbing for the handle on the wall. Piet and Quistis gasped as he pressed the 'up' button, sending it gliding on its tracks towards the air lock.

“Wait!” Quistis yelled at him desperately. “Come back! You can't go out there! Squall!”

“Idiot!” Piet shook his head, his mouth open in horror. “There's no way he can get back! He's insane! He's gonna run out of fuel and life-support in no time. They're both gonna die!”

Maybe. Squall didn't much care in that moment.

The handle stopped before the first door of the airlock. It opened with the press of a button and Squall continued up. The glass shut and there was a loud rushing of gas as the air lock emptied. Then the outer doors opened.

Squall didn't think twice. He launched himself with his hand, kicking off with his feet. Leaving any promise of safety behind, he threw himself into space after her.

“Rinoa...Where are you?”

He could still feel her there. Not quite like a buzzing in his brain. More like a pull in his chest. A magic he didn't understand pointing him in the right direction.

“I'm gonna find you, no matter what,” he promised, pressing the button for his jet pack. He only had a little fuel. He would need to be sparring.

He didn't need to see her. He could feel her. He heard her in his head. Not quite like a voice. Almost like a GF. Feelings and thoughts that almost functioned as words. A little weak, but growing steadily stronger the longer he focused on the sensation.

Squall had his direction. He pressed the booster button, rocketing him forward after her. The heads up display told him he only had about ten seconds worth of rocket fuel remaining.

At five he stopped, allowing his own momentum to carry him.

He saw her then. A white dot amongst the other white dots. Twirling aimlessly. Unable to stop herself from moving, but still not moving nearly as fast as himself.

He used the remaining five seconds to chase after her. 

He only needed to grab her arm. Her leg. Any piece of her really.

Somehow though, he ended grabbing her about the waist. His body curved naturally, falling into line with hers. There was no warmth to share between the suits, but she was there. Her body moved at feeling his arms wrap around her. She didn't need to see him to know who it was. Covering his hands with her own, she had to resist the urge to weep harder.

“Squall...Thank you. I heard your voice.”

She was alive. She was awake. He could hear her voice. He had to see her face.

Taking her by the shoulder, Squall twisted her around in his arms. She turned readily. His heart clenched painfully as he finally, after an eternity, saw her beautiful eyes looking at him again. Those eyes he had lost himself to. That smile he sought with the determination of a dying man to water. There were roses in her cheeks, tears in her eyes. She was alive.

“I can't believe it...” he whispered holding her as close as the spacesuits would allow.

“Are we...gonna make it?” She whispered back to him.

There was no sound system here. No air to carry the sound between them. She was talking and he just heard her. He accepted it just like that.

“Don't worry about it,” Squall told her calmly. What he hoped was calmly.

Don't worry about it? They were out in the middle of space! The moon was pouring monsters onto Gaia like a water hose. They were out of fuel. Running on emergency oxygen. What now? Die in space? Was that not reason to worry?

Squall felt so helpless again. He had her in his arms once more, but for how much longer? Ten minutes? It was all the oxygen they had left. He couldn't even save Rinoa? Come on, think! There had to be something that he could do for her!

“Squall...”

He blinked, turning and following her gaze.

Ejected from the Lunar Cry, floating as aimlessly as the two of them, an enormous red ship was twisting in space. Nearing them. Close enough that Squall might be able to touch it. 

He clenched his jaw. Okay. Another goal. He could do this.

“Rinoa, is Diablos still in there?” He hadn't been pulled out before she went unconscious and no one had wanted to draw him out forcefully.

“Yeah, he is. Why?”

“Diablos, master of gravity, pull us closer to that ship. I need to get us in there.”

Everything produced a gravitational field. It was a fundamental force of nature. From the smallest dust particle to the most massive star in the cosmos. It was usually only noticed on the large scale because of how weak gravitational forces were around small objects. On Gaia, in competing with the planet's pull, Diablos was limited in some ways.

Out here, in the weightlessness of orbit, he had a far greater command of the weaker forces that he had always had control of. As the big red ship began coming in closer – Esthar painted in white on its side – he manipulated those fields so they were drawn towards it much faster.

Squall reached out as it rotated past them, grabbing onto the hull with the grippers built into the gloves of the suit. Their bodies jerked slightly as they suddenly hooked onto the ship's momentum and began twisting with the ship.

“Rinoa, I saw an access hatch on the body, right over there. I'm going to move us that way. I need you to get it open while I hold on.”

“'Kay!”

She was tucked into his side. She had her hand around his waist, he had his arm about her shoulders. They were holding onto each other for dear life. Squall wasn't going to let her go, not even for a moment out here, so he had to scoot one handed around to the hatch.

It was above the airlock, made for people to enter and exit from here. It opened readily when Rinoa grabbed onto the silver handle on one corner and twisted it. It dropped down, sliding open.

“Diablos, pull us inside.”

“He said ask nicely,” Rinoa snickered.

“Diablos, pull us inside or I'm shooting you at the moon.”

“He said you're an ass!” Laughing, Rinoa felt Diablos manipulating their gravity again so they floated out over the hatch, then down. He pulled them to the floor enabling them to walk almost normally. Not quite, but it was better than flying off into space again.

Squall sort of...hopped/walked to the control panel inside the airlock. He pressed the the button to seal the top shut again and Rinoa watched as the outside was cut off, leaving them inside. She let out a stuttered breath as Squall typed on the panel.

“There's still power...about three-quarters capacity. And...There's air...About half a tank. The read out says that should be enough for about fifteen hours. I don't know what it's basing that estimate on, but it's better than the suits. Come on. I see the crew cabin through these doors.”

Rinoa turned and quickly jogged/hopped after him. She laughed because it was so awkward to do so. She really wasn't any better at this than she had been at controlling the float spell.

Squall turned and saw her struggling. He looked back at the panel and reached out. About a minute later, he figured out how to turn on the artificial gravity. The two of them sank down to the ground, their bodies orienting themselves eagerly.

“Okay?” He looked back at her.

Rinoa smiled and he nodded, leading her into the crew rooms immediately next door.

He was already pressing the release on his spacesuit helmet. He jerked it off his head gratefully, tossing it onto one of the empty crew beds. Behind him, he heard Rinoa moving similarly. The two of them quickly pulled off the depleted suits, tossing them carelessly onto one of the beds.

No longer weighed down by the bulky outfit, Squall walked quickly over to the farpanel in this room. Rinoa was slowly smoothing out the duster that had been all bunched up in the suit. Frowning...

“The door is unlocked,” Squall said, nodding. “Okay. We'll make our way up to...”

Sniff.

Sniff. Sniff.

He turned quickly to see Rinoa quickly trying to wipe tears from her face.

“What's wrong? Are you hurt?” Squall walked quickly back towards her.

Rinoa shook her head as she dropped down onto the low cot built into the wall. She was trying to keep more tears from falling but it wasn't working. Squall kneeled down in front of her, frowning as he tried to interpret her facial expression. Because those didn't look like tears of relief...

“Rinoa, what is it?” He asked softly.

“Squall...What have I done?”

He blinked at her.

“Oh, Hyne...” She grabbed her stomach, doubling over as the weight of her actions pressed down on her forcefully now that she was out of immediate danger. 

Shit.

“Hey. Hey! Listen to me!” Squall grabbed her arms and forced her to turn her head up to him. “Don't think about it.”

“But-”

“No. We have enough problems right now. Anything happening outside of these walls is beyond us. We can't do anything about it, so do not even think about it. Focus on this. Right now.”

Rinoa sniffed again, but her tears were slowing.

“Block out everything else, Rinoa. Those are problems we cannot solve. So anything that happened before, anything that might happen next, put it away. Right now we need to get to the cockpit. If there's power and oxygen, there might still be fuel. So we have a chance to get back.”

“We can go home? Back to garden?”

Squall nodded, standing. He didn't remove his hands from her. He just trailed them down her arms, lifting them with him so he was left holding her hands.

“I don't know how to fly a spaceship, but if there was ever a time to learn...”

“SeeDs _do_ need various skills...” Rinoa chuckled, smiling at him.

He nodded. “I'll figure it out. I don't really have a choice. We only have fifteen hours worth of oxygen. But if I can build that from fifteen seconds, I can get us home no problem.”

“Fifteen seconds to fifteen hours...Not a bad turnaround at all.” Rinoa got to her feet as well. She really loved the simple way he looked at everything.

Put it all away. There was nothing else right now. She could do that. She dearly wanted to do that. And if that meant running from all the truths she wasn't ready to face, then that was fine with her.

Squall nodded and turned to walk back to the door panel. The crew cabin doors had to be opened manually for the privacy of the crew. As his finger moved over the button-

“Thank you, Squall.”

He turned back to see Rinoa looking at the floor a slight blush on her cheeks. Her hands were clasped behind her back. She looked adorable.

Damn it was good to have her alive once more.

“You rescued me again. I can't thank you enough. I owe you so much.”

“Ah...Don't worry about it,” Squall averted his eyes awkwardly. Why was this awkward? Why was he suddenly feeling so nervous?

“Just happen to find me at everyone else's insistence again?” She guessed, eyes dancing.

She was giving him a way out. A way to avoid feelings that she knew he had problems with. She understood and respected him enough to do that for him.

He could face those feeling for her.

“No. I wanted to do it. I did exactly what I wanted to do.”

The smile was slow to break out on her face as his words registered in her mind. Chuckling happily, Rinoa held out her arms. She looked at him expectantly.

Squall blinked, unsure what he was looking at.

“The spacesuit was in our way before,” she explained, her eyes inviting.

Um...He didn't understand. Why was Shiva laughing?

“Give me a hug,” Rinoa giggled along with her.

Oh. Was that what that was? Squall couldn't say he had ever seen anyone ask him for one before. He didn't even recognize the gesture.

“A real tight one!” Rinoa threw her arms about herself to demonstrate. “I need to know that I'm alive!”

Yeah. He could have her, conscious, in his embrace. Just what he wanted. What he was aching to have at this moment. Because he wanted to prove to himself that she was alive as well. To squeeze her so hard that his arms went numb. To breath in her scent. To have her heart beating, vital and true in his ears once more.

But...

He knew better. Once he started, he wasn't going to want to stop. And he wasn't going to be happy with a short, abbreviated show of affection. He was going to hold on for a while. They didn't have that luxury right now. They were alive, he knew that intellectually. And that would have to be enough. They still had to get back before their clock ran out.

“We may be alive right now, but look at our situation.”

Rinoa frowned, her arms falling. She actually looked around though. Reminding herself where she was and that this was only a temporary reprieve.

“You want to live, right? You want to go back and see everyone, right?”

“And not become other people's memories?” Her voice was sad, but strong.

“That's right,” Squall nodded. “Let's get to the cockpit and once we're back on Gaia I'll...”

His voice trailed off. He wasn't quite ready to say it yet. But that was enough. Rinoa understood and she nodded, smiling at him.

“My life is in your hands, commander. I trust you.”

Squall could feel it. The absolute and complete faith she placed in him. It was humbling even as it made him feel that much stronger. Like he could push this ship back towards Gaia by hand it that was what it took to keep her safe.

Giggling at the ferocity of his emotions, Rinoa followed him from the cabin.

They found themselves walking across a short bridge over a large holding area below. There was a door on the other side, stairs leading down. Squall was already moving towards the door.

The loud shriek that echoed from below almost sounded like claws shredding through metal. Squall turned quickly as Rinoa jumped.

“What the...”

They shared a look. Squall walked to the rail and leaned over curiously.

He heard something moving down there. Something big.

Something ugly.

Squall drew back in disgust at the...thing that walked into view. It had two legs that ended almost like a tripod with splayed toes. Arms longer than its body tipped with wicked claws. Its thick purple skin was heavily wrinkled and looked strange, almost like it was scarred. It moved awkwardly, slowly. The head was tiny with glass-like pink eyes, four of them, on the slender head. But it had some kind of weird, large jaw protruding from its abdomen with needle like teeth handing down.

At least, he thought it was a jaw. It was such a strange configuration of wrong body parts that he couldn't even tell if it was shelled or wearing weird armor.

Rinoa caught a glimpse of it and her cry of horror was cut off by her own hands slapping over her mouth. Too late. The beast heard her and turned. It was fast. Squall and Rinoa both dropped down to a crouch behind the railing.

What is that, he could hear her asking in his head.

Squall shook his head, saying he didn't know in return.

“Doesn't look like a very friendly creature,” Rinoa grimaced, speaking again. She felt suddenly very naked as she was. Unarmed.

“Let's just...try to sneak by it...” Squall said slowly. He knew better than to think that would work. He was already reaching for his INVENTORY.

“I don't have a weapon,” she reminded him, touching the spot where her blaster should sit. Even if she had it, Edea had shattered her Sun.

Squall's gunblade was out first. He strapped it onto his waist. Rinoa felt bad because she couldn't even help him fight the monster. But he wasn't done. The second thing he pulled out was her blaster. Rinoa blinked when he materialized it. He scooped it up and passed it back to her.

“Squall, I don't have my Sun anymore, remember?”

“Yeah, I know. Your blaster instructor found out and brought one of his older models for you to borrow when you woke up until you could get a new one. He calls it the Cardinal. He says it flies a bit strangely, but it's better than being unarmed.”

“He did that for me?” Rinoa breathed, reaching out for her blaster. It felt heavy, like it was indeed loaded. She fit the straps around her arm, getting it snug and tight, before clicking the release.

The edge that unfolded from within was black and red. Short, long, and sharp. It almost looked like a little bird with its wings spread. Accounting for its name, she supposed.

“I owe him,” she said, stroking it gently. It was amazing how much better that made her feel.

Squall nodded and stood. “All right. Let's go kill that thing.”

Rinoa smiled and stood as well. Diablos was already coating the blade in poison. Adjusting himself for battle. He was tired, Rinoa knew. She hadn't been the only one fighting while she was unconscious. In fact, she was sure that without him, she wouldn't have lasted as long as she did.

When they were safe, she promised him a nice long rest.

For now...

Squall and Rinoa moved down the thin steps. Squall was in front, one hand on his blade as he looked to the big hanger doors. If they could just make it to that...

His boots hit the floor and the monster turned like a whip. That shrieking sound of shredding metal was its cry and the ugly thing was fast as it charged him, long claws reaching angrily.

It was too fast. Squall wasn't preparing for just how quick that monster was going to move because he had judged it based on the awkward movement he had seen on the catwalk above. It looked too big to be able to move so fast. Long claws shot out and Squall barely got his blade up to prevent them from slicing into his chest.

He crashed backwards into Rinoa, both of them falling onto the stairs. His body was heavy on top of hers and the fast monster was about to strike a second time.

Rinoa, reaching awkwardly around Squall's body, hit the trigger on the blaster. The new Cardinal was a quick blade but it had a smaller hit radius than her previous edges. If the monster hadn't been so close, she probably wouldn't have hit it at all.

The tip of the Cardinal's wing hit one of the glassy pink eyes. It actually clinked upon meeting, like the eye was actually made from glass. The monster reared back, crying. Rinoa caught the Cardinal and blinked at the tiny chip of glass-like eye that clicked against the ground.

“What the...” Rinoa frowned at the glittering pink piece.

Squall wasn't thinking about it. Jumping off of her, he struck out, upward. The monster was ugly, its head was tiny, but its long neck made a prime target. Squall sliced through it with only a bit of resistance from the spine.

The body crashed back. The head rolled away. The glassy pink eyes continued to stare up at the ceiling as Rinoa lifted herself from the steps.

“Nice,” she smiled at him.

Squall nodded, sheathing his blade. He reached a hand out for her and helped her to her feet. Rinoa dusted off her clothing, returning the edge to the blaster.

“All right, let's get to the cockpit.” Squall looked at the two doors down here. A small one, and the large hanger door. If he knew vehicles, the hanger would lead to the deck at the bottom of the ship. But the cockpit would be at the top.

“Let's go back upstairs. I saw a door at the end of the catwalk.”

Rinoa nodded and turned back to the stairs. She led the way back up. The stairs were short, a little taller than she was used to. So her eyes were down on the steps to make sure she didn't trip and fall. And so she didn't notice the next monster at the top until it shrieked at.

Rinoa jumped at the cry, nearly falling off the top step. The monster up here was smaller than the one below, and his skin was fiery, angry red. Its yellow eyes were still glassy, it was reaching for her as it rushed at them around the curve of the rail.

Crying out, Rinoa dropped. She felt her hair stir from its long limb swiping across the air where her torso had just been. She was hitting the release on the edge before she came back up.

Squall put his hand to the rail and vaulted up over her body. He caught the next blow on his Punishment, twisting so the hand fell between the twin blades. He jerked down, slicing through the arm. Crying out, the monster swiped with its other hand, drawing back quickly.

Rinoa lifted the Cardinal and shot quickly, correcting for the new blade. She was still only partially on target, but this time for the better. The Cardinal cut through the monster's neck, the front half. Blood rushed out as the monster collapsed onto its knees. Rinoa jumped back again the wall to avoid getting any blood on her clothes as the monster hit the ground.

She let out a breath, grabbing her chest. “Oh, man. That scared me.”

“You reacted well,” Squall praised, stepping over the monster to move towards the door.

“You think?” Rinoa smiled, jumping over it to move after him.

He nodded as he hit the release on the door. A light in the center flashed red. Squall frowned and hit it again. Another red flash.

“It's locked,” Rinoa frowned.

“I guess we gotta go the long way.”

“There's a long way?”

“Vehicles like this usually have secondary routes through the engine room.”

“Which is where?”

“Don't know. Let's go back down and try the small door. The big one goes to the deck.”

Rinoa nodded and turned to jump back over the red monster. She grimaced as she looked at it. Those things were really ugly. They certainly didn't exist anywhere on Gaia. Where exactly had this ship been floating around?

Going down the steps was easier than going up. Rinoa didn't need to keep her eyes on her feet as she led the way back. So this time, she was able to spot the monster before it spotted her. Gasping, she stopped dead in her tracks before dropping below the rail. Squall didn't see yet, but he dropped down automatically after seeing her do so.

“What is it?” He asked, leaning up to get a look.

“Squall, its that monster!” Rinoa whispered, pointing.

“No...” Squall frowned at the purple monster stalking around the cargo bay. Where was the body of the last one? “It's probably just a similar one. He must have eaten the last one.”

“In under a minute?” Rinoa made a face, lifting herself up to look over the rail as well. The monster turned, walking back. It still didn't see them.

But Rinoa gasped.

“Squall, its eye.”

He frowned. He could still see the tiny chip Rinoa had nicked off on accident on the floor. And, if he looked at the monster's eye she had chipped, he could see a sparkling spot where that chip would go.

“That's impossible...” he whispered. “We beheaded it.”

“Um...plan?” She looked at him, worried.

“We kill it again. Properly this time.”

Squall grabbed the edge of the rail. Then jumped, vaulting himself over the side. Rinoa leapt to her feet, staring as he hit the ground, drawing his Punishment. The monster turned at the sound of his landing and shrieked, charging again.

Rinoa lifted her blaster and shot. The Cardinal flew so weird. It turned as it approached, slicing up the monster's arm. The large slice was bleeding, but it didn't deter the monster.

Squall was more prepared for its speed this time. As it came in, Squall lifted his gunblade. He caught it between the fingers and jumped forward, using his strength and the monster's speed to split the arm completely in half. He hit the body and sliced out. The torso separated from the the legs, taking half of one arm with it.

The monster's legs were twitching reflexively, but it didn't respond when Squall kicked it. Just for good measure, he beheaded it a second time and kicked the head away. He nodded then, satisfied that the monster was well and truly dead.

“Alright,” he said as Rinoa came back to his side. “Let's check to see if the little door leads to the engine room.”

Rinoa nodded and followed after him. Unlike the door upstairs, this one opened to his touch. The door swung open and the green monster on the other side grabbed Squall before either of them even saw him there.

Rinoa screamed as the monster dragged him within. She chased after them, aiming her Cardinal. Squall twisted in the monster's grasp, preventing the weird chest/jaw thing from biting him only by using his feet to keep it at bay.

Rinoa prayed, aimed, and shot the Cardinal. Finally, it flew true. Once again slicing through the neck but actually succeeding in severing it from its body. As it collapsed down, Squall freed himself and jumped back. He flipped over in the air before landing on his feet. He looked up as the green monster twitched, dead.

Squall let out a breath, straightening his jacket. He nodded his gratitude to Rinoa. Then he bent down, scooped up the head, and shoved it into one of the crew lockers lining the wall. This was a smaller, more personal storage area. There was no way of reaching the engine from here

“Hanger it is,” Squall nodded to Rinoa.

She let out a breath as they moved back to the door. Both of them hesitated before hitting the switch to open the door. They shared a glance. Squall's hand tightened on his Punishment. Rinoa nodded, her finger on the trigger of the blaster.

The door opened and they stepped through. The purple monster just beyond turned with a shriek of rage and charged them down. The glittering of one pink eye told them that their earlier efforts had been completely in vain.

They moved at the same time. Rinoa shot the Cardinal. It sliced through the monster's neck. A second later, Squall hit it from below and cut through both legs. Crashing down to the ground, the monster hadn't even lasted a second.

Not that it mattered. It was going to get back up again.

“What is going on here?!” Rinoa yelled, running her hand through her hair. “Do these things never die?!”

Squall walked around the downed monster. It looked dead. It acted dead. Blood was no longer flowing from its wounds, signifying that its heart had stopped. He touched it with his boot a couple times but, just like before, it didn't react at all.

It looked, for all intents and purposes, dead.

It made him wish for Zell so he could raze the thing to ash.

“At least they're easy to kill,” he said, returning to her side. “Let's watch it a few minutes. See if we can figure out how its repairing itself.”

So they stood around, staring at the dead monster. Its blood started coagulating on the floor. It grew cold and ashen. Even though they gave it easily double, triple the time they had taken to kill the green and red monsters, it didn't even twitch.

Squall frowned. Did it know it was being watched? It couldn't even see them. Its head had landed with its eyes facing into the floor and the far wall. And he couldn't believe he just had that thought.

“Now what?” Rinoa asked when nothing continued to happen.

“Let's just move on. We'll figure it out later.”

Rinoa nodded as they moved to the hanger doors.

They opened easily as well. Instead of leading directly into the hanger though, the doors opened on another, smaller side room. One guarded by a red monster that wasn't at all happy to see them. As they came in, it turned with a shriek and charged.

Squall killed that one. Then encased its head in ice. Rinoa poisoned the body. Squall removed its limbs and bound them together with rope from his INVENTORY. It was rather gory work, but they were both hoping that it would have some kind of effect.

Only then did they take the second door in the room. This led out into the hanger. Where another purple monster – without glittering to its eye confirming it was indeed a different monster – was waiting for them with a shriek.

Rinoa groaned.

Squall grabbed her hand. “Just run!”

The two of them sprinted across the hanger. The monster chased after them but it was coming from the far side. Even with its great speed, it wasn't fast enough to catch them before they ran through the second door.

The metal door sealed behind them and the monster hit against them rather loudly. Panting, the two were forced to stand close together. They had run into a small supply closet. It smelled like cleaning fluid and was a little dark.

“Well, at least there's no monsters,” Squall said making Rinoa laugh. “Look. There's an opening. And a ladder. I think this must be the engine room access.”

She watched as he took hold of the ladder against one wall and pulled himself up. He stepped down into a hole far above the door, above the hanger. He called out for Rinoa to follow him.

When she stepped off after him, the two found themselves in a long, narrow corridor. It was rather hot and loud. The engine room. Squall pointed to the far end where she could see a small door. Rinoa nodded and they started across the metal grate catwalk that took them on a tour through the engine that powered the ship.

It looked a little old, but it was running well. All the way on the other side of the engine of the ship, Squall pressed the release on the door. They stepped from the heat back into the cool interior. A loud shrieking to their right made them jump.

The large green monster here was standing on a lift on a raised dais. Its arms holding onto the rails, it was glaring at them but refusing to move from its spot. Squall moved around it cautiously but the territorial monster made no attempt to chase them down.

Rinoa killed this one. She took its head off completely, getting rather good at these shots now. Squall took the head and tossed it into the engine room. The monster's body collapsed down onto the platform. Squall frowned as he tried to look past the body to where the lift led. The monster's body was preventing them from accessing the area.

“I think that's the cockpit...” he mumbled unhappily. Of course it would be.

Rinoa looked across the room to a large door. It had a blinking red light. She moved over and experimentally pressed against the release. The door dinged happily and the red light turned green, telling her she had unlocked it.

The doors separated and she found herself looking out onto the catwalk above the cargo bay. The red monster there shrieked and charged.

Rinoa cried out and slammed her hand on the bottom to close the door again. They slammed shut and the monster crashed against the metal. She heard its claws scratching but the doors wouldn't open for these monsters.

“Bad news: The red one is alive again,” she said, looking back at Squall.

“I'm shocked,” he grumbled sardonically.

“Now what?”

Squall frowned as he thought. He needed up there but couldn't get there so long as the monster's body was there. He couldn't take it anywhere though, there were monsters that wouldn't stay dead all over this ship.

“Let's take that door,” he nodded to the one across the engine room entrance.

Rinoa made a face but willingly followed him to it. They had their weapons at the ready as Squall opened the release on the door. The yellow monster within was almost waiting for them. It charged them down, nearly pushing them back out.

Squall fell into Rinoa and deliberately let the monster take him so it wouldn't take her. Rinoa cried out for him, jumping up as the door shut behind him. She quickly hit the release and chased them in. Of course, Squall was doing just fine of his own. It had only been a few seconds, but by the time she was running back in, Squall already had the monster speared on multiple shards of ice.

She let out a breath of relief as he released the magic and the monster collapsed down.

“Where are we now?” She asked, looking around.

This room had large windows and multiple seats. There was no pilot's console, but there was a terminal of some kind at the front. Rinoa stepped over the monster, moving towards the console.

She flinched suddenly in pain, grabbing for her side. She looked down quickly but saw nothing. She hadn't even touched anything. Too late, she realized that wasn't her pain she was feeling.

She looked over to see Squall pressing his hand to his side that was bleeding onto his white shirt. She gasped, rushing for him.

“It got you!”

“The claws nicked me,” he shrugged it off.

The monster's died easily, but they kept coming back to life. Squall couldn't brag the same and he only had a limited amount of energy. He hadn't slept properly since Rinoa had fallen into her coma and he hadn't slept at all since crossing with her across the tracks from FH and sleeping as Laguna was hardly restful. While he didn't know exactly how long he had been up, by this point he knew it had to have been longer than a full day.

He was tiring. Hungry. And he still had so much to do before he could rest.

Rinoa frowned at his face as he waited for his cura spell to take effect. Slowly, she moved in close and put her hand over his. He felt more healing magic coming from her.

She was hardly fairing any better. She had been in a coma, yes, but it had hardly been anything like peaceful sleep. She had been fighting the entire time, even if her body had been serene. She was mentally if not physically exhausted. Which, during battle, could be just as bad.

“We need a plan,” she said gently, pushing more magic into him.

It didn't take much. The wound sealed close under her touch easily. He was right, it was mostly just a deep nick. It simply bled a lot, it hadn't hit anything vital.

“I don't know...” Squall shook his head. For the life of him, he couldn't make out any reason why these monsters kept coming back to life.

He removed his hand, blood staining his fingers. But the pain in his side was gone. He thanked Rinoa softly before moving across the launch seats around them. Then to the terminal at the far end. He frowned at the flashing light.

Curious, he moved closer. The panel came alive at his touch and announced immediately that there was a newly recorded message waiting to be listened to. The date of the recording was from seventeen years ago.

Just how old was this ship?

“What does it say?” Rinoa asked, stepping up beside him.

Wordlessly, Squall reached down and hit play.

Static. Then the sounds of battle. A sealing door. A panting man. “ _The monsters are still multiplying, but we think we've discovered a way of defeating them. They come in pairs. Mated pairs. If you kill one, then leave it alone, the other will come to heal it. They're healing magic is unreal. We completely destroyed the yellow one yesterday, it was fighting again in minutes. The only way to take them out is to kill the mates simultaneously. The mates share the same col-ARGH!_ ”

Rinoa gasped at the eighteen year old shrieking of shredding metal that was the monster call. The man screamed in agony as the monster killed him. Squall hit the button, ending the playback as they heard the distinct and gut churning crunch of the monster chewing on human flesh.

“The mates share the same 'col'?” Rinoa turned to him, trying not to feel bad for a nearly twenty year old death.

“The same color,” Squall guessed easily, looking at the downed yellow monster. “They're all in pairs.”

“So...When he says simultaneously...We have to kill them at the same time...”

“Yeah.”

“That means we have to split up,” Rinoa touched his arm, frowning. She desperately didn't like the idea of splitting up. She would have to be apart from him again. After so long lost, alone in the darkness, she didn't think she could handle that so soon.

Squall grabbed her hand, holding it firmly. “We have no choice.” He wasn't any happier about the idea. She could feel it in him.

Rinoa nodded unhappily. “Okay...Who do we start with?”

Squall frowned, thinking. Mentally moving backwards and considering where each monster was. Red. Purple. Green. Where was the second yellow?

Alright. Think. Plot a course.

“Okay,” he nodded, moving to the door, her hands still clenched firmly in his. “The green outside this door won't move from the lift, and I can outrun the purple in the hanger. So you go for the red on the catwalk, I'll go for the red off the hanger bay.”

“Then go you backup and take out the purple in the hanger, while I take out the purple in the cargo hold,” she added, smiling.

“Then the green. I'll take the one on the podium, you get the one in the locker room.

“That just leaves the yellow. But...This is the only yellow we've seen. There aren't any more rooms, are there?”

“We'll find him. Let's start with this. Ready?”

Rinoa took a deep breath. Her hand clenched around Squall's one more time. Then she nodded. She was as ready as she was likely to get.

Squall opened the door and they walked out cautiously. Neither was particularly surprised to see the green monster shrieking at them from his proprietary hold on the lift. He apparently really liked that spot for some reason.

Rinoa made her way to the door behind which she could still hear the red monster scratching angrily at the metal. Squall nodded to her once before running off to the engine room. As soon as he was out of sight, Rinoa immediately felt exposed and helpless.

Calm down, he whispered in her heart. I'm still right here. They go down quick, we'll be back together again before anything happens.

Even alone, the green monster wasn't willing to give up his precious perch to attack her. He was glaring angrily through vibrant yellow eyes though. Rinoa swallowed convulsively as she tried to track, mentally about where Squall would be.

Get ready. I'm about to cross through the hanger.

Rinoa turned and readied her hand over the button.

Now!

The monster on the other side wasn't ready for the door to open. Rinoa had the element of surprise as she ran through, Cardinal at the ready. The weapon sliced through its neck, sending it falling backwards. Rinoa let out a shuddered breath as the monster twitched.

It took Squall only a second longer to deal with his monster. She felt him alerting her to its defeat even as she was looking over the rail to check where the purple one was. He was already glaring up at her, one eye sparkling, attracted to the sound of the red dying. He was too large to be able to climb the steps to reach her up here though.

Ready for the next one, Rinoa said mentally. Squall agreed.

They both turned and ran at the same moment. 

Rinoa jumped on the rail and slid down, shooting her Cardinal again. After three deaths, this monster was more prepared to deal with her. It knocked the Cardinal clear out of the way, sending it spinning against the wall. Rinoa called it back, raising her hand.

“Blind!” The sticky black magic coated all four eyes. Roaring in anger, the monster started swiping ineffectually at the air.

Rinoa felt Squall wondering how she was doing. She asked for another second as she ran to the side to catch the incoming Cardinal.

Turning, she shot again. The wings ripped through the jaw one way, then the neck on the return. The monster collapsed down.

The red in here is still dead, she heard Squall tell her. She looked over her shoulder. He would just be beyond that door then.

Greens next. We're halfway there.

Right.

Rinoa ran for the storage room. Squall had further to go as he had to backtrack through the engine room. She waited patiently until he alerted her that he was ready.

The monster they had beheaded, dismembered, poisoned, and put on ice was no worse for the wear. It turned angrily when the door swung open. There was a hole in one of the lockers where its mate had retrieved the head. The monster charged at her.

The Cardinal brought it down quickly. Above, Squall told her he was also finished. That just left the yellow and the mate they couldn't find.

Rinoa stepped from the locker room, looking around. The purple was still dead and she released a sigh of relief. Honestly, she had been afraid it wouldn't work.

So where was the yellow? They had been everywhere in this ship already. It wasn't like it was a massive vessel with a great deal of room.

Frowning, Rinoa started back up the stairs. She looked over towards the crew cabin only because she was checking to see if the red was still dead. He was. And the door to the cabin was closed tightly. She frowned curiously.

No way...

It couldn't be...

Rinoa walked forward. Squall told her he was ready to kill the one in the launch cabin. Rinoa frowned as she reached for the button to open the cabin. The yellow monster in there was turned away from her, sniffing at their discarded spacesuits.

Go! Rinoa yelled.

Squall obeyed immediately. The first yellow went down easily. Rinoa watched as its mate's head suddenly lift, its body tensing at the exact moment she felt Squall deliver the killing blow. Angry, it turned with a shriek. It was as surprised to see her standing there as she was.

How had it even gotten in here in the first place?

She didn't much care. Rinoa lifted her Cardinal and took its head. Rolling away onto the bed, the monster collapsed down to the ground, still.

There. The last one.

Rinoa let out a breath of relief when she looked behind her to see the red was still down, then over the railing to spot the purple's body unmoving. They were all dead.

The door across the catwalk opened and Squall came out, dragging the yellow's body behind him.

“What are you doing?” Rinoa asked, frowning.

“Help me. I'm taking these to the airlock. I'm not taking any chances. We're going to throw them into space just to be sure.”

Rinoa nodded and ran forward to pull on the red. The monster's were surprisingly lightweight. It only took a little effort for her to pull it into the crew cabin. She dropped its arm to pull the second yellow into the airlock first. Then the red and the first yellow.

Working together, especially for the ones on the lower levels, Rinoa and Squall gathered all the dismembered limbs and heads and dragged them to the airlock. None of the monsters moved again as Squall stuffed the last purple inside. He had to throw the last arm up and shut the glass doors before it could fall back out.

From this side, he opened the doors to the outside. The air hissed as all the oxygen was drained out of the room, then the hatch opened. Reaching out, Rinoa used Diablos's power to eject all the monster carcasses up and out. When the last claw cleared the hatch, Squall shut them all out. 

Rinoa let out a breath of relief as she smiled at him.

“Let's go. The cockpit is clear,” he jerked his head back.

Rinoa happily fell in line behind him as they made their way back across the catwalk. The lift, now free of the possessive green monster, responded readily to their commands. The two of them stepped aboard and Squall hit the button to send them up.

For some reason, Rinoa felt incredibly nervous as the lift moved upwards. As though she was scared about more monsters. Or that the cockpit would be gutted. Or something else equally horrible that would doom them to certain death.

Rinoa's gasp of delight was accompanied by a surge of emotion so powerful it brought tears to her eyes.

Because the cockpit was in perfect condition. Four seats, sleeping screens, a gentle flow of air all surrounded by the swirling stars.

Laughing, Rinoa ran forward into the room, arms outstretched.

They were here. They had made it. They could fly home!

Fly home...

Squall frowned at the four seats. He couldn't even tell which one was the pilot's seat. He could drive cars, trucks, boats, trains, and certain construction equipment, but spaceships were far out of his abilities.

Not that he really had a choice.

Grinning, Rinoa spotted something blinking on the far left screen in front of a chair. She tilted her head curiously. If she stayed quiet, she could almost hear something come through.

“Squall, I think it's trying to talk,” she pointed to the screen.

Frowning, he walked over to the panel. It only took him a few moments to find the volume and he raised it up with a twitch of his finger.

“ _This is Esthar Airstation..._ ”

Squall and Rinoa froze.

The voice on the end of the line sounded bored. Monotone.

“ _Ragnarok, do you read? Ragnarok, do you read?_ ”

The dutiful disinterest of someone told to page a seventeen year old ship despite everyone knowing that there was no way anyone would be aboard.

“Is that...a radio signal?” Rinoa looked at him, surprised.

Squall shook his head. “It can't be...”

Radio signals hadn't worked in...seventeen years.

“ _This is Esthar Airstation. Ragnarok, do you copy?_ ”

Squall reached down and gently hit the mic button. The sound of feedback startled the man on the other end of the line into silence. Unsure of what else to say, Squall opened with;

“This ship is called the Ragnarok?”

“ _Whoa!_ ” Squall heard something like a chair being upended on the other end “ _Is this really the Ragnarok?! Seriously? In space?!_ ”

“Uh, yes?” Squall raised his eyebrow.

“ _Holy Hyne...Jay! JAY! Go get the the doctor! No, now! It's important. Oh! Ragnarok, stay with me. You still with me?_ ”

“Where else would I be?”

Behind him, Rinoa was chuckling silently into her hand.

“ _Who are you? How are you on the Ragnarok right now?_ ”

“We're survivors of the Lunar Base. We were...outside the base when it blew and we just happened upon this ship.”

“ _Woh, seriously? Do you know the odds of that?_ ”

“I've got a good idea. Look, I don't know how to operate this class of vehicle.”

“ _Say what?_ ”

“I can't fly a spaceship.”

“ _Oh!_ ” Squall heard scrambling on the other end. “ _No. Wait! Hold on. I got this. Wait...Wait...Okay! I've got the specs for your class of ships. Okay...Here we go..._ ”

Squall rolled his eyes as the man mumbled to himself as he read.

“ _All right. Great! You're one lucky guy, you know that? The Ragnarok and her sister ships were designed for prolonged flight with a large crew. Redundancies were put in place in case of accident so the ship could be operated by those with only minimal training. If you can put in the correct command codes, the ship can perform its automatic re-entry program. You won't have to fly it at all. It will take you down by itself._ ”

Squall didn't realize how tense the uncertainty of their return had made him until he was assured that it was possible. All of that worry and stress suddenly lifted from his shoulders as he let out a long breath of relief.

Behind him, Rinoa made a small sound of happiness, like a choking sort of cry. Her footsteps rushing towards him was the only warning Squall received before her body was slamming into his back. Her arms wrapped around him from behind and she squeezed him tightly with her head resting on his shoulder, nearly crying from relief.

Squall reached up and put one hand over hers.

They could go home...

“We can make it back...?” Squall asked softly.

“ _Ragnarok...It's been seventeen years...It's going to be great to have you home again._ ”

“What do I do?”

“ _It's really easy. Just enter your location into the atmospheric re-enty program and you'll be okay. The ship will automatically search for the nearest safe place to land and touchdown. You'll be just fine._ ”

“I don't know our location though.”

“ _Roger that. We can track you from here. I've already got you on screen, Ragnarok. This is going to be super simple._ ”

“All right, how do I enter the data?”

“ _You really don't know how to fly, do you? No, it's okay! We got this. We'll take it step by step. Are you in the pilot seat?_ ”

“No. Which one is the pilot seat?”

“ _Um...There's four, right? Two forward, two back?_ ”

“Yes.”

“ _Okay, sit in the right, forward seat._ ”

Squall unwillingly separated from Rinoa. She smiled at him though as he moved to follow the instructions. She watched as he moved around and took his seat. She bit her lip as her arm crossed over her stomach to hold her elbow.

They were going home...

“Okay, I'm here.”

“ _There should be a touch panel in front of you with the flight controls. If the controls are up, push the green button to send them under the panel._ ”

“They're not up.”

“ _Great, then that's one step done. You're already ready for autopilot. Turn on the panel and get ready to type in the following commands._ ”

The screen lit up at his touch. Whoever had been here last had already pulled up the autopilot program. Probably in an attempt to save their own lives from the monsters below.

“Ready,” Squall said.

“ _First, the program code. Type: WJEIE/..._ ”

Squall's fingers were quick and deft over the keyboard. He could do at least that much.

“Entered.”

“ _Alright, now your position. Type: 2872/HD-IEU..._ ”

“Entered.”

“ _No errors?_ ”

“It's fine.”

“ _No, seriously. Make sure there are no errors. You mess up your location and you can accidentally send yourself careening into a mountain on re-entry. The program can't see, it relies on known topographical maps in its memory banks. So make sure-_ ”

“It's fine,” Squall repeated firmly. He hit the entry button, inputting the data.

The ship groaned and Squall heard the distant sound of the rockets coming to life. The mindless spinning around them stopped as the ship began orienting itself.

“ _All right, all right! Next, I'm sure you'll be okay, but, just as a precaution, there's something you should do. Turn off the gravity generator. I don't really know how much fuel the ship has left or if the readout is even accurate after all this time. This should save you some fuel though. It should be right there on the panel._ ”

Squall knew where it was, he had needed to find it to turn it on. He turned it off again and his body immediately felt that strange return of disorienting weightlessness.

“All right, done.”

“ _Congratulations. You're home free, Ragnarok. And...One more thing. From all of us at Ground Control, we wish you godspeed._ ”

“Thanks,” Squall said, wondering if the extra pageantry was necessary.

He turned back in his seat to see Rinoa still standing in place. He pointed to the seat next to him and Rinoa nodded. She made to take a step forward-

-and immediately started floating up.

“Wha-hey!” Laughing, she started turning circles in the air. She was really bad at floating.

Squall turned in his seat, lifting himself up. He pushed off of the back with his foot. He was much better at this than she was.

Like he had been doing it all his life, Squall caught her neatly in air. He grabbed hold of her back, under her knees and held her bridal style as his jump carried him forward to the far wall. He turned and jumped back, taking her with him.

She reached out and took hold of the head of the seat next to him. He released her and pulled himself back down into the pilot seat. He put the seat belt on, locking it in front of his chest, to keep himself from flying off.

“Sit,” Squall instructed when Rinoa continued to float there. “Put your seat belt on.”

Her soft hand came around his chin, cupping his cheek. She used him as leverage to pull herself around and down. Not into her seat, but into his lap. Squall's hands came up automatically to take hold of her waist. He blinked as she leaned into his chest.

She was smiling, emotions swimming in her eyes.

“We'll be home soon?” She asked softly.

“Hopefully. Now get in your seat.”

“Just for a little while.” Her grip on him tightened. One arm around his neck, the other hand continuing to caress his cheek. The end of his scar. Her feet were sort of just...floating, but her body was pressing as tight into him as she could manage.

Squall stared as her eyes closed, her head leaning against his shoulder.

“Why are you holding onto me like this?” He asked, his voice soft.

“You don't like this, Squall?” Her head lifted up to look at him.

He shrugged. His free hand came up from around her knees and touched her hand. “Just...different. Not really used to this. No one's ever held me like this before.”

“How about when you were little? Didn't you feel safe and secure being held by your parents?” Her voice was sad.

Squall shook his head. “I can't remember anything about my parents, if I ever even met them...But...Ellone was there for me. Ellone used to hold my hand.”

“Made you feel safe and secure?”

“Sure...” Squall's face tightened at the memories. They weren't...pleasant. “But she left. She just...disappeared. And I'm...afraid...”

Rinoa blinked, her eyes widening slightly at the admission.

“I'm afraid of having that feeling of comfort taken away again...”

“You were afraid of losing us?” Her voice was breathy in wonder, her eyes swimming. “Is that why you were always so mean? So distant?”

“I've always been alone. And it was easier if I pushed everyone else away before they could leave. It hurt less that way.”

“Squall...” Her voice was filled with sadness as she rested her forehead against his.

All those unreadable stares. All the harsh words. All the anger he would display whenever one of them dared get too close. He had been trying to protect his own heart. 

“You missed out on all the good things in life. You've missed out on so much.”

“...Maybe,” he conceded gently.

“Definitely,” she corrected firmly, leaning back to get a better look at him. Her hand traced down his face, to his shoulder. His arm around her waist tightened just slightly to keep her in place. Pushing her a little more firmly against his chest.

“I like it like this,” she whispered softly. “I've always liked being held. I liked to have my mom hold me, sing to me. I even liked it when my dad did it. You know, back when we got along.”

“I'm not your mom. Or your dad,” he told her, irritated to his own surprise. He always hated it when she compared him to her father.

Rinoa chuckled gently. “Of course you're not. But now...Squall, you're the one who gives me the most comfort. Comfort and happiness...and annoyance and disappointment, too!” 

Laughing, she squeezed him tighter, leaning her head against his shoulder.

“...Whatever.”

“...Whatever.”

She could feel his own irritation now. He really disliked it when people did that to him. It made her laugh again. And he loved the ringing, melodic sound of that.

“Maybe if you don't want us to know what your answer is going to be, you should try actually talking to us.”

Squall paused for a long moment. The ship had turned around completely and was facing back towards Gaia again. Squall could feel it powering forward. Driving them towards the planet. Once they hit the atmosphere and were back under gravity's control, this weightlessness would end.

“You should get back to your seat now,” he jerked his head to the side.

“Just a little longer,” she begged, her arms tightened again.

You'll be safer in your seat, he grumbled silently.

He heard her laughing gently at his response.

Are you telling me you'd let me fall?

Squall's hands tightened around her reflexively. Because of course he wouldn't. And he felt her laughter start up again, just a little stronger.

They stayed like that another long moment. Rinoa was in no hurry to move. Squall didn't want to force her away even if it would be safer.

He was starting to rather like being held himself.

“...We're gonna make it home, right?”

“We can only hope.”

“Back to garden. Back to our ordinary lives...”

“Best odds we've had so far.”

She said nothing for a long moment. Then-

“When we get back...we won't be able to stay together anymore...will we?”

Squall's arms tightened again.

They were getting closer to Gaia. Gravity and everything they had been putting off discussing was about to have them in their grasp again.

“No one can predict the future. There are no guarantees. Those were your words, Rinoa.”

“That's not what I meant...” She frowned as she pulled back from him slightly. 

“We'll figure out what to do once we get back.”

“They'll all be angry at me...”

Squall said nothing. He wasn't sure what to say.

To his own displeasure, Rinoa finally detangled herself from him and pushed herself over. She perched delicately in her seat, frowning at the ground in front of her. Tears were starting to fall around her head as she thought about their future.

The panel in front of Squall beeped again, alerting him that the radio signal was back.

“ _This is Esthar Airstation. Ragnarok, please respond._ ” It wasn't the same guy from before. This voice sounded more official. More distant.

“This is the Ragnarok,” Squall replied calmly.

“ _We have some questions for you. We're collecting escape pods right now. We have a pretty good idea of what happened up there. I hear you are are from Lunar Base, but not part of the crew. How many of you are there?_ ”

“Just two.”

He heard someone writing something on a personal touchpad. “ _Your names?_ ”

“I'm Commander Squall Leonhart. I'm a SeeD from Balamb Garden.”

“ _All right. And the other?_ ”

“...Rinoa Heartily.”

“ _Rinoa?!_ ” The surprised cry wasn't encouraging. “ _The sorceress?! She's on the ship?!?_ ”

Rinoa's face was turned away from him. Her shoulders tight. Squall didn't need the confirmation through the radio. He already knew very well what Rinoa was. The clues were a little too obvious for him to miss.

He had killed Sorceress Edea, only reviving her afterward. And the rules of being a sorceress meant your powers moved to the nearest female after your death. Rinoa had been right there. Ultimecia had jumped from Edea into her. And now Rinoa's healing magic, magic she had already used on him, was far too powerful to be anything normal people were capable of wielding.

Their hearts were connected. A connection made deeper by the pure magic that Rinoa now held. It wasn't normal.

He knew what she was. He had deliberately shut down any discussion about it in the beginning. Not because she wasn't ready to face the truth, but because he wasn't.

Rinoa took in a staggered breath, slowly turning back to him. He knew. She knew he knew. They both had been refusing to admit it.

Now...

She had to say it aloud. At least to him.

“I've...become a sorceress,” she said softly. “I won't be able to stay with you anymore, Squall.”

“ _Respond, Ragnarok._ ”

Rinoa's tears were falling fast now, her body curling up, her knees pulling into her chest. “I don't want the future. I don't want to go home. I want the present to stand still. I want to stay here with you and never go back.”

“ _Respond, Ragnarok!_ ”

Squall was staring at her. But his expression wasn't blank like usual. There was a sort of burning there that blazed on her skin.

“ _RESPOND, RAGNAROK!_ ”

“Nobody will want to be around me anymore...” Rinoa looked at her hands almost like she didn't even recognize them. “Everyone fears sorceresses...I'm an enemy now...”

“ _By the authority of Dr. Odine, the sorceress will be seized upon arrival. Be sure to follow the retrieval crew's instructions and no harm need come to anyone._ ”

“I'm...scared. I'm so scared...”

“ _Commander Leonhart, do you copy? Is the sorceress listening, too?_ ”

Squall slammed his hand down on the volume, cutting the man off. Casting them into tense silence that stretched on as the hull of the ship started burning. They were entering the atmosphere again.

“I'm scared, Squall,” she looked at him helplessly. “I don't wanna go back.”

Squall ripped his seat belt off and grabbed for her. Rinoa fell into his arms, clutching his neck desperately as their heart wrenching sobs were ripped from her throat. His arms tightened around her almost painfully, not nearly tight enough, as he looked forward towards home.

A place that suddenly seemed far too close...

***

I don't know what to do...

This is just another crossroad in my life.

But, for the first time, I don't know which way to go.

I've come this far because I've...

I've fallen for you.

Rinoa...

Am I just...supposed to let you go?

***

The ground crew was on the scene before the re-entry program even had the ship touching down. They had surrounded the area and were ready for resistance. Commander Leonhart was known now for the threatening manner he had treated anyone who dared get close to the sorceress. They were more than prepared for a fight.

So when the stairs came down and the two of them slowly descended, holding hands but weapons put away, no one was really sure how to react.

Squall and Rinoa stopped at the bottom of the steps and didn't really know what they were supposed to say. What to do. Her eyes were red and puffy. His heart was raw and screaming. The bond that joined them had never been more powerful and their own pain was being magnified in the other.

Finally, a woman and a man came forward bringing only two soldiers with them. Her expression was understanding and sad as she approached. The man's jaw was tight, less forgiving than she. The soldiers hung back just slightly. 

“Sorceress Rinoa,” she greeted, her voice gentle as she beheld the young girl. “Hyne's descendant.”

“Come with us,” the man gestured to their vehicle. “We must seal your power for the sake of the world.”

She knew that. She nodded once. Squall's hand tightened on hers.

“Thank you for understanding,” the woman nodded to both of them. “We'll...give you a minute to say your goodbyes. Tell us when you're ready.”

She pulled on the man's robe sleeve, forcing him to step back and give them some privacy. As much as they could have being surrounded by soldiers on all sides.

Silence...

Rinoa took a breath and turned back to Squall. He was staring at her already. His eyes dark and burning and pleading.

“I should tell you...before I go. I was possessed up there in space. There was a sorceress inside me. Ultimecia, a sorceress from the future. She's trying to achieve something called time compression. She wants to merge the past, present, and future into one existence. She's the only one who would be able to exist in such a world. She, and no other. As long as I'm free, she'll keep trying to use me to accomplish her goals. I...We can't let that happen, right?

“She can only possess another sorceress. So if I'm...And if you can do the same to Adel, then she'll have no way to get back here. She won't be able to do what she needs to do. We'll have saved all of existence. That's the right thing, right? It's our responsibility as citizen's of Gaia to do whatever we need to in order to protect the world.”

He wasn't saying anything. He was continuing to stare and Rinoa felt hot guilt filling her belly. After she had promised not to leave his side, even though she knew what leaving did to him, here she was about to do exactly that. Forever. There was no way she was coming back from this. There would be no chance meeting in the future.

“I should go...” she whispered, her throat raw. “Before anything bad happens...”

Painfully, like she was ripping her own heart in two, Rinoa pulled her hand from his. She came forward and nodded to the two people. Her head held high. Like an empress, she spoke.

“I'm ready.”

“Very well,” the woman nodded. “We're going to be taking you to the Sorceress Memorial for the sealing. It's a very quick process. Completely painless. It will be over before you know it. We understand and appreciate your sacrifice.”

Rinoa nodded to them and stepped in front to lead them in the way that she did. Her back straight, her steps determined. So damn beautiful.

Squall couldn't watch her walk away like that.

“Rinoa!”

She turned to see him rushing at her. 

“Don't go,” he shook his head, stopping in front of her. She smiled sadly, trying to hold back more tears that she thought she had cried out in the Ragnarok.

“Thank you, Squall,” she whispered, her voice raw and pained. “But I have to go...”

He blinked at her. Like he didn't even understand the language she was speaking. Rinoa looked down and the gleam of her necklace caught her eye. 

“Oh, I still have your ring,” she reached up to pull it off. To give it back like she promised.

“Keep it,” he told her softly, firmly.

“You sure?” Rinoa looked at him. “You said it was your favorite...”

“It's fine.” What did it matter if that hunk of metal was gone? When it was taking her with it...

Rinoa clutched the ring tight as she nodded. She walked away. She forced him to watch her walk away. She looked back only once.

Squall wasn't important to these people. The only thing they cared about was Rinoa. With the sorceress in hand, the soldiers all packed up. She had nearly an entire army as an escort as they drove away. Leaving him alone at the base of the Ragnarok.

This was what Rinoa decided.

There was nothing Squall could do about it...

Right...?

His body was numb. Uncertain what else to do, he turned and started back into the Ragnarok. Someone would have to come for the ship eventually. He supposed he would just...wait.

The hanger was bright as he walked through. The cargo bay echoing, empty. Up the steps and into the antechamber. He looked at the lift to the cockpit and found he couldn't go up there. The memory was too fresh.

He moved instead to the crew launch room. Two rows of seats. Beautiful views of the landscape in almost all directions. It was bright in here now.

He walked to one of the chairs at random and sat down. Unsure what else to do with himself. Just staring at the floor as the old engine settled back in against gravity, a force that it hadn't felt in a long time.

Despite that, Squall still felt like he was up in space. Drifting endlessly. Hopelessly. Running out of oxygen and completely disoriented.

He didn't know how long he sat there. It didn't feel like very long. Quistis's footsteps were incredibly familiar to him. He had known them for a long time. Short but brisk. The door opened for her and Squall jumped to his feet.

Thinking, for half a second, that maybe Rinoa...

“I'm home,” Quistis quipped, laughing.

Squall blinked in surprise. “How did you get here?”

“Well, a lot of things happened. I was unconscious for a while after the escape pod touched down. They should really work on that landing. And when I came to, it was just me and Piet.”

“What happened to Ellone?”

“Ellone wasn't with us anymore. Not only that, there were signs of a struggle. When the Esthar rescue crew showed up, I asked about you. They told me about this ship and that you were safe, so I thought I'd come find you.”

“I see...” Squall said, his voice distant.

“You're one crazy man, Squall,” Quistis grinned, wrapping her arms around herself. “When you jumped into space, you weren't thinking about anything else were you?”

He nodded. He hadn't been. There was only one thing that important...

Quistis sighed, touching her face dreamily. “I wonder if there's anyone who'd do the same thing for me? Oh, well...So. Where's our princess that so drastically changed the ever-cautious Squall?”

Quistis was looking around expectantly, her face happy. Of course she was happy. Despite all the odds, Squall and Rinoa had made it back to Gaia.

But now Rinoa was...

For the second time, the door opened and Zell, Irvine, and Selphie rushed inside. All three of them were beaming at him. Quistis laughed in delight. Because they were all back together.

Almost all.

“Nice ship!” Selphie laughed. “Does it fly? How does it move?”

“I don't know,” Squall shrugged.

“S'up, Squall!” Zell came forward, waving. “So glad you're safe. I know you're probably tired so I hate to tell you this now, but we've got major problems down here. Well, here goes.”

Zell stood at attention as he gave his report. “Some big thing called the Lunatic Pandora came up out of nowhere like immediately after you left. Matron couldn't go through with her plans because of it. Which is okay anyway. Turns out, Matron's not a sorceress anymore. Matron gave away her power to someone without realizing it.”

To Rinoa...

“Turns out, the succession rule applies even if you're revived immediately after you die, who knew? So she asked one of the Esthar guys to drive her back home. Said she needed to think. And, uh...Oh, yeah! The Galbadian military is controlling that Lunatic Pandora thing. Talked to Odine about it, and that was a hassle let me tell you. Probably better it was me than you, you might have killed him. He's one of those guys who talks a lot, but slowly, ya know? Worst combo.

“Right. So, the Galbadians excavated the Pandora from the ocean where Esthar sank it years ago. Inside of the Pandora, there's this thing called a 'Crystal Pillar'. It has this unbelievable power to call monsters down from the moon. Honestly, I didn't think it would actually do it. Until it did. Been total chaos down here since that Lunar Cry thing. We've been hunting monsters in Esthar for hours. Kinda tired. Also, we're billing the city for this work. We were kind of asked to do it, we didn't volunteer. So, remind me to talk to Xu about that.

“Oh, and it wasn't just monsters that came down from the moon. Sorceress Adel – who knew that nutjob was still alive? – came down along with the machine that sealed her. I guess the stream of monsters caught her. Then, the Lunatic Pandora caught Adel from the stream. Snatched her right out of the air. Dr. Odine thinks that may have been Galbadia's true intent, meaning-”

“Zell. That's enough for now,” Squall cut him off, his voice low and flat.

The others shared a look, surprised.

“But, Squall-”

“I know.” Squall shook his head, turning from them. “I know we've got problems. But I can't think right now.”

Quistis frowned at the others, then at him. “What's wrong?”

Squall let out a long breath. They deserved to know.

“Rinoa is a sorceress now. She received Matron's powers. An escort from Esthar came to pick her up just before you all got here. Rinoa's in Esthar now.”

Selphie gasped. “We have to go save her!” She turned on her heel and sprinted from the room.

“Was she taken by force?” Quistis asked, concerned.

“No. It was Rinoa's own decision.”

Irvine's eyebrow raised as Quistis and Zell shared a look.

“She was scared about being a sorceress...Scared of being feared...hated...Scared that no one would want to be around her anymore...She said she couldn't handle that...”

Irvine turned and walked from the room after Selphie.

“Didn't you try to stop her, Squall?” Quistis gaped at him.

“It was Rinoa's decision. What right do I have to object?”

“Oh! Stop that!” She snapped at him. “What are you talking about? Why did you go all the way out into space to save Rinoa? So you could hand her over to Esthar? So that you might never see her again?! No, right?! Wasn't it because you wanted to be with Rinoa? You're a fool.”

“Seriously,” Zell frowned at him. He looked surprised at Squall's unpassionate response. It seemed so different from the man who had crossed an ocean on foot to save Rinoa.  
A fool? Was that what he was?

“...Maybe...”

Squall frowned.

He felt like he was being ripped in half. 

Duty: SeeD is trained to defeat the sorceress. Rinoa is the sorceress. He should be thankful that she was being sealed and he wasn't being forced to fight her. For the good of the world, for all of time and space, she was being put away.

Heart: Their hearts were connected. She was the only thing he had ever wanted. The only one who knew when he was making jokes and laughed. Who kept coming back even when he pushed her away. She smiled at him, warming his heart. Her brown eyes sparkled in a face that constantly dominated his thoughts.

He was a SeeD. He had responsibilities. Duties to fulfill. He couldn't ask his garden to fight then double cross that now.

He was her SeeD. He had given his word to protect her. He strived for her happiness. He couldn't betray her by letting her be sealed in the dark and cold forever.

He may never get to hear her voice again. A voice that he had been lost and desperate to hear for the days she had been in a coma. Back when he had been hoping for a way to save her. Now he was handing her off, certain he'd never hear it again.

What the hell was he doing?

How the hell was this right?

What could he possibly do?

…

Of course...

Squall's fists closed. His eyes cleared. His back straighten as his head came up. Quistis and Zell smiled at him.

“Have you decided?” She asked.

“Heading back to Esthar, right?” Zell pointed over his shoulder.

Squall's heart hardened around his choice. He was cutting off a lot right now, but he knew what he could live without. And what he couldn't.

“Pandora-whatever and Sorceress Adel are out of my hands. I don't even know where to look for Sis. The only thing I know is Rinoa. The only thing I want for sure right now is Rinoa. We're going to get Rinoa back.”

The Ragnarok suddenly roared to life. Quistis and Zell called out in surprise as it jerked and began rising. Squall turned quickly and watched the land fall away. The sky becoming brighter. Clouds zooming past them.

“Hey...” Zell frowned as the ship rushed forward.

“Ah, excuse me, we're flying...” Quistis blinked.

Zell groaned. “I really hope I'm wrong, but I can just picture Selphie in the pilot seat...”

“Screaming 'woo, we're flying!'...”

And a very excited Irvine next to her, Squall finished mentally.

Squall turned and jogged back out the room and up the lift. Selphie had found the pilot seat no problem. She had also figured out how to pull the controls out from under the screen, disabling the autopilot and setting it to manual control.

She was laughing hysterically as the lift stopped on the bridge. Irvine was howling in victory next to her, his hand on the headrest.

“Whoo-hoo! We're flying!” Selphie yelled, her feet bouncing excitedly on the ground.

Irvine turned and grinned to them, his face one of a man falling deeply in dreamy love. “Selphie's just amazing.”

Squall frowned, walking forward. “You sure you can fly this thing?”

Selphie shrugged carelessly. “I don't know. It just kinda took off! It's pretty easy, actually. I think it'll be fine. But there's no guarantee we won't crash!” She laughed loudly, filled with the thrill of speed and power.

Her words didn't fill Squall with dread. At this moment, he didn't really care. After all, there were no guarantees about the future.

“Selphie, head for Esthar. She's being taken to the Sorceress Memorial. We're going to rescue Rinoa.”

“That's what I'm talking about! Hang on, girls! I just found a button labeled 'turbo' and I can't wait to find out what it does!”

And the afterburners took Zell, Irvine, and Quistis clear off their feet.


	38. Sorceress Memorial

East of Esthar, north of the Lunar Gate, the Sorceress Memorial rested in the middle of seemingly nowhere. It was a very old building, designed for a singular, specific purpose. In its history, it had only been used once. For the sealing of Sorceress Rinoa, the building had been serviced and cleaned. The nearly twenty year old technology was bulky and built from spare parts, but it was no less effective for that.

From the outside, at the base of the long stairs, it was an ominous sort of structure. The yellowing of the sky with the sunset, the dry breeze blowing in from the dry land, did nothing to ease the illusion of misery.

Squall, Quistis, and Zell stood at the last step, looking up with determined faces. Their weapons were at the ready, but sheathed so it wasn't obvious.

Hold on, Rinoa. I'm coming...  
Squall and his friends started up together as a unit. In perfect unison . Moving with the ease and familiarity of years of being trained as partners, as comrades. They were silent. They didn't need to speak.

At the top, the entrance was guarded by two Esthar soldiers. One tensed, having heard the warning about Commander Leonhart. The other, however, had been one of the two that had taken Rinoa away at the landing sight. His sympathies stirred for the heartbroken SeeD. He held out one hand, preventing his partner from drawing his weapon.

“You want to see your comrade off, huh?” He asked softly.

The SeeDs stopped in front of them, not responding. Their set faces didn't appear hostile. The soldier nodded sadly and jerked his head back.

“I'll make an exception. Go ahead.”

Squall strode forward, Quistis and Zell just a step behind him. The glass doors slid open and revealed a control room with outdated technology and scientists moving quickly about trying to bring it back to life.

Beyond a glass partition, encased in a strange machine, Rinoa stood within a metal cage wrapped with many flowing tubes. She was looking down at the floor. Filled with fear and sorrow. Too much to realize what Squall was doing.

One of the scientists noticed them enter and jumped.

“This is a restricted area!” He yelled, looking past him to the guards. “What are you doing here?!”

“What I should have done earlier,” Squall said calmly, coming down the steps into the room.

Behind him, Quistis's whip hit the ground, sparking. Zell smirked as he planted his burning fist against his smoking palm.

“It may be a mistake, but I'll never know unless I do it.” Squall continued quite calmly.

“What are you talking about?” The scientists backed away quickly. They weren't fighters.

“I know what I want, and what I have to do.” Squall's gaze was freezing hot as he gave them his most chilling death glare. “There's still a chance. I'm not gonna look back. I'm taking Rinoa with me.”

“What?!” The head scientist jerked back, fear in his eyes. “You must be joking! It's too late for her!”

Quistis's whip snapped forward. The scientists all hit the deck. The tip of the Scorpion embedded into the control panel and the thundara she sent down the body crashed the system. Smoke billowed forth from the components as the alarms started blaring.

“Go, Squall!” Zell yelled, turning to face the incoming guards.

Squall ran.

Through the entrance and into the sealing chamber. A thin metal catwalk surrounded by wires and tubes clanked loudly under his boots. It was strangely cold in here, even to him. Shiva didn't like this cold. It was an affront to her. She started absorbing the energy almost as soon as he walked inside though. It was her nature; their nature.

Encased in some strange, transparent substance, Rinoa looked up as he approached. He saw, he didn't hear her gasp as she touched the walls of the cage.

“Rinoa, hold on!” Squall yelled. He didn't know if she could hear him, but he knew she felt it. “I'll get you out in a sec!”

His eyes cast around quickly, looking for something to break the seal. On Adel's Tomb, it had been part of the device itself. He didn't see it now. This version was different from Adel's. Growling in frustration, Squall slammed his fist into one of the machines.

“What am I supposed to do?! Come on! Think!”

It's like cold sleep, Shiva whispered to him. It's similar. Feel it? Feel the false cold? It's centered in that tube there. Slice it. I'll handle the rest.

Drawing his gunblade, Squall glared at the offending tube in question. It lay right across his vision, connecting the cage to the machines around it. He pulled up and sliced down with a cry. The tube split with a loud hissing as white gas rushed out. Cold and strange.

Shiva absorbed it all easily, keeping him from cold sleep. Keeping Rinoa from falling into cold sleep. The mist filled the room and Squall squinted into it, trying to see what was going on.

That sound...

It was...

A small gasp. Then her face. Coming towards him from the mist. A smile spread across her cheeks as she fell forward from the cage. Squall nearly dropped the Punishment as he reached for her. 

Her arms slipped around his neck. Sheathing the gunblade, he grabbed her with both hands. Holding her waist, running his hand over her hair as he held her tight. Breathing her scent. She smelled like flowers again, even without her perfume.

“Squall, don't...” Rinoa leaned back, tears in her eyes. “I'm a sorceress.”

“I don't care,” he said simply. “I want you with me. You said you'd stay with me.”

She smiled through her tears. “Circumstances changed, Squall.”

“Yeah, and I changed them back.”

She struggled to breath for a second. “Squall, you-”

“Squall! Rinoa!” Quistis yelled from the other room. “Come on! We need to leave!”

“Let's go!” Squall squeezed her once more – just once more for now – to convince himself that she was still alive.

Then he released her. Taking her hand, he started running her down the isle. Rinoa fell in line readily enough. Happy to follow him wherever he chose.

Quistis and Zell were fighting off Esthar soldiers out front. They had already taken out more than a few, but the army that had come for Rinoa was quickly coming back. And while Squall would happily decimate an army for her, he would rather work smarter.

Pulling the communicator Zell had found in the Ragnarok lockers from his pocket, he lifted it to his mouth and pressed the call button. The radio waves, functioning perfectly, zipped through the air.

“Irvine! The Princess is out of the tower! Bring her around!”

Squall paused in front of the steps. Okay, he might have to fight a bit. There were way more soldiers blocking his path than he had predicted. All angry. All weapons drawn.

“Atten- _TION!_ ”

The call wasn't for them. It was for the soldiers. The ones guarding their path suddenly dropped back as a large Estharian man came forward. Wearing golden robes in the style that Esthar preferred, he waved his hands, telling the soldiers to step away without a word. The blonde and gray beard under his head wrap concealed his expression, but his bright blue eyes looked at the SeeDs. At Rinoa. Then to Squall. He stared longest at him.

Then he nodded once.

They didn't need more permission. Zell and Quistis sprinted forward and around him. Squall rushed after them, still holding Rinoa's hand. He paused only once to look back. The large man was watching Squall carefully, his expression unreadable.

Squall felt like...he had seen him somewhere before.

Over the loudspeaker on the Ragnarok, Selphie let out a holler of delight as the ship rushed over the memorial. Swinging the body around, Irvine was opening the bay doors already as she landed at the base of the stairs The soldiers cried out as the engines sent a burst of hot air their way.

Squall turned and continued running down. Zell and Quistis jumped aboard first. Squall and Rinoa hit the deck and Irvine called out for Selphie to lift off. He was already slamming the bay doors closed as she did so.

Squall turned back but he could no longer see the bearded man who let them go. He shook his head, bringing up his communicator.

“Selphie, hit the afterburners!”

They almost heard her cry of excitement from upstairs. The boost kicked on immediately. The others caught themselves before falling. Squall caught Rinoa. As they adjusted to the speed, Zell started whooping excitedly.

“Oh YEAH!” Zell yelled, fist pumping the air. “That's what I call a successful retrieval mission, baby! I wish that could have been recorded. That was awesome!”

“Nicely done,” Irvine grinned at them. “Come on, let's get back to the bridge. Selphie will want to see Rinoa too.”

Squall nodded and started forward, pulling Rinoa with him. He hadn't released her hand. She was staring at the ground but she went willingly as the others moved back to the lift. Then up into the cockpit where Selphie was singing a weird modification of her train song.

“Nice going, guys! How was that pull around? Was it awesome?”

“So awesome!” Zell laughed.

“When did you find a speaker?” Irvine couldn't help but ask.

“I dunno. I just pressed a button and the speaker came on. It was pretty sweet. And how many chances am I gonna have to do that again?”

The others laughed. Even Squall smiled. Except Rinoa, she was still staring down at the ground. She almost looked like she was trying to hide behind Squall. Quistis turned back to her and smiled gently at her expression.

“What's wrong, Rinoa?”

She bit her lip, looking up. Her face was red. “I'm just a little...embarrassed.”

“Why?” Zell smirked, smug.

“It's just...I was so set on staying in Esthar. But then, when you guys came to get me...It made me so happy, and I...”

Irvine chuckled, tipping his hat to her. “No need to be embarrassed about something like that.”

“Yeah, happy is good!” Selphie hollered. “Squall, can I hit the turbo again?”

“No,” he raised an eyebrow at her.

“Thanks...everybody...” she said, squeezing Squall's hand just a bit tighter.

Zell looked over to their leader. He was happy, but he wasn't celebrating. Zell felt like that was wrong seeing as how this was his mission.

“Squall, you're awfully quiet. What's on your mind?”

What wasn't on his mind? He had a lot of things to think about right now. Saving Rinoa was a reckless action, which was fine. He was okay with that. But now he needed a plan and-

“As an expert Squall observer,” Quistis put a hand to herself. “I would say he's thinking: What do we do now? Where do we go next? How's everyone going to-blah blah blah. You know, if you think and worry too much, everything tends to turn bad. Come on, Squall. Why don't we just picture a brighter future?”

“...Whatever.” He was grinning as he said it. Rinoa smiled, laughing a bit.

“No, but seriously,” Zell looked at them. “What do we do from here? I mean, I'm 100% down with the Rescue Rinoa mission, but what next? Don't we have to do something about that Pandora thing in Esthar? After all, the Galbadians are controlling it. Which means Seifer probably involved, too. Right?”

Squall already knew that. He frowned. Thinking about his training partner. About the strange shell of a man he had become.

“Seifer is...Ultimecia's puppet.”

“Yeah, and that Ultimecia!” Zell scoffed. “We can't let some jacked sorceress from the future mess up our world! Let's go kick her ass! We're SeeDs! We're here to destroy sorceresses, right!?”

“ZELL!” Squall roared, furious. Rinoa had flinched just a small bit. Even if Squall hadn't felt it in his hand, he could feel it in her heart.

Zell jumped, guilty. “Aw, shit. There goes my mouth again. S-Sorry...I didn't mean it like...ah...”

“So, Squall?” Quistis looked at him expectantly. He really disliked that look. It meant people were depending on him to make decisions again. “Where are we going?”

Ah, whatever. If he had to choose...

“Um...” Rinoa spoke up softly, hesitantly. “Can we...go to the orphanage you guys were talking about in Trabia? The one you grew up in?”

“But that place is in shambles,” Quistis said, confused.

Selphie nodded. “Yeah, there's nothing to see there but some old rocks and weeds.”

Rinoa knew that. That was why she wanted to go there. “I want..to stay away from places where there are lots of people. I'm a sorceress...If Ultimecia possesses me again...”

She trailed off, unable to finish the thought. She didn't have to.

“Let's go,” Squall pointed ahead of them. “Head to Edea's house.”

“Yes, sir!” Selphie laughed, adjusting course. “Centra, here we come. Hold onto your butts, I'm kicking on the turbo again.”

“I said, no!”

She did it anyway.

***

Edea's house, set on the shore of a cape and surrounded by a long field of flowers was incredibly peaceful. There were no monsters here because there was nothing to eat here. The Ragnarok came to rest near the house, the burners still smoking as the bay doors opened.

Irvine, Zell, and Quistis stepped out, laughing and talking. Selphie smiled, removing her hand from the button to lower the doors. She looked over to Squall and Rinoa. They hadn't let go of each other's hands even once.

“I don't get it,” Selphie grinned, catching their attention.

“Get what?” Squall asked, calm.

She shrugged. “I never imagined you two would end up together. I mean...You guys are totally complete opposites. I didn't think Rinoa's straight-forward approach would work.”

Rinoa flushed red as Selphie laughed happily.

“I'm glad I was wrong. It's good to see you smiling, Squall.”

“What about you, Selphie?” Rinoa asked her. “Why are you here?”

“Oh, me? I just like being surrounded by lots of friends! And I'm always down for whatever.” She was still laughing as she pranced down the hanger ramp.

Rinoa smiled after her as she and Squall started down after everyone. Irvine was waiting at the bottom, his arm around Selphie's shoulders. He winked at Rinoa as they approached before sighing dreamily at the pair of them.

“Ah, this is good. This is very good.”

“What is?” Squall asked, more because he knew Irvine wanted him to than because he was curious.

“See this scar here?” Irvine tilted his head, showing a long line under his chin. “I had to put up with Rinoa's kicks and punches and blaster for you. And the girl can hit for someone so small. So, seeing you two like this makes it all worth it.”

“I'm sorry, Irvine,” Rinoa grimaced.

“No, you're not. But I'm glad we went back. Don't worry about it. Okay, we'll leave you two alone now. Come on, Selphie. Let's go check out the bunks on the ship.”

“Race you there!” She laughed, running back up the ramp.

“They're going to go have sex in the ship, you know that right?” Rinoa asked Squall when they disappeared inside.

He sighed. “I really don't care anymore. I just hope they keep it to one bed so we don't have to sleep where they did.”

Rinoa laughed as they started down the path to the orphanage. The others were right. It was a crumbling mess after so long unattended. It didn't seem desolate though. There was almost a sort of purity to the air here, calming her spirit.

Zell was standing in the path, staring at it with a grin. They approached him from behind and he turned with a smirk. “It still kind of feels like home even after so long. Wouldn't you say?”

Squall looked at the building. Echoes of memories whispered, lost in his head. Lost to time, lost to the GF. It didn't really matter. The images were gone. But the feelings remained.

“Yeah. Still feels like home.”

Zell nodded, grinning. For a long moment. He realized a bit too late and jumped.

“Oh! Sorry.”

“About what?” Squall raised an eyebrow.

“I'm sure you want to be alone with her. You know Squall, I never thought you were the roman-ah, you know. That whole thing.”

“What about you, Zell?” Rinoa asked sweetly, jumping in before he could tease Squall further. “That girl in the library...?”

Zell flushed bright red. Stuttering. “W-What?! I don't know what you're talking about!”

Rinoa laughed as Squall smirked at him. “Oh, please. All the girls in the garden know about it. Even I noticed it right away and I barely know her. She's pretty cute, too. Got that whole 'girl-next-door' vibe going on.”

“Hey! This isn't about me! And why does everyone call her the library girl?!” Grumbling, blushing bright red, Zell stomped past them. They heard him muttering about going hunting for something to eat and looked at each other, sharing a smile.

She was chuckling as Squall led her further down the path. From inside the ship, led there by Zell and the others, Angelo jogged past. He barked happily at the two of them before turning left off the path and running out of sight.

Rinoa and Squall followed him slowly and saw Quistis standing beside one of the columns, laughing at the sight of Angelo frolicking in the flowers. She turned at their approach and nodded out towards the long field.

“This place is beautiful.”

“Yeah, the flower field...” Squall looked around.

The familiar, comforting scent of the white and yellow flowers. A scent that perfectly matched Rinoa's perfume. Now the scent that just seemed to come naturally from her.

“I forgot all about this place.”

“Matron loved these flowers,” Quistis smiled, bending down to pick one of the blooms. She stood back up again, cradling it in her hand. “Such a strong scent. Feminine, with a hint of honey. It kind of takes over your senses, doesn't it? Forces its way in...”

Quistis turned to Squall. “Rinoa forced her way into your world, no matter how many walls you built around yourself to keep her out. I thought it would be enough to wait for you to come out on your own, but it never would be. I could never compete with her. And, after a while, I only worried about whether or not you would make a place for her. And you did. Pretty quickly too. She's got that kind of personality that's hard to ignore. Just forces its way in...”

Rinoa was blushing at the description. Smiling. “I never could resist a challenge...”

Quistis laughed. “Yeah. I've heard that somewhere before.”

“Thanks, Quistis,” Squall said gently, surprising her.

“For what?”

“For waiting outside. For keeping your eye on me even when I turned my back on you. I know I hurt you with the way selfish way I acted. Thanks for sticking around despite that.”

Quistis blushed. She looked away quickly, hiding her wet eyes. “Hey, what are big sisters for? You've really changed, Squall. It's like Rinoa's the only one on your mind.”

Laughing, she looked back at them. “Good thing this wasn't before the exam. I don't know if you would have passed, distracted like this.”

“I don't think I would have tried for SeeD if I had her before the exam.”

“Fair enough,” Quistis smiled. “I'll leave you two alone now. Maybe I'll go see if Zell wants to go hunting.”

“I think he already left,” Rinoa said, looking back.

“Then I'll go catch up. Or I'll go keep Selphie and Irvine from defiling all the flat surfaces of the ship.”

“What makes you think they'll stop at the flat surfaces?” Squall asked.

“Sadly, you make a good point.” Quistis smiled as she turned and walked away. 

Rinoa and Squall watched her go before looking back at the flower flied. The sun was coming through the clouds brightly, covering the field in dazzling rays of light. A gentle breeze floated by, stirring the petals and sending their sweet pollen into the air.

Rinoa smiled at him before finally releasing his hand. She stepped to the edge of the field and kneeled down before the flowers. Squall watched her reach out and gently stroke one of the petals. There was a sad sort of smile on her face.

For the first time since being left out to die, floating in the emptiness of space, she finally had time to think and consider things. And she didn't feel good about it.

“What'll become of me?” She asked softly.

“Don't worry about it,” Squall said, coming around to the column next to her. He leaned back against the stone, just watching her. “There've been many good sorceresses. Edea was one. You can be like her.”

“But Edea still...” Rinoa frowned, thinking about all the atrocities Ultimecia had committed in her name. Edea had been just as helpless as herself. “And I can't guarantee anything either. If Ultimecia possesses me again...You saw me. You saw how I was.”

Rinoa stood up again, letting out a long sigh. “I tried fighting. I really did. Without Diablos, I don't think I could have lasted as long as I did.”

Unlike Edea, Rinoa hadn't surrendered her body to protect her mind. She had fought against Ultimecia's control from the beginning. The struggle left her tired, but it also meant that Ultimecia had needed to fight back against her in turn. Despite that fight, Ultimecia still won.

“She made me break Adel's seal. She made me hurt so many people. Even you.” Rinoa looked over at him, her eyes sad. “Why did you keep grabbing me? You know she was hurting you.”

“Was I supposed to let you go?” He asked calmly.

“You wouldn't have been hurt if you had.”

“If I was adverse to pain, I wouldn't be here now. The only real torture I've ever faced was seeing you, nearly dead, in the infirmary. At least you were moving again.”

Rinoa lowered her eyes. “But...What happens next time? What will I end up doing? Will I end up fighting everyone?...It's a scary thought, isn't it?”

Rinoa...

Squall reached out and took her hand. He pulled her in close, wrapping his arms around her. She went willingly, leaning against his chest, accepting his warmth.

He didn't want to hear this. He didn't want to think about it. He could never hurt Rinoa. No matter what happened to her. No matter what she did. Even if she did end up as the world's enemy...

I'll...

“If I fall under Ultimecia's control again...SeeD will come kill me, right? And the leader of SeeD is you, Squall.” Her hand pressed flat over his heart. “Squall's sword will pierce my heart...I guess it's okay. If it's you, Squall. Nobody else. If that ever happens-”

“That's enough!” His arms tightened, startling a squeak from her. “I'll never do anything like that. The sorceress I'm after is not you, Rinoa. My enemy is the sorceress from the future. Ultimecia.”

“Ultimecia lives in the future and possesses me. She uses my body as her extension in this world. How will you save me from that?”

“I'll come up with something. There's got to be a way.”

She didn't respond.

“Don't worry.” Squall reached up and gently brushed her hair behind her ears. “But no matter what happens, do not ask me to kill you. I won't.”

“I just don't want someone else to do it. If I have to be killed, I'd rather it be you.”

“No one is going to kill you, because I won't let them.” Squall took her face in his hands, looking at her firmly. “No one is going to hurt you. No matter what you do to them. I don't care if you choose to be an evil sorceress. If you want to take over this world, I'll help you. If you want to defend it, I'll help you. No matter what path you choose. If you're a sorceress...I'll be your knight.”

Rinoa gasped slightly, the breath stuttering.

Then his lips were against hers. Pressing gently at first then growing stronger as he became more comfortable with the unfamiliar sensation. Rinoa's air left her lungs in a rush as her eyes closed. She leaned in, pressing herself into him as she gave herself over to the kiss.

Her arms came around him. One hand to the back of her neck, Squall wrapped his other around her waist and jerked her in closer. The first, intoxicating taste of her was much greater than he had anticipated. It stole over his body, shutting out everything else.

The warmth of her skin, the taste of her lips, the scent of flowers that wrapped around her and ensnared his senses. He twisted his head, opening his mouth on hers as he sought even greater sensation. His pleasure, her pleasure, mixed together into one potent combination. 

His tongue traced along her lips. They fell open willingly, taking him in. Accepting him, pulling him down deeper. She moaned and the reverberation of it tickled his chest. He groaned as he tilted his head, getting a better taste.

More. He wanted more.

How had he ever survived without this? Why had he waited so long to do this? All those chances he had missed, had forgone to enjoy this slammed into him all at once. Immediately on its tail came the fear that he had almost missed it. Almost let her go.

He'd never let her go again. He'd never risk losing her. He couldn't survive without her. Without the taste of her. Without the scent of her. That melodic voice ringing in his ear when she moaned as he caressed his hand down the arch of her spine causing her to tilt her body into his.

She broke the kiss before he did. Her head dropping back as she gasped for breath. Squall wasn't done yet. He followed her, kissing his way down her jaw, down her throat. Seeking even more of her taste, unwilling to separate from her warmth.

“Hyne, Squall...” she panted, her hand threading through his hair.

Devastating. She had known when she first got to know him that his passion would be devastating when he finally released it. Feeling it wash over her as he continued sampling her body, she thought maybe she had been a little too correct.

She couldn't see straight. The pulse in her throat was racing under his lips. Her hand clenched tightly in his hair as he hit a particularly sweet spot. Her body rocked as she moaned again. Curious at her response, he went right back and explored that area until he had Rinoa trembling, soft cries escaping her throat as her free hand reached into his jacket, under his shirt, and clutched at the toned body she admired so much.

Pulling back, Squall kissed her chin. Then her lips again. Once. Twice. Then a gentle sort of caress that wasn't a full kiss but was all the more intimate because of it. Then he leaned away from her slightly, his breathing fast, his eyes so ON they burned her.

“Trust me, Rinoa,” he whispered, his voice rough.

“I trust you...” she breathed back, lowering her hand to run her hand down his face. “But, maybe, until you find a way...Maybe I should stay in Esthar at the memorial. I can just wait there until you succeed. Wouldn't that be better?”

“No, that'd be pointless,” he said shortly. “I'll just end up going after you again. I won't leave you behind. Rinoa, just stay close to me.”

She gasped, her eyes lighting up. “Those words!”

Squall tilted his head curiously. “What?”

“That's what started everything,” she laughed, hugging him tightly.

“What are you talking about?”

Rinoa frowned, leaning back again. “You don't remember?”

“Something I said?”

“Oh, just forget it,” she pouted, turning away.

Squall stared for a long minute, struggling to recall his own words. He wasn't able to remember ever saying that to her before though. “Sorry. It's not me. It's the GF. That's why I forgot.”

“That's just an excuse...” She put her nose into the air primly.

“When did I say it before?”

“Back in Deling. When you rescued me. That's when I started falling for you. You can't not remember it.”

Squall thought back again, with context now. He thought maybe he could picture that moment. But there had been a lot of stuff going on that day.

“The memories are faded, some of them are gone,” he said apologetically. “But the feeling is still there. Those haven't faded at all. The GF don't touch our feelings.”

Rinoa smiled. “Okay. I guess that's good enough.”

“Feeling better?”

“Yeah,” she nodded.

Then, to his disappointment, she detangled herself from him. He let her go reluctantly. She just smiled and started walking into the flower field. Squall didn't hesitate. He stepped after her. She started gently humming the strains to an old song that he almost remembered as she walked.

“Can I tell you a story?” She asked, folding her hands behind her back.

Squall tilted his head curiously.

“A little while ago, back at garden, I had a dream. It was a scary dream. You and I, we make a promise. We promise to see shooting stars together. So I get dressed up, and put on your ring.” She reached up and touched the silver lion with her finger. 

“But...the thing is...I can't remember where I'm supposed to meet you. The harder I try, the further it gets away from me. I start to panic. I really want to see you, Squall, but I don't know where to go. I start running. Over the mountains, across the desert, through the plains. Though Timber, Balamb, and Galbadia. My feet keep getting heavier, and you keep slipping away from me. So even the memory of your face, your voice, is fading away. Until I only have this feeling that I need to see you. That I have to find you again. It drives me crazy. I...I just want to see you so badly. So I scream. 'Squall, where are you?!'...Then I woke up. I was crying...”

She stopped and turned around. She looked on the verge of tears now. They had traversed about half of the flower field by this point and were surrounded by an ocean of the fragrant blooms.

“I'm sorry,” she tried to smile. “You don't have to say anything. I just...felt like I had to tell you. It was so real to me. Like I really might have forgotten you. And it was the worst pain I'd ever felt in my life.”

“It was just a dream,” he said calmly. “It doesn't mean anything. Don't worry about it.”

“Yeah...You're right...” She looked away from him slightly. Squall stared for a moment, frowning. He didn't like that look on her face.

“How about this...”

She turned to him again. He held out his arms, gesturing around him.

“I'll be here.”

Her head tilted curiously as her weight shifted. “Why?”

“The reason why you couldn't find me was because we haven't promised yet.”

“Promised?” She blinked those large, brown eyes at him.

“I'll be waiting for you here. So if you come here, you'll find me. I promise.”

A large smile split across her face. “Then I'll be here, too. It's a promise! Thanks, Squall. Next time, we'll meet for sure!”

Squall smiled back at her gently. “You were getting mad at a couple words I forgot when you forgot me entirely?”

“That was a dream,” she tossed back her hair. “And I said it was the worst thing ever. Doesn't count.”

Squall made a noncommittal sound as he started walking again. He came around her, reaching out to stroke her shoulder gently. Now that he had touched her once, he found himself craving more. So much more.

Rinoa trembled with expectation as his fingers danced along the skin of her neck. He came around her again, grabbing her cheek with his other hand. He leaned her up, pulling her into another kiss. She moaned gently as she grabbed onto his jacket, pushing herself up into him.

Squall chuckled gently at her eagerness. “You like this?”

“Mm...” she moaned, reaching into his jacket to touch his chest through his shirt. “You SeeDs really do have many various skills.”

Squall chuckled, leaning back to touch her cheek. Her breathing deepened as he trailed that finger down her throat, down her chest, then down her breast. He lingered there, just a little long, before continuing on to take her by the waist and pull her closer.

“I rather like it myself,” he assured her, shifting their bodies together.

Rinoa bit her lip, trying to fight the sensations he built in her. Hard to do with that unbelievable body pressed into hers. She had to focus again.

“Squall, what are we going to do now?”

“Well, personally, I was just thinking about how soft the grass is.”

“No,” she nudged him, laughing. “Not that.”

“No, we can't do that? Or no, we can't do that in the grass?”

“I meant what are we going to do in general?” She deliberately ignored the distinction.

“Do you want to keep staying here?”

She hesitated. Not because she had a great desire to stay, but because she wasn't sure that there was any other choice. It seemed such a temporary solution. Would the world leave them alone all the way out here? She doubted it. What kind of world was she condemning him to on the coast of a continent that no one even lived on any longer...

“Hey, I happen to like this place,” he cut off that line of thinking easily. “I grew up here, you know. With a few repairs, maybe expand it a little, this place could be a great home. Cid and Edea were happy enough out here.”

She smiled gently. “You'd lock yourself away from the world for me?”

“Sure. Why not?”

“We'd be alone out here. We'd have to forage for everything. Farm our own food.”

“I've done worse.”

“We'd never have friends. Guests. Family.”

“See, now that's where you're wrong.”

“You can't expect Quistis and the others to stay,” Rinoa frowned. “I love them, too, but it would be too cruel to ask them to give up their whole lives.”

“I just meant that you and I are perfectly capable of having a family on our own,” he corrected, eyebrow raising as she blushed. “I believe you're the one who said I'd make a good father.”

She turned away, still burning red. “Yeah, okay. That may be true. But the rest of it still applies. Can you really go from SeeD commander to...family farmer?”

He shrugged, unconcerned. “If that's what it takes. I'm perfectly content with this. I never wanted to be commander anyway. I don't need anything more than you, Rinoa.”

“Oh, Squall...” she breathed, leaning her forehead against his.

“Besides, I like this ending better.”

“Ending?” She tilted her head curiously.

“On your book. The ending. The sorceress was left alone in the Grandidi Forest. She accepted a simpler life despite the aristocracy she came from, didn't she? Without her knight though. I still think it's a more romantic ending if they stay together. Even as hermits.”

Rinoa laughed. “I can't believe you actually read it.”

“It's a little more apropos now, considering everything. Either way, I'm not going to let you die.”

“That's my line.” Rinoa took his face in hand. “If you're going to go out fighting an army, I'm going to be fighting right beside you. Get me?”

“I wouldn't have it any other way.”

He kissed her again. Slowly this time. Savoring each movement of her lips, the stroke of her tongue, the taste of her breath.

“Squall...I lo-”

“YO!”

They jumped apart, turning quickly. Zell was sprinting their way, trying to cover his eyes and not trip at the same time.

“Squall!”

“What is it?” He asked, clutching Rinoa tight in worry.

Zell reached them and, panting, pointed over his shoulder. “Man, I'm sorry. I don't mean to interrupt, but it's an emergency. Major problem.”

“What is it?” Squall frowned, trying to scan the horizon for the problem.

“It's the Estharian military man, they tracked us. We gotta bail. Bail now.”

“What?” Rinoa gasped. “They got here that quickly?”

“I think we sort of jumped to the top of their 'most wanted' list,” Zell made a face. “Come on. Selphie's firing up the Ragnarok. We gotta get Rinoa out of here before they catch her again.”

“Okay, come on.”

Squall took Rinoa by the hand and they sprinted back through the flowers. Up towards where Angelo was basking in the sun beside the columns.

“Come on, boy!” Rinoa patted her thigh, calling him. They turned onto the path and started running back towards the ship.

They were stopped by a short call.

“Squall!”

The three of them jumped, turning. Edea was standing in the doorway of her house. Squall had completely forgotten that Zell told them she was returning home.

Slowly, she came down from the entrance, walking towards them.

“There is...something I must tell you,” she said, frowning. 

“Matron,” Squall looked back towards the ship. Was the military close? “Can you make it fast?”

She nodded. “I'll try. First: I'm sorry. I didn't know what Dr. Odine had planned for Rinoa. For myself. If I had retained my powers, it would have been me being sealed. And Rinoa, I'm sorry. Sorry for passing my powers onto you.”

“Oh, um...” Rinoa looked away quickly. It was the first time she had met the kindly Edea. She wasn't prepared for just how shocking the change was. “It's okay. Can't really help it, right? I'm sure everyone is just happy you're back to yourself.”

Edea nodded gratefully, accepting her words. She looked back at Squall.

“There is something more important though. Squall, Cid said he mentioned to you the premonition I had here. About SeeD. About their future. It was...Yes, I think it was about thirteen years ago now.”

“He told me,” Squall nodded. “It's why you created SeeD. Because you knew this was going to happen and you wanted a way to stop it.”

“That's not...exactly true. Squall, no sorceress has the power to see into the future. 

“What are you talking about?”

“Right here...In this very spot...I met a sorceress on the verge of death. She had traveled from very far away, looking for someone to pass her powers onto. A sorceress cannot truly die until her powers are passed on. It is not true life they have though. It is a haunting, hollow sort of non-existence. She appeared here and, to protect my children, to protect you all, I accepted her powers of my own free will. I could not let her get close to one of the girls instead. This was the beginning of my story. My 'premonition' as Cid has been calling it. And I know now, with my powers gone, that my bitter story has finally ended.”

“What does that have to do with SeeD?” Squall frowned.

“She wasn't...the only one I met. I also met the one who defeated her. He was the one who told me. I've based every life decision on that moment since. Even when things got hard. Got painful. When I was torn from my husband to protect our children. When I was torn from my children to protect everyone. I kept pressing on because of that moment. Because of what I knew.

“And now that it is over, I feel free. I've seen the end, Squall, and no matter how painful it may be, I know now that there is always an end. Therefore...Squall? You must fight to the end! Even though it may bring tragedy to others. Maybe even to yourself. You must fight, Squall.”

“Yo, Squall!” Zell yelled from the back of the roaring Ragnarok. “We gotta go! They're only a few seconds out!”

“Go,” Edea smiled at him. “They have no business with me. I'll be fine. Keep Rinoa safe.”

Squall nodded. “Thank you, Matron...For everything.”

She smiled, crying, as she waved her boy away. She watched as he boarded the Ragnarok with her other babies. Even before the hatch was closed, Selphie was lifting them up and away. Edea turned as their ship took off towards the horizon. The approaching Esthar vehicles were left sitting in the dust they left behind. 

Edea could only hope and pray that her 'premonition' was correct. Let the future play out as it should and let them all remain safe.


	39. On the Run

“So, It's like a GF?” Rinoa asked, tilting her head curiously.

“Not _like_ a GF. It _is_ a GF,” Zell corrected. “His name is Doomtrain. Odine swears up and down that he's half synthesized. I don't know if it's true though. Doom doesn't like talking much. He just kind of grunts a lot. He and Ifrit get into contests. Alex thinks they're silly.”

Rinoa laughed. The sound of it was almost unheard under the powerful winds of the sandstorm beating ruthlessly at the sides of the ship. It was the third such storm they had endured in the four days they had been on this small desert island. Quistis said the proximity of the ocean was causing gale force winds that brought about frequent sandstorms. Luckily, the airtight Ragnarok had very few problems even despite the sand particles beating at it near constantly.

Which was exactly the reason they were here. The constant storms meant that no one lived here. And the danger of them meant that the Estharian army was less likely to come close if they tracked them down. Which was all too possible. They had spotted the fleet a few times in the distance.

However, the small desert island, aside from the crazy weather, was also comprised of high cliffs on all sides. The SeeDs were as isolated as was possible to be on Gaia.

They were also confined inside a lot because of the frequent storms. Which meant that they were all getting very well acquainted with each other. Rinoa had never been this intimate with a group, and even the SeeDs were only used to one roommate at a time.

They were friends and family though. It took some adjustment, but they were working through it as any family did.

Quistis had made herself a small, cozy little home in the locker room. After raiding the supplies of the Ragnarok, she had created a bed from an emergency raft, used a fire blanket to sleep under, and was just making the area more homey.

Zell had crafted a fort from the spare bedding materials in the cargo hold with a frame made from the ship itself and spare parts. His bed was composed of sacks of flower they had found in the small kitchen under a hatch in the crew room and more spare bedding. He claimed he was happy with the arrangement.

Selphie and Irvine shared a living space in the small room off of the hanger. After the first night, and Squall after lectured them about roommate etiquette, they were pretty quiet about their nighttime activities. Everyone still chose to always go through the engine room rather than run the risk of walking in on something by going through that room.

Squall, as the leader of their little band, had been given the crew room with the proper cots and privacy lock on the inside of the door. Rinoa stayed with him.

Despite Irvine's innuendos and Zell's teasing, they did nothing like what Selphie and Irvine got up to in the privacy of their room.

Well, not _nothing_...

Oftentimes, they would end up holding each other through the night. Sometimes, nothing more than that. Other times, they would make out until they were breathless. Exploring each other. Exploring these feelings that were new to both of them. Taking things as slowly as they wished and savoring every kiss on the way.

For Squall, it was leaps and bounds ahead of where he had been.

For Rinoa, it was about the simple comfort and closeness of having him there.

Her very own knight.

So it was the most cut off they had ever been. The poorest, most desperate. They had no luxuries here. There wasn't even the promise of food.

But it was happy. And it was comfortable. And at one point everyone had all fallen asleep in the crew launch area after talking and laughing for hours on end.

Which was where Zell and Rinoa were now. Talking and laughing while the sandstorm slowly died down outside of the incredibly strong windows.

“So you got three GF now, huh?” Rinoa leaned against the seat she was sitting sidesaddle on. Zell, butt planted on the floor, nodded happily.

“I kind of stole it from Odine's lab, but it's whatever. Doom assures me he's happy to be out. I mean, I think that's what he's saying. Like I said, mostly grunts.”

“Hey, you two,” Irvine called out as he walked into the room. “Quistis is using Pandamona to calm the storm so we can go outside.”

“Why are we going outside?” Rinoa asked curiously.

“We're running low on food supplies. I'm doing the best I can, but I can only thin out water soup so long before it's just water. Squall wants to see if we can go foraging for anything to eat. We've seen monsters here, we know they exist. So we're going hunting. Maybe we can get some meat. At least some cacti. Those are edible. Never tried them, but I hear they're edible.”

“Okay, I'll come with you,” Zell stood up quickly. “I've been dying to get out and get moving.”

“Cool. We're meeting downstairs. Quistis is going up to the airlock to get a better grip on the storm. She says with Quetz and Panda to hold back the weather and Cero to amplify their magic, she should be able to hold it at bay for a few hours.”

“Awesome. I'm gonna go get my gloves. I left them in my fort.” Zell ran excitedly from the room, happy to be able to leave the ship for a while.

“I guess that leaves me and the girls to hold down the ship,” Rinoa smiled.

“Yeah,” Irvine grinned. “Selphie said she's going to start going through the ship's programs and engine. Esthar has the ability to track the ship. Until we figure out how and disable it, they're going to keep catching up to us. So if we want to go into proper hiding, we need to find that tracker and get rid of it.”

“Oh...” So Quistis would be stopping the storm and Selphie would be tracking the tracker. “Well, I guess I'll help Selphie.”

“Ehh...” Irvine made a face.

“What? Not a good idea?”

“I didn't really say that...But, no it's not.”

“Why not?” Rinoa put her hands to her hips, frowning at him. “I can help.”

“Selphie's the only one who knows the programs. And she has them all set perfectly to her preferences at this point. She doesn't want anyone messing with it and risk making the ship un-flyable or something.”

“Then I'll help with the engine.”

“Ehh...”

“Irvine!”

“It's not me! Okay, it is me a little bit. Selphie and I are the only ones with mechanical experience. And this engine is super complex. I don't think someone without the skills should be touching it. This ship is all we have. We can't risk breaking it.”

Rinoa tossed up her hands, looking out into the slowing storm in frustration.

“Sorry, Rinoa,” Irvine made a face. “Look, I gotta get going. Plenty of cacti and monsters to hunt. I'll bring you back something special if we find it. Later!”

He turned ran from the room. Rinoa crossed her arms, letting out a puff of air.

Then that was it? Everyone was being useful except for her. She was trying, of course, but there was only so many times she could clean the ship. Rinoa had never felt more useless, more like a 'princess' in her life than she did right now.

Sighing, Rinoa sat down again on the launch chairs. The seat belt was biting into her back, but she didn't really care.

Was there nothing she could do? Was she just supposed to sit back in the airship, pretending to keep cleaning it while everyone did something actually important? At least back when she had been the Owl's princess she had been coming up with plans and doing stuff. 

She sat there so long she saw the boys coming around the ship again. They looked like they were chasing a quickly fleeing...cactus? What the hell...?

Sighing, Rinoa pushed herself up and walked from the room. She supposed she could find something to clean. Again...

She could hear Selphie clinking around in the engine room. Quistis was busy in the airlock keeping the constant storms at bay. The boys were hunting. Squall was still trying to plan out a course for them to follow. Rinoa was really the only one doing nothing.

All this power she had inherited, and she wasn't even sure she knew how to use it. She had cast only one spell by herself at this point. A healing spell, on Squall. And, to be perfectly honest, she didn't actually know how she had done it.

Rinoa stopped on the catwalk, leaning against the rail and looking down over Zell's fort. She looked down at her hand, frowning at the familiar lines there.

She knew she was a sorceress now. She had felt her own power when she had healed Squall. She had been acutely aware of it when Ultimecia had been the one using it. That sorceress knew much better than Rinoa how to use this magic. Rinoa just kind of...had it.

Should she feel different? She didn't really. She was one of the last two sorceresses on the planet, and by virtue of that she was the second most powerful person alive. Adel had her beat, though she didn't know by how much.

Shouldn't she feel at least slightly different?

She still felt very human. She still felt weak. She felt more useless than ever. If she tried to call it forth, would the magic even respond? Was that how it worked?

Rinoa sighed and moved her finger out. She told Diablos not to help. If she was really a sorceress, she should be able to do this on her own.

Pointing her finger, she began twisting it in the air. Calling on an element that Diablos, and therefore she, did not have access to. In the dry desert air, it was rather difficult. The small ball of water still condensed and swirled lazily in the air before her.

It was actually pretty easy. Though it required concentration, it was almost just as simple as telling Diablos to cast magic. Without the bindings of his affinity.

You better not get rid of me, Diablos yelled loudly.

Rinoa laughed. Of course not. She would never do that to him. He was one of her dearest friends. She knew that she had hated the sensation of him in her head initially, but she was more than used to it now. Diablos felt like he was part of her. It felt more strange to remove him at night than it did to have him junctioned all day.

Now, let's see how big we can make this water ball...

***

Zell was the first to taste test the cactuar they had chased nearly halfway across the island. After Irvine had carefully removed all the needles and Squall had sliced a limb in half, Zell had brought it to his mouth and eagerly bit into the slightly juicy flesh.

Squall and Irvine watched him carefully as he chewed. He was silent for a long moment, thinking as he moved the unfamiliar veggie around his mouth.

“So?” Irvine prompted. “How is it?”

“Hm...” Zell swallowed and licked his lips. “You know, altogether not bad. It would probably taste even better cooked.” He took another bite, chewing happily.

“All right, we'll do more hunting and keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't die.”

“What!?” Zell choked.

“I'm sure you'll be fine,” Squall said calmly. “Tell us if you start feeling weird.”

“You both suck,” Zell grumbled, crossing his arms. He looked at the cactus for a long moment before taking another, defiant bite.

Squall and Irvine finished slicing the cactuar before storing it in Irvine's satchel. It couldn't go into Squall's INVENTORY. Organic material couldn't be stored in such a way. So everything they hunted they had to actually carry around.

Squall started scanning around again for something else to attack. Shiva was screaming in fury at him for forcing her into a desert. Simply put, it was hard for her to keep him, and therefore herself, cool in such a dry, hot place. The poor girl was miserable here.

Ifrit, on the other hand, had never been so happy. Zell was beaming as he walked around, completely unaffected by the arid desert. He was as happy as Shiva had been in Trabia. And the surrounding ocean only made the sights that much more beautiful.

They caught a few more cactuars as they worked their way around the island. Eventually stopping at the edge of one of the high cliffs. Zell stretched as they took a break on the rocky ground that surrounded the sandy inner portion of the island.

“I think that should be about...nine or ten cactuar,” Irvine smiled into the bulging sac. “That should be plenty. Kind of sucks that there's nothing else on this island though.

“We might get to sample some other foods soon,” Squall said darkly.

“Huh? Why?” Irvine and Zell stood, walking over to his side. Squall pointed out into the water where they could see a fleet of Esthar ships making quickly for the island.

“Oh, yeah. The storm is calm. They're probably going to try getting here before it blows them off again,” Zell frowned. “Think we should worry?”

Squall thought for a long moment. So long as the Ragnarok could continued to be tracked, Esthar was going to keep coming after them. This island was great for holding them off thanks to the wild weather, but Squall wasn't sure how long they could survive on cactuar alone.

“Let's get back to the ship and have Quistis call the storm back.”

Irvine and Zell nodded and they began walking once again through the sand. They hadn't gone very far when they spotted another cactuar standing still on the sand innocently.

“Want to grab it?” Zell asked.

“My bag can't carry more,” Irvine frowned.

Squall shrugged. “We'll just carry it by hand. We don't have the luxury of turning down food.”

Pulling out his blade, Squall started towards the little monster. Cactuars weren't hard to fight. Mostly they were just skittish. This one wasn't even facing him though. It shouldn't be a problem at all to take it down in one swipe.

Squall drew back his blade. 

CRUNCH!

Squall blinked, staring in confusion at the way his Punishment had caught in it's skin. Cactuars didn't have tough skin. What the...

Slowly, the cactuar turned. It's large black eyes stared at him. Squall frowned at the...mustache? It had a curly mustache...

Hopping, the cactuar jerked free. Jumped back. Got bigger?

“What the...” Squall fell back as the cactuar grew. Larger than the standard. High above their heads, reaching into the sky. It gave the squeaky cactuar call, but it was low and thrumming. The cut Squall had given it became little more than a scratch against its massive body.

Lifting one crooked leg, the cactuar went to squish Squall under its large body.

Jerking himself awake, Squall barely dodged in time. He rolled against the sand and came up, looking with wide eyes at the enormous cactuar in front of them. 

“So that's a thing that just happened...” Irvine said, dropping his bag. He pulled his gun from under his coat as Zell lifted his hands.

“I think that might be too much food for us,” he grimaced. “Squall?”

“Just bring it down!” He ordered, dodging another squishing attempt. The cactuar had taken that strike personally and was now chasing Squall determinedly. 

“Let's find out what cooked cactuar tastes like,” Zell laughed, his fists blazing. “Fira!”

Shot from his gauntlets, the stream of fire balls crashed against the cactuar's body, singeing its bright green flesh. Angry, the cactur turned to him.

“That's right, big boy,” Zell circled around, giving Squall time to get up. “Come and get you some.”

The cactuar stopped. All limbs just stopped moving. Zell frowned. Then cried out in fear as the entire GF came tumbling down, intent on crushing him with its large face.

He sprinted away, barely avoiding getting crushed. Irvine was pelting it with AP ammo, but the cactuar had very thick skin.

“All right, let's try this.” Grinning, Irvine reached into his mind and took hold of his friend.

“Cook him up good, Berry!”

Bubbling. Ooze, like swamp water, Tonberry unfolded himself from the ground. All the others saw was the swamp water bubbling up from the sand. Only Irvine got to enjoy the sight of the funny little guy walking up to the cactuar.

His tiny chef's knife glinted in the light of the lantern that remained visible to all. They watched that light close in slowly on the cactuar. The cactuar danced in place, watching it with wide, black eyes. It watched everything with wide, black eyes.

Doink...

Thrashing, twisting, the cactuar dropped as the knife nearly ripped it in half. Irvine was doubled over, laughing his guts out because it was so comical to him that such a tiny little thing could be so very deadly and painful.

“Oh, I love that little weirdo!” He yelled happily. In his head, Tonberry was making a squeaky little sound that Irvine had always assumed was a purr.

“Diamond Dust!” Shiva's ice shattered through the cactuar, shredding it.

Screaming in pain, it turned, whirring up its arms.

“Needles!” Zell warned.

All three men scattered.

Getting hit by a single needle by a cactuar was no big deal. They never only shot one. The little ones had been throwing hundreds, if not thousands of them.

This enormous one sent a hailstorm of needles after them. Running around, trying to avoid the storm, they darted around the monster, under its legs, around its back.

“Quake!” Irvine yelled, throwing his magic.

The ground started shaking under its feet. The needle rain stopped as it tried to keep its balance. Zell turned and threw three more fireballs at it.

“Hit him again, Berry!” Irvine yelled, summoning his GF.

Squall lifted his Punishment and let out a series of quick shots, spearing the enormous cactus with spires of ice that cut through its large body.

The cactuar cried, thrashing about.

Irvine aimed and fired. Though he preferred actually casting quake, he found he could attach it to his bullets. The result wasn't shaking ground, but vibration. Not just a gentle thrumming either. The magic had torn monsters apart by vibrating them so hard.

His bullets smashed into the cactuar and it began bucking wildly. The ice shattered, the splinters cutting it further.

Zell bashed his fists together. “Here we go baby!”

Running forward, he cried out as he began pounding against the cactuar. His fists and legs became blurs as he bashed them against the cactuar. Pounding through one of the large legs. Bruising the skin, then breaking threw. Zell was covered in cactus guts as he beat his way through.

The cactuar jumped back. Looking at them, it started retreating slowly.

“It's getting away,” Irvine warned.

“No, it's not!” Squall charged.

The Renzokuken was a speed based special of gunblade mastery. He had never used it before against such a creature as this. He jumped up, going for the head where his first initial cut was still marring its thick skin. Using that as an entry point, much like Zell had done, he began slicing and beating his way through.

Since he wasn't on the ground as Zell had been, the cactuar couldn't back away from him. It twisted, thrashed, and danced to attempt to escape, but Squall was faster, more nimble. He kept up with the monster easily, staying on its head as he beat his way through.

He stabbed forward, embedding his blade into the cactuar's body. Then he jumped down and pulled the Punishment down with him.

The cactuar cried out as Squall's boots hit the ground.

He burst into a series of pink energy balls and flew away from him.

“It's a GF!” Zell gasped.

The balls ran away and hid behind Irvine, the only one of them who had been laughing and having a good time. They reformed and a small cactuar poked its head out from behind his coat. Irvine blinked at him, grinning.

“Well, hello there, little guy.”

The GF squeaked, twisting its arms at Squall angrily.

“Yeah? What are you gonna do about it?” Squall asked, resting his Punishment against his shoulder.

The GF shot a spike that Squall dodged easily.

“Why you-!” He took a step forward.

The cactuar squeaked and burst back into energy. He flew into Irvine's palm then up into his head where he cowered unhappily.

“Aw, you scared the little thing,” Irvine said, reaching up to stroke his head like he might be able to pet him through his skull.

“He almost killed us,” Squall pointed out calmly, resheathing his gunblade.

“He says you started it,” Irvine grinned, pointing to him. 

“I can end it, too,” Squall took another step his way.

“Hey, hey!” Zell stepped between them, laughing. “Come on, it's all good. You guys are just getting a little heat sick. Let's get back to the ship and cool off.”

Growling, Squall was inclined to agree. If he had to stay out in this heat any longer, he was probably going to melt along with Shiva. They were not made for the desert.

The three of them had chased the first cactuar further than they thought. The desert island wasn't all that big, but it was filled with rolling sand dunes that had to be climbed nearly constantly. After four days out here, the Ragnarok was nearly half buried in sand. The bay doors couldn't open fully. They had to duck under the top to get inside. Squall closed them again gratefully. The air conditioning within the Ragnarok was incredibly good.

“I've got sand in places I don't want to think about,” Zell made a face, stretching. “I'm taking a shower before I start crusting.”

Squall nodded. He wouldn't say no to a shower himself. A freezing one.

As they were walking towards Irvine's room, feeling safe going through since they knew where one of the pair was, they heard loud squealing and laughter. The three of them shared a look before walking quickly, following the sound.

“What the-!” Zell nearly dropped when they stepped into the hanger. Squall's eyes widened, blinking at what he wasn't sure he was seeing.

“Uh...” Irvine paused, unsure what to say about the enormous sphere of water taking up the majority of the room in the hanger, swallowing up the catwalk overhead and swirling gently in the air.

“So...that's a thing,” he finally settled for saying.

“Selphie?” Squall squinted.

Swimming inside the ball, having stripped down to her underwear in order to do so, Selphie was playing like a dolphin in the ocean.

“Did she do this?” Zell asked, pointing.

Squall shook his head. “No way could she do this...”

He stepped closer, squinting harder. It was a little hard to see because the catwalk was providing a dark background, but was that...

“Rinoa?” The three of them stopped just under the swirling mass. She was in the center of the ball, her hands held out as she pulled more water inside. She had a large grin on her face as she spun around, her hair floating around her face majestically. She too had stripped down to her underwear for lack of a swimsuit. It was the first time Squall had ever seen her so nude.

“I...I got nothing,” Zell shrugged.

“What do you think?”

They had to step back in order to see Quistis. She was standing up on the catwalk, at the edge of the large sphere. She was pulling her skirt off, getting ready for a dip herself.

“What is this?” Squall asked, baffled.

“Rinoa wanted to test her powers so she tried to summon water. It, uh, kind of got out of hand. Come on in, you can totally breath inside there.”

“What?” Irvine frowned, confused.

“Yeah. Rinoa's doing something to the water. She's trying to push her limits, see what she can do. Just jump on in. It's fun.”

Laughing, Quistis pulled her clip from her hair before running into the orb. She pushed off of the catwalk and turned to swim down, joining Selphie.

“Uh...” was all Irvine could come up with.

Laughing, Zell was already stripping down to his boxers. He jumped up into the orb and barely made a splash. The water droplets came back up into the sphere as he swam through.

“Oh, what the hell?” Irvine laughed, starting to pull off his clothes as well.

Squall was staring at Rinoa. At the bright expression on her face. Reaching up, he pulled the jacket from his shoulders and dumped it onto the ground with everyone else's clothing. Irvine's heart studded boxers were disappearing into the water by the time Squall had stripped down to his own, pitch black shorts.

He jumped up, following the others inside. The weightless feeling that came over him was similar to flying in space, but now he actually had something to push against. He swam up, ignoring the others who were playing a game of tag in the water.

He took in a breath. The water was liquid when it hit his tongue but something happened in his throat and it was only air that expanded in his lungs. The gas he breathed out became a stream of water again. He didn't know what Rinoa was doing, but it was incredible.

Curious, he stopped in front of her. Rinoa turned to him, her eyes dancing. Eyes that almost immediately traveled down the length his body.

Damn, he was sexy. Muscular thighs, a rock hard chest, and arms of steel. Why didn't she have her hands on him constantly again?

Since she was taking a look, Squall felt no shame getting a few stares in himself. While he would prefer the first sight of her body to not be around the others, he wasn't going to complain that he was getting to gaze at it.

Her underwear was plain black, functional. Simple boyshorts that clung to her hips and a bra that cupped those breasts he liked so much with just a touch of lace at the edge. The smooth dip of her waist begged for his hands. He could still remember how smooth her thighs had felt in his palms and he wanted to feel them again, with her muscles trembling as he ran his fingertips up the silky smooth flesh up towards her core and down again...

She wasn't immune to these thoughts. Their connection reverberated the desire across her entire body and she felt a small electric jolt, almost like he was touching her.

As the others played around in the hanger below, Squall took Rinoa's arm and pulled her up over the rail. He pressed down against her, pushing her onto the catwalk as his mouth began ravishing hers. The water that swirled around them only made the sensations better as their bodies became weightless. 

She arched her hips up, wrapping her legs around his waist. His hand found the curves and slid down and around, cupping her bottom and jerking her up against him even as she was pulling his head down to kiss her harder.

Squall cursed, knowing the others were just below. He couldn't have her here, not like this. But he could certainly kiss her until they were both panting and delirious. He might have kept going even despite the others' proximity except that Rinoa begged him to stop.

She needed to concentrate to keep her magic going. She could already feel herself losing control and if she let go now the entire ship would be flooded. Which would be bad.

So at the threat of losing the airship, Squall released her. Unwillingly.

Rinoa kept hold of him as he stood though. She ended up sitting in his lap as he turned and perched on the rail of the catwalk. She looked down at the others, grinning. One of them had found a ball somewhere and they were playing some weird, improvised underwater ball game. Apparently there were no fouls either, they were playing rough.

Rinoa rested her cheek against Squall's as the others played around.

I like it just like this, she said.

So do I, he responded, tracing circles on her hip with his thumb.

The blaring of the ship's alarm system caught them all by surprise. Rinoa almost lost control of her sphere, some of the water splashed to the deck as the sphere wobbled for just a second.

Shit! Esthar!

Squall released Rinoa and swam down the catwalk. He burst from the sphere and ran from the room to the cockpit. The lift up was almost too slow and he vaulted himself up over the rest of the way, dripping water everywhere as he sprinted to the front. His hand clenched against the leather of the navigator's seat.

Shit. The storm hadn't come back and Esthar had come in too close. The ship's proximity sensors had gone off because the Esthar vehicles were almost on top of them. He didn't see their army yet, but he wasn't willing to risk it.

“Squall!”

Selphie, her hair sticking to her head, jumped onto the floor before the lift finished its ascent as well.

“Get us out of here!” Squall ordered.

She was already throwing herself into the driver's seat. She grabbed hold of the controls as she brought the engine back to life.

The sand was dragging them down. The Ragnarok wasn't ready for the sudden lift off. Squall ran back down the lift and into the hanger. Rinoa was stepping from the water orb, looking at him with wide eyes.

“It's my fault, isn't it?” She asked, trembling. “I distracted everyone...”

“It's no one's fault,” Squall promised, taking her by the shoulders. “Irvine! You there!?”

“Right here, commander!” He yelled from below.

“Try to shift some of the sand off of us. Zell!”

“Yo!”

“Stand by the door release!”

Zell ran to the button immediately. Irvine dropped, putting his hands to the ground. He was reaching out with the Brothers' power, touching each grain of sand.

“Quistis! Give me a storm!” Squall yelled.

From the other side of the orb, he hear her yell the affirmative.

Tracking water, Quistis ran back through the crew cabin to the airlock. She was calling on Pandemona's power before she was releasing the overhead hatch.

“Panda, I want a huge tornado!” Quistis yelled, throwing out his power. Her eyes shined bright purple as he responded to her call.

Her wind power and Irvine's earth power combined and the sand began shifting and moving out of the way. Selphie jerked hard against the controls in the cockpit, lifting the Ragnarok out of four days worth of sandstorm burial.

In the hanger, as they cleared the ground, Squall called out, “Now, Zell!”

The doors opened up as Squall and Rinoa ran down the steps and towards the exit. He could look out from here and see the Esthar vehicles that had stopped as Quistis kicked up the storm. The man in front wasn't a soldier though. It was a tall man wearing brown and white civilian robes.

“Rinoa,” Squall looked at her. “Give 'em a bath.”

She grinned and stretched out her hand.

The orb of water flowed out and down. The Estharian's cried out and scrambled back into their vehicles as, like a tidal wave, the sphere burst and rushed out over them. Sticking them into the now wet sand as the water wave threatened to wash them away.

Zell and Rinoa were laughing as the Ragnarok lifted up and out of the storm and began flying. At this moment, it didn't really matter where to.

***

“Xu,” Nida stepped into the office just under the bridge. “Call for you.”

Groaning, Xu's head fell back. “I'm beginning to regret these damn radio waves. How can people stand others calling them twenty-four hours a day! Who is it this time?”

“Says he's the vice president of Esthar. He has some questions for you about Squall.”

Xu's eyes sharpened on him. “Hang up.”

“On a world leader?” Nida asked in surprised. “You know he's potentially a really good client, right?”

“The last place Squall went to was Esthar. Now he's on the lam. If someone is calling for him, then they want to know where he is. We won't betray our commander like that. Hang up.”

Nida nodded and left the room to do as he was told. Xu let out a long breath as she looked over the map table in front of her. She really hoped Squall knew what he was doing. She was going to keep holding things down until he got back, but she really wanted him to hurry it up...

***

“Selphie, what's wrong?” Squall asked as he walked back into the cockpit. Her clothes were in his hands so she could change whenever she got the chance.

“Check it out,” she nodded to the display in front of her. “We're running out of fuel.”

“You're kidding,” Squall frowned, coming forward. He saw what she was pointing to and cursed.

Of course he hadn't expected the fuel in the Ragnarok to last forever. Still, he had rather hoped that it would last until they could go into proper hiding. They hadn't even found that damn tracking chip that Esthar was keeping tabs on them with.

“I'd say we have another few hours until we're totally tapped,” Selphie said regretfully.

“Alright, which land mass are we closest to?”

“Ye-e-eah, see, that's the thing. I kind of, sort of just took off without really thinking about it. We're in the middle of the Gelnika Ocean.”

“Selphie!” Squall cried angrily.

The Gelnika Ocean was the largest ocean in the world. Being even halfway across it meant that they were as far from any land mass as they could possibly get. And if they ran out of fuel all the way out here...

Cursing, Squall ran his hand down his face.

“Sorry,” Selphie grimaced. “I think I can make it to the Galbadian continent if I'm careful. Like the very tip of it. I know it's not ideal, but it's the best we can do.”

And then they would be stranded on the Galbadian continent. Well, he supposed that leaving the Ragnarok behind _would_ solve their tracking problem.

“See what you can do. I'm gonna go let the others know.”

“Yup.” Selphie was focused. She barely blinked when Squall set her clothes on the navigator's seat and walked back to the lift.

The others were in the crew launch area, talking and celebrating another escape. Squall's dour face when he walked in alerted them that something was wrong. Everyone had finished getting dressed, but, aside from Zell who steam dried himself, they were all still wet.

“Uh-oh,” Quistis raised an eyebrow. “I know that look. What happened?”

“We're almost out of fuel,” Squall said regretfully.

“Here?” Rinoa looked out to the window at the infinite ocean around them.

“Yeah, here. Selphie thinks we might barely have enough to make it to Galbadia. Which means we're going to have to ditch the ship and walk it the rest of the way.”

“Aw, seriously?!” Zell groaned, slumping in his seat. “I hate roughing it...”

“The rest of the way where?” Irvine asked, frowning. “I don't think trying to hide in _Galbadia_ is the best place for us.”

“No...” Squall crossed his arms. “Maybe we can hide out in Winhill. That place is cut off by the mountains and it's so small that no one goes there. We would be able to tell early before any Estharians or Galbadians came sniffing around.”

“Well, it's better than nothing,” Quistis shrugged.

“Hey, Squall,” Rinoa looked back at them from by the window. “What's that?”

“What's what?”

Squall walked over and joined her. Out on the horizon, coming right towards them, was something metal shinning in the water.

“Is that a ship?” Quistis asked, squinting.

“Looks kind of like an island,” Irvine said, looking out as well.

“A metal island?” Rinoa scoffed.

“It's probably Battleship Island!” Zell declared, his eyes sparkling.

“It's what?” Rinoa asked as Irvine looked at him funny.

Quistis groaned as Squall rolled his eyes.

“For the last time, Zell,” she looked at him, “Battleship Island sank years ago. It doesn't exist anymore. It certainly doesn't exist _above_ the water.”

“No, no, no. It's totally Battleship Island. Look! There are ships making up the body and everything.”

“Can someone tell me what Battleship Island is?” Rinoa asked, looking between the SeeDs.

“Yeah,” Irvine agreed.

“It was a research facility,” Quistis explained. “We were too young when it started to remember it, but I've heard about it during classes at garden.”

“They were trying to develop a draw system,” Zell took over eagerly. “They thought the current one was clunky and annoying. They didn't like that we have to gather and hoard magic like it's a collection. Which, admittedly, kind of sucks, but who really cares?”

Squall continued. “I heard that they were trying to find a source of powerful magic deep in Gaia. A magic that doesn't well up often and, when it does, usually does more harm than good.”

“Oh, so is that what it's doing out here?” Rinoa looked back at it.

“That's the thing,” Zell leaned forward with a grin. “No one knows what happened to it. It originally traveled all over Gaia gathering magic and materials and then one day – poof! – gone. No one ever heard anything about it. Until, years later, a boat washed up on Galbadian shores. Inside, they found a single scientist from the project who had gone completely mad. He just kept mumbling about a demon they found.”

“Zell, that's just superstition,” Quistis frowned at him. “Even allowing for the fact that a scientist may have washed up on Galbadian shores, he would be mad from dehydration and starvation, not a demon. Furthermore, he wasn't a fighter, he was a scholar. Any monster would seem a demon to him.”

“Either way,” Squall cut them off, looking curiously at the approaching island. “That place was created using magic and machines. There might be fuel cells we can scavenge. Irvine, go tell Selphie that we're landing there.”

“On it!” He turned and ran from the room.

“Its walls are pretty high,” Quistis remarked, squinting at it. “Would make it hard for an army to climb up into it, if not impossible.”

“A good place to hide, in other words,” Rinoa translated. “Do you really think we could live on an abandoned research island?”

“Better than the desert,” Squall grumbled, making her laugh.

Landing wasn't an easy affair on the metal island. It was crafted from old battleships and machine parts making it mobile. There was a deck for landing airships, but it was cracked and half broken from years of neglect. They almost couldn't land on it at all.

Until Selphie found the ship's arms.

The Ragnarok had a dragon head, which Selphie had already figured out was connected to the weapon systems. However, the Ragnarok also had two functional and adept hands that could be controlled by the fourth seat in the cockpit. The radio controller, the navigator, the pilot, and the weapon and arm operator.

Of all of them on board, Quistis was the only one who demonstrated a reliable ability to operate the rather complicated arms.

Working together with Selphie to maneuver the ship into place, she reached out and used the arms to grab metal anchor points on the island. The ship still ended up on a slight tilt making it awkward to walk around, but they were secured.

“Good work,” Squall praised as Quistis locked the arms in place.

“Well, it's not perfect but it will do,” Irvine grinned. “Who wants grilled cactus for dinner?”

“Do we have any other choice?” Rinoa asked.

“You can also have burned cactus.” Whistling, Irvine walked away to go back to the kitchen to get to work on cooking up their meal.

“We'll start checking the island tomorrow. Let's rest for tonight,” Squall said as Selphie leaned back against her seat in relief. She was still in her mismatched undies. “Good work, Selphie. Now put your clothes on.”

“Aye, aye,” she saluted him lazily before reaching for her dress.

“You too, Quistis. You've both worked hard. Zell, you're not allowed to go exploring on your own.”

Zell, who's mouth was already opening eagerly, closed as he slumped unhappily.

Rinoa laughed at him as she followed Squall back to the lift. They rode down together and started out of the antechamber to the cargo room.

“Battleship Island, huh?” Rinoa mumbled. “Wonder what's down there...There has to be a real reason this place was abandoned, you know...”

“Yeah, but we only need fuel cells. At least enough to take us further than Galbadia.”

“You have another plan on where to stay?”

“Well, I like the Winhill idea, but maybe not there. If we can make it to the Trabian region, we can abandon the ship in the mountains, catch some chocobos, and ride them to Shumi Village. That place is very well hidden and few people know about it.”

“I did like it there,” Rinoa smiled. “Would you be happy though?”

“Only if you're with me.”

Squall's hand reached out and wound through hers. He opened the crew quarters and led her inside. He hadn't meant it as a romantic sentiment. He didn't think about things like that. He just meant it. He would only be happy if she was with him.

It was the truth of it that made Rinoa's heart flutter.

He turned as the door shut and brought her mouth to his.

He liked kissing her. He liked holding her body in his. Even though Squall was on the run from the most powerful country in the world, he was far more content than he could ever remember being. There was just something about Rinoa that soothed the disquiet that had always been in his soul.

And it came from the certainty that she was right there beside him. That she would always be right there beside him. He wasn't a child that could only watch as she was snatched away. No matter how far anyone took her, he would always be able to go get her back. From the depths of dark space, to the furthest recesses of her own possessed mind.

She pulled him in further. Drawing more from him. Constantly demanding more than he would normally be comfortable giving. Surrendering to her was easy. 

He scooped her up into his arms and her legs wrapped around his waist. She latched herself onto him, kissing along his neck as he moved over to the cot. He had to lay the opposite direction from normal to keep with the tilt of the ship, but he didn't much care.

Rinoa's kisses drove him out of his mind. It made the world around them fade. The sorrows of his past, the uncertainty of his future. None of it mattered when he was with her like this.

“Squall,” she pushed him back, breathing hard. He overwhelmed her with the ferocity of his emotions sometimes. It was hard to believe when she thought about his calm and unaffected face that he felt so very strongly.

Squall was very much a victim of his own emotions. They beat at him, so much more powerful than she would have imagined. His pain, his fear, his joy, his despair. Each one left a deep mark on him. He had been hurt traumatically by his abandonment as a child.

He was also touched beyond measure by the honest and passionate feelings she felt for him. She knew that he was surprised at times just how much she cared for him. For someone that had pushed people away for so long, it as crazy for him to think that anyone could feel so much for him.

“What is it?” His voice was rough, his arms shaking with the need to drop his body back over hers so he could devour her lips and make her heart race against his.

“I want to hear...” she started, touching his face gently. “I want to hear you say that I'm yours.”

Squall stared at her, his eyes smoldering. He sat up, disappointing her. She followed him. Her legs remained around his waist as they sat there, hunched slightly under the top bunk. She looked at him with a wide, beautiful gaze in the slight darkness of the room.

“Squall?” She whispered his name in that melodic voice of hers, tingling his nerves.

“You're not mine, Rinoa.”

She frowned, tilting her head.

He leaned forward and rested his forehead against hers.

“I'm yours.”

“Squall...”

“I have always been yours. From that first moment you turned to me on the dance floor. A shooting star reaching out for you, like it was showing me the way.”

“You remember all that?” She asked in wonder.

“I remember everything about that first moment.” His arms moved about her waist, his thumbs gently stroking her hips. “Sometimes, the middle gets all mixed up, but I never forget the most important moments in my life. The day I lost Sis. The day I was tortured. The day I passed my exam. And, more important than all of them, the day I saw you.”

Rinoa had to close her eyes against the tears swimming in them. Squall tilted his head slightly, getting a better look at the way her heart was moving at his words.

“You say you started falling for me when I told you to stay with me. I started falling for you the first moment your eyes touched mine. I have always been yours. I will always be yours. Your SeeD. Your knight. Your man. Because you are my everything, I am yours.”

A tear fell down her cheek and Squall gently wiped it away. He knew she wasn't sad, but he rather wished she wouldn't cry at the declaration.

“How can I not?” She asked, her voice thick as she opened her eyes back on him. They were sparkling with happiness. “Squall, that's...no one has ever said anything like that to me before.”

“I mean it.”

“I know. That's why I'm crying.” She laughed once, hiccuping as she wiped at her own face. “I believe it, and I believe you. You'd never lie to me...”

Squall took her wrists in hand and moved them from her face so he could take her lips again. She was still crying gently as she poured her heart into the kiss. Trying to show him beyond words, words that Squall had never trusted anyway, that she would always be his.

He was hers.

She was his.

They belonged to each other. People hated her for powers she never asked for. People hated him for the skills they paid him to use on their enemies. The world could turn against them and it didn't matter so long as they had one another.

“Hey...”

“Hm?” He moaned into her lips.

“Can we move to the Grandidi Forest?”

Squall pulled back slightly, his eyes opened on hers. “What?”

“I know it's difficult. People can't usually reach that forest. But...I feel like it's the best place for us. Away from everybody that would separate us.”

“The Ragnarok can't land there. The trees are too dense.”

“Yeah, I know...”

“...I think the northern part of the forest is rather close to the Trabian continent though. If we could make a boat to cross over and find a way past the cliffs, we could work our way inside.”

Rinoa's mouth split into a wide smile. “Yeah?”

“I can't imagine anyone would bother us there.” Squall smiled gently back at her. “You're determined to live out your book, aren't you?”

“No. I'm determined to change the ending.”

***

“I want that tracker out,” Squall ordered Irvine and Selphie as they opened the bay doors onto the broken landing platform. “I mean it. If we're going to vanish, it needs to go.”

“You got it!” Selphie laughed loudly. “Irvine, you take the engine room.”

“No problem,” he grinned.

“And I want the tracker out _before_ you two have sex in the engine room,” Squall told them, tightening his gloves. “I mean that more.”

“...How about a brief intermission?” Selphie suggested.

“Make the tracker gone,” Squall ordered calmly, his eyes flashing. “Quistis, I know you want to go, but can you stay and watch over them?”

“No problem,” she laughed. “I'll keep them in line.”

“Aww...” Selphie pouted, crossing her arms. “You're no fun.”

“I've been told. Zell, you ready?”

“Ready, baby!” Zell punched eagerly at the air. “I'm so excited!”

“Calm down. Rinoa?”

“Yup,” she smiled at his side, adjusting her blaster. “Let's do this!”

“Good luck,” Quistis waved them off as they walked down the ramp.

They had to climb around the ship and up the broken platform. There was a bit of a jump to make it onto the walkway to the entrance. Squall, Zell, and Rinoa stepped onto the rickety wooden path that had been warped and broken from the years out here on the ocean.

“Seems like a nice place,” Rinoa grinned.

“It's beautiful!” Zell beamed, looking out over it. “Exactly what I dreamed...Think we're going to run into any cool monsters?”

Squall didn't respond. He led the way across the rotting wood, being careful where he put his boots so he didn't fall through. The entrance had a metal, submarine style door that had been left not only wide open but completely off of its hinges. The hinges themselves looked like they had been physically ripped out of place.

“Well, that's encouraging,” Rinoa made a face.

“O-o-oh, it's so good,” Zell rubbed his hands together.

Squall ignored them and stepped inside. He was prepared for it to be dark. He frowned because it was very bright. Filled with a glowing, almost pulsing blue light that washed over his body. Rinoa and Zell stepped inside after him, frowning at the large tube it was coming from. And the tree roots that were growing down around it.

“What is that?” Zell asked eagerly.

The sound of his voice triggered the response. The blue light flashed brighter, a serious of panels spinning around the tube it was coming from. Zell flinched back, his eyes wide. “It's moving!”

“Ow...” Rinoa grabbed her head. “This blue light...it...”

“Yeah,” Squall nodded.

The blue light hurt.

It was painful against their skin. Not really like it was burning them, though the sensation was close. It was almost like a cross between fire and thunder. Unpleasant and harsh.

“Let's check it out,” Squall said, stepping forward.

He had to grit his teeth as the light flashed brighter, its effects getting stronger. 

“ _The blue light leads all to death...Turn back..._ ”

“What the hell was that?!” Zell yelled looking around.

That voice...Ringing and powerful...

The light faded slightly, giving them a chance to escape. Squall took another determined step forward, going right for the core. The light pulsed again. Rinoa made a small sound of pain as Zell groaned, trying to face it. Squall's jaw clenched and he paused.

The light dimmed again. He ran forward.

He only got a few steps before the light came back. Squall stopped and let the pain of it wash over him for a moment. It faded once more. Squall ran again.

“ _You have perceived the resonance..._ ” the voice said, almost sounding surprised.

Squall kept moving, waiting between the painful light and the dimming of the power, before taking his determined steps forward. He jumped over a root, landing in front of a console that was connected to the tube.

It was hard to see through the light, but it almost looked like there was something swirling within. A sort of...orb?

“What is that?” Rinoa asked, tilting her head.

Squall reached out and brushed away the layer of dust covering the glass. It made the light brighter, but it also made the contents clearer. Squall leaned forward.

Orbs...circling orbs of energy...

“ _So you wish to challenge me?_ ” The voice asked angrily.

“It is not our will to fight...” Squall said calmly.

He could feel the light from the core pulsing through him. Resonating in his brain. He almost felt like it was reaching out for his spirit.

“Squall!”

Rinoa's hand gripped the leather of his jacket. He turned to see, forming from the shadows of the room, a long talon coated arm. Bright, gleaming red scales. Black eyes. The ruby dragon was growling as it emerged from nothing, beckoned by the light.

“What the hell's with that?!” Zell yelled, shocked.

“Don't use fire,” Squall said calmly. “It absorbs fire.”

“Huh? Then how am I supposed to attack?”

“I'll attack.” Squall stepped forward calmly. He reached into his head. Shiva responded readily.

“Diamond Dust!” A long tunnel of ice. Cold beyond cold. The ruby dragon, breather of fire, wasn't equipped to handle it. Roaring in pain, its body fell over. Dead...

Rinoa fell back against the core, breathing hard. The energy within felt her fear.

“ _Begging me for mercy?_ ” The voice asked, sounding almost hopeful.

Squall turned back calmly. “Never.”

The second ruby dragon attacked so quickly that Squall didn't even get a chance to see him. Rinoa screamed in warning but wasn't fast enough to prevent the back attack from slicing down Squall's back, ripping through his jacket and his skin. Blood poured from his body as Squall dropped and rolled, coming back up to face the dragon.

“Diamond Dust!”

The Ice Goddess ripped through the dragon easily.

“Squall!” Rinoa ran to him. Her hands reached out quickly and the healing energy she wielded sunk into his skin. Squall let out a breath of relief as the power was absorbed into his body. Alleviating the pain. Repairing the broken skin.

Rinoa let out a breath as she rested her head against his back.

“You okay?”

“Yeah,” he nodded, turning. “Thanks.”

She nodded, smiling at him gently. He looked up over her head and stepped back to the core. It was pulsing angrily.

No...Not anger...

What was that emotion...?

“ _Damned imbeciles!_ ” The voice was trembling now. “ _Why do you wish to fight!_ ”

Not in anger.

In fear. 

Squall knew that emotion well. This thing in there was afraid.

Why did he fight? He had just told him that he had no will to fight. So why did he remain here even knowing that this thing didn't want to fight him either. It only wanted him gone. It would let him leave without a fight. So why did Squall continue forward?

He couldn't turn from the challenge.

He couldn't run from a fight.

Why did he wish to fight?

It's in our nature...

The light dimmed slightly. The fear faded slightly. Like it was listening.

There is no real reason to seek that challenge. That rush. Maybe we were born...only to fight...

The light was reaching into him. Seeking his thoughts. His emotions. Squall and Shiva welcomed it in, beckoned it forward. See what we are...

“ _I see..._ ” It rumbled softly. “ _Interesting..._ ”

Squall blinked-

-and his eyes opened on a different world. A world surrounded by the spinning blue panels. On either side of him, he heard Rinoa and Zell gasp at the sudden change. The sensation was familiar to Squall. He had felt similarly when he had entered Diablos's lamp. Pulled into a world between worlds that existed to contain a GF.

He wasn't at all surprised when he looked up to see the enormous beast descending down upon them. Large, navy blue wings spread out wide as it looked at them through glassy black eyes. Blue and silver scales covered its body like armor. It floated above them, white claws gleaming at the ends of its fingers and toes.

“ _I am...Bahamut..._ ” he told them. His voice rumbled in power. In fear.

“The great GF...Bahamut?” Squall repeated, surprised. A legendary creature. They said he was the first GF in history. That he had existed for thousands of years. That his breath, his Mega Flare, could raze an entire city to ashes and dust.

“ _GF?_ ” He repeated, confused at the term. “ _...I?_ ”

“Did you not know?” Squall asked, stepping towards him. “You're a guardian force. One of the legendary guardian forces...It's said your breath is the most powerful attack possible for a mere human to command...”

“ _Commanding such great power..._ ” Bahamut seemed to shiver. “ _Yet it is you humans...I fear..._ ”

“Why?” Squall frowned, confused.

A great creature like him? How could he fear what must be insects to his might?

Bahamut was done talking. Drawing back, he dove towards them. The three barely managed to hit the deck in time to avoid the razor sharp slice of his wide wings.

Squall jumped to his feet as the GF pulled up and twisted, snapping his wings out again. Squall pulled his Punishment from its sheath and faced him calmly. Rinoa hit the release on her Cardinal. Zell lifted his fists, frowning at the mighty dragon overhead.

“Um, do we have a plan here?” Zell asked, a bit worried. “That thing flies way higher than I can hit.”

“Rinoa, bring it down.”

“Dark Messenger!”

The force of gravity slammed into the dragon. Roaring out in surprise, he sank lower. Within range of Squall's weapon. He lifted his Punishment and let out three, icy shots. The conflicting affinity burst against him painfully.

Roaring, Bahamut drew in a great, glowing breath.

“Watch out!” Squall yelled, grabbing Rinoa.

He jerked her around, pulling her out of range, putting his back to the dragon. Rinoa grabbed Squall and quickly fed her healing energy back into him.

The Mega Flare blasted against Squall's back. He screamed from the pain of it, but, besides the heat, it did no damage because Rinoa was feeding him her healing powers. Every inch of his skin that got destroyed was quickly fixed again.

The flare faded away and, breathing hard, Squall turned. Zell, protected by a wall of fire, was looking with wide, frightened eyes.

The Flare wasn't fire. It wasn't thunder. It was some strange combination of magics that weren't one thing or another. Non-elemental. A dragon that breathed non-elemental, raw energy that scorched everything it touched to the bone.

“Um, Squall?” Zell looked to him.

Rinoa looked past him, to the great flying dragon.

“I got it,” he assured them.

He had started this fight. He couldn't let it end just like that. Especially now that he had Rinoa and her magic that worked so much better than any cura spell.

“Blizzara!”

Bahamut was fast as he dodged the spell. The magic crashed against the tube surrounding them. It reverberated loudly. Painfully. The three of them cried out and flinched, covering their ears as the sound vibrated in their bones.

It only lasted a few seconds, but they were jarring, painful seconds.

As the noise died down, Squall's eyes opened to find himself down on his knees. Bahamut was hovering in front of him, his sad black eyes patient. He hadn't attacked even though he all too easily could have won in that moment.

“What was that?” Squall asked him, getting painfully to his feet. He felt suddenly sore...

“ _The walls of this cage are protected. Any force that hits them triggers the response._ ”

Zell and Rinoa pushed themselves up as well. Zell was shaking his head, trying to clear the sensation that lingered in his brain. Rinoa was frowning at Bahamut.

“You said...cage? 

He didn't respond to the follow up question. Now that they were back on their feet, he swooped in for another attack. Squall lifted his gunblade. Bahamut's fangs caught on the sword and jerked Squall up into the air.

The two of them flew up together, Squall hanging on by his feet on either side of Bahamut's neck. His large teeth were so close to biting through Squall's Punishment. He could see the metal, the best money could buy, bending under the force.

“Blizzara!”

The explosion of ice into Bahamut's mouth choked him. The dragon reared back and Squall's boots lost their grip on his neck. He started falling down fast towards the ground.

“Water!” Rinoa threw out her new magic.

The sphere of water appeared a great deal quicker than it had in the dry desert. Squall dived into the top without a splash. His body twisted and dropped out of the bottom. Rinoa jerked her hand up and the water shot up like a laser.

Bahamut's armor like scales took the brunt of the damage but he still cried out when the magic crashed against his chest. His flight pattern thrown off, he started careening towards the ground. Zell was right below him, as he came zooming in, Zell pulled back.

His punch landed square against Bahamut's cheek. The dragon flew into the cage walls. Rinoa had only enough to gasp in painful anticipation before his body hit it. The loud, painful sound rang out again and the three of them cried.

None so loud as Bahamut who's roar shook the ground as his body was twisted with the blue electricity powering the cage. It lasted only as long as the sound. He crashed down to the ground, his body smoking, as his fingers twitched.

The four of them, breathing hard, gathered their thoughts about the same time. Bahamut pushed himself up, looking Squall in the eye. Squall deliberately stood still as Bahamut launched off into the air once again.

“Bahamut, do you know who you are?” Squall asked calmly.

Bahamut's black eyes sparkled as he drew in a breath.

Zell built another wall of fire. Squall built a wall of ice. Rinoa hid behind Squall, lending her own magic to both men's shield. Mega Flare crashed against them, shattering ice and blowing out the burning fire. But it didn't hit their bodies.

“Bahamut, do you know who you are?!” Squall asked loudly as the magic faded.

“ _Tell me!_ ”

Bahamut dropped and charged like a bullet from the sky.

Squall caught him on the edge of the Punishment. His knees started buckling, but he held his ground against the enormous dragon's strength. The two of them grappled together for a long second. Squall's gritted his teeth as his muscles shook with effort. Bahamut's claws dug into the ground under their feet as he tried to crush Squall.

“You...Are...Bahamut...” Squall ground out from between his teeth. “You are...the king...of dragons....The king of guardian forces!”

Bahamut growled as he jerked his head up, then down. Rinoa screamed as Squall was crushed down to the ground. Gritting his teeth against the pain, Squall remained flat on his back as Bahamut lifted his head over him. Black eyes, the size of Squall's head, glittered as Bahamut looked him over. The emotions were powerful, confused, and conflicting.

“ _I am king..._ ”

“Yes...” Squall breathed, his chest heaving. “You are one of the Legendary Eight. The first GFs that ever existed in the world. The only one who's name survives to this day. People tell legends of your mighty breath. Of your great strength.”

“ _I have no memories of this._ ”

“What happened to you here, Bahamut?”

Silence.

Standing back away from them. Rinoa was straining at Zell's grasp, trying to run to Squall. Her wide eyes looked between him and the massive dragon that was only inches from either crushing, shredding, or disintegrating him.

The mighty GF did not answer immediately. He continued to look Squall over as his own private thoughts ran through his head. Trying to figure out what he remembered. Trying to sort out what he would wish to tell.

“ _I have always served humanity,_ ” he growled, his voice soft and distant. “ _I remember that. Only that. It is the only thing that has accompanied me in this endless torment. Do you know this of me?_ ”

“I only know that the Legendary guardians came into the world suddenly. I don't know how you came here or why...” Squall paused as he felt Shiva whispering into his mind.

“ _I came here willingly. I was put here by my own master. The one I served, the one I trusted, placed me into this cage and sealed me inside. He told me he wished only to study my power. My magic. He was curious. Ingenuous. I trusted him._ ”

“He betrayed you,” Squall guessed easily.

“ _This cage is impenetrable. I have been trapped in here for longer than I can remember. The 'studies' he performed were painful. The tests he conducted were torture. I could not escape. I could not fight back. My mind was stripped from me as punishment for my trust._ ”

“You've been alone for years. Sealed away from the world in a prison you are partially responsible for creating.”

“ _As time passed, and I became accustomed to this place, my power began to extend beyond this cage. I could reach out and affect the world. I killed some of the humans who tortured me._ ”

Squall said nothing. He could feel Bahamut waiting for Squall to cast judgment on him for the murders of other humans. But Squall felt nothing for those men. They had betrayed their responsibility to the GF that served them. He would deserve the same if he tried anything similar with Shiva.

“ _They tried to control me. They tried to force me back in. I fought back. Is this my nature?_ ”

“It's the nature of any creature to want to survive.”

Bahamut looked at him. His black eyes shined in the blue light of the cage.

“Are you the one who made everyone abandon the island?”

“ _It was not I. They left me here because they could no longer control me. But this cage is powerful. My power extends only to calling on my brethren. Is this the 'king' power you say I possess?_ ”

“Bahamut, I do not blame you for what you did. You weren't wrong for doing it. I would do the same.”

“ _So you say. You can't know how you would behave in such a situation unless you were in it._ ”

“I have been.” Squall's words caused the dragon to back off slightly. “I was tortured by one that I believed that I trusted. At least, trusted not to torture me. When I broke free, I killed my way out of that place. And I would do it again if I had to.”

“ _You are very calm. Did you kill your torturer?_ ”

“I did not. I've...I've come to understand what he is. What he's become. I can't forgive him, nor can I punish him for what he didn't really choose to do.”

Slowly, Squall lifted his arm. Bahamut's nose began smoking gently as Squall placed his gloved hand on his muzzle. Reaching out and touching him gently for the first time in too long. Bahamut had been alone for a long time.

Probably as long as Squall had.

He felt connected to this GF. Almost like he was a kindred spirit.

“Come with us, Bahamut. Join us.”

“ _You wish to subject me to human cruelty again?_ ”

“I wish for you to join your brothers in our ranks. You are not the first GF we hold. There are many of you among us. I know it's not easy, but trust in humans once more. Let us bring you from this darkness and out into the world again.”

Bahamut growled gently. It didn't sound threatening nor encouraging.

“ _This cage is impenetrable. There is no escape for either of us. It would be kinder for me to kill you now so you are not trapped here forever with me._ ”

“If we can break this cage, will you join us?”

Bahamut rumbled again, standing up and backing off. Squall sat up. Almost immediately, Rinoa pushed Zell off of her and ran to his side. She slid down onto her knees, putting her hands around him as she let out a breath of relief that she was alright.

“ _Free me, human. If you can._ ”

“Rinoa,” Squall turned to her.

“Wha-me?” She pointed to herself, surprised.

“This place was designed to hold a GF, not a sorceress. I know it can't hold you. Break it open.”

Rinoa nodded. She looked up and around herself. Worried.

The walls let out that horrid sound whenever something hit them.

The ground though...

Bahamut watched as Rinoa looked down. Thoughtfully, she placed her hand down onto the glowing floor. She released Squall and flattened both palms down. Taking a deep breath, she called upon the power of thunder. Destroy the machine that kept them in here.

Her fingers sparked and the light around them flickered. Her hair began standing on end as the light of the ground began brightened. Bahamut's eyes widened as Zell took a few cautious steps back. Squall didn't move. His skin tingled in the face of her power, but it didn't hurt.

Distantly, they heard something that sounded like an explosion. Then a low rumbling. The cage around them started shaking. The panels circling around them flickered out one at a time. Bahamut's long neck turned around as the world darkened around him for the first time in a long time. Relief flooded his veins.

Rinoa let out a cry of effort.

The ground shattered under her hands.

They all fell into the darkness.

Squall drew in a quick breath as he felt something unfamiliar in his head.

“ _Have you seen the light...?_ ”

***

“Ah! He's waking up.”

“Squall!”

Rinoa's voice, filled with worry, had his gently returning consciousness snapping back to reality. It was abrupt, but he didn't like to hear that tone. His eyes opened quickly and the first thing he saw was Rinoa's relieved face leaning over him.

“Squall!” Throwing herself onto his chest, Rinoa clung on as Squall pushed himself up. He automatically reached out to hold her as he looked around.

Zell and Rinoa had taken him back to the ship. He was laying out on the ground of the Ragnarok, the others standing around him, relief on their faces.

“What happened?” Squall asked calmly.

“Rinoa kind of...broke the lab,” Zell said, holding back a laugh. “You totally blacked out.”

“Are you two okay?” Squall asked quickly, looking at Rinoa. She nodded, her head still against his chest as she refused to let him go. He let out a breath of relief. “What about Bahamut? Did you pick him up?”

She shook her head. Squall looked to Zell and he did the same, grinning.

Frowning, Squall turned his own thoughts inward.

There was no way. Absolutely no way...

Do you need something, Bahamut asked calmly.

“What the...” Squall nearly jumped in surprised. “Shiva?”

Yes?

He had both of them? At the same time? His head didn't hurt and Shiva wasn't screaming in anger. He felt absolutely fine. Better than fine.

Shiva was laughing at him gently. Bahamut was growling low, like a purr. Both of them were in his head. More than that, they were at the same spot in the back of his head. Like they were not only willing to share, but quite happy to be close to each other while doing it.

“Bahamut jumped in you before either of us could welcome him in,” Zell explained, smiling. “Seems he knows what he wants.”

“But...Shiva...”

“Is she okay?” Quistis asked, leaning down. “I can't believe she'd be willing to share with him.”

“Me either.”

She hated Ifrit so much that it had been beyond painful to hold both of them at once. Yet Bahamut, who held every power that sat opposite of hers, who controlled all the magic she didn't, she was just fine with?

Why? Squall asked. Why Bahamut of all the GF? It would have made more sense for her to welcome Leviathan over Bahamut. At least their affinity was the same element.

It isn't about the affinities, she told him calmly.

Do you remember the first time we met? You were a first year upper classmen. I had been in circulation for years. Since Xu had found me in a monster she defeated on assignment and turned me in when she couldn't control my power. You had already rejected three of the trainer GF assigned to you. You had proven you knew how to junction, but you refused to do it.

Do you remember why?

You were smaller then. Cuter. I was pressed into you against your will. You were angry at me for daring to enter you. You actually snapped at me.

I had joined with many SeeDs by that point. They were trying desperately to find someone to hold onto me. I rejected everyone though.

All anyone ever wanted from me, needed from me, was my power. Who I was, what I did, was unimportant. The only thing that mattered was my great strength. I was given to you on a lark in the first place. I was deemed too powerful for a cadet's trainer GF, but the faculty decided to throw the GF who rejected all SeeDs to the cadet who rejected all GFs. I think they just wanted to see what would happen and find amusement in it.

But I felt in you what I had felt in no other before you.

You didn't want my power. You didn't care what strength I brought to you. In fact, you were rather angry at being forced to hold me. You resented the fact that a GF could only be useful by invading your head space. A space you considered sacred. You actively pushed people away, you didn't want to share your most intimate thoughts with any another person, not even a GF.

You were a hurt little boy. Scared of everyone around you. You didn't want me, but you needed me more than anyone. I wasn't attracted to you because you can control my power. I accepted you because you needed someone to care for you.

Squall barely remembered what she was talking about. It almost felt like Shiva had been in his head his entire life. She had always been nurturing and loving though. Accepting him when she would tolerate no one else. Then holding on tight to his brain. Refusing to let another in because she knew that he wasn't ready to let another in that close.

Exactly. Except for Ifrit. I just dislike him.

Squall chuckled gently. Yeah, he got that.

Bahamut may hold power over all of the elements I do not, but he is exactly like you. Alone. Hurt. Scared. He needs me, needs us. Not for what we can give him, but because he needs someone to be there for him.

So of course I welcomed him in.

Besides, Bahamut and I have been together since the beginning. I would never turn him away.

Squall frowned. “What are you talking about?”

Bahamut lost his memories, but I have not. I remember our past, and I'll be happy to share who we are and what we came from with him.

You know me? You know what I am?

Of course, my brother. We were created at the same time. You and I are Legend.

“What?! Shiva!”

Oh, calm down. You never asked where I came from. I would have told you if you had.

“Squall?”

His eyes focused again to see Rinoa frowning at him. She knew he was talking to Shiva, but she couldn't hear what was being said. Her heart was connected to him, not his GF.

“Shiva just likes to play her games,” Squall shook his head. He could hear her laughing at him.

“Well, congratulations,” Quistis beamed. “I never thought I'd see the day when you finally got a second GF. This is worthy of celebration.”

“Welcome to the family, Bahamut!” Selphie yelled happily. “Leviathan says he's happy to see you again. Siren and Carbuncle hope you feel better soon.”

“Pandamona and Cerberus welcome you warmly, and Quetzalcoatl is singing a song for you,” Quistis smiled at Squall.

“Minotaur and Sacred want to wrestle,” Irvine tipped his hat to him. “And Cactuar and Tonberry promise that we're not so bad. Thanks for that ringing endorsement, guys.”

“Ifrit is annoyed that you still get along with the ice lady?” Zell frowned. Then shrugged. “But Alexander welcomes you and Doomtrain...well he's grunting very nicely.”

“Diablos promises that Squall is a nice guy and a formidable warrior,” Rinoa smiled, leaning against Squall and hugging him tight, hugging Bahamut tight. “Thanks for giving us a chance, Bahamut. We'll never betray your trust.”

Squall smiled as he returned Rinoa's embrace for a moment. Then he stood up and grinned around at all of his friends. All of them happy to welcome Bahamut to their group. He could feel the dragon king warming to the attention.

Master?

You can just call me Squall, Bahamut. I hate it when people give me titles.

…

There is another.

“What?” Squall frowned, his eyes focusing inward again.

There is another trapped within.

“Who?”

I don't know. I never saw her myself. The humans spoke of a weapon they found in Centra when they brought her aboard. She was taken under. I hear her scream sometimes.

“What is it, Squall?” Rinoa asked, frowning at his face.

“Bahamut says there's another GF in the research facility. Buried deep under.”

“Seriously?” Selphie frowned. “How many GF did these people have?”

“Probably just the two,” Squall crossed his arms. “It was hard enough keeping Bahamut under control. A second one, even if it was only half the power of him, would be that much more difficult. He says he hears her crying out every now and then. He doesn't know what they did to her, but whatever it was, it's still effecting her even now. He last heard her scream a few days ago.”

“What horrible people,” Quistis covered her mouth, turning away. “How could they?”

“What time is it?” Squall asked, looking around. He couldn't see the sky so he didn't know how long he had been unconscious.

“It's about noon,” Irvine said. “We just finished running through the program checks on the ship. We can't find anything that looks to be the tracking program so it has to be something in the engine. We were about to get started on that when Zell dragged you in here.”

“We probably have enough time to get down there,” Squall said, frowning. “We need to free that second GF, if only to get her out of here.”

“Great, Selphie and I will get back to work,” Irvine smiled.

“Uh, Squall?” Quistis made a face.

“What?” 

“Well, I just saw them before you guys came in. I hadn't even gotten around to telling Selphie and Irvine yet.”

Squall sighed. “Esthar again.”

“Esthar again,” she nodded. “They were on the horizon the last time I saw them. I don't think there's any place they can climb up, but they've still found us.”

Squall nodded. “Okay. Quistis, can you help Irvine in the engine?”

“Hm? Well, I'm not very good with machines, but I can try. Why though?”

“Selphie.”

“Hm?” The tiny girl tilted her head curiously.

“I need you, Siren, and Leviathan to keep the Estharians at bay.”

“Like a tidal wave!?” She bounced eagerly on her heels.

“No.” Squall's voice was dull and final and she slumped, disappointed. “We don't want to kill them. We don't need to drown an entire army to prove our point. We just need the tracking chip gone. What I need from you is to use the waves to keep them off if they try to climb. Or to push them back if they try to shoot us from afar.”

Selphie nodded. “Alright. But it would be so easy to just-”

“No!” Squall snapped.

Selphie slumped again.

“Zell, Rinoa, we're going back. Selphie, _defense only._ ”

“You're no fun.” She crossed her arms unhappily.

***

“Captain!”

“What is it?” The leader of the fleet turned at the helmsman's call.

“There's a girl standing on top of the Ragnarok.”

Grabbing his binoculars, the captain looked through. It took him a moment to find the girl. She was wearing bright yellow, but she was tiny. Jumping up and down, she was waving at them with a wide smile on her face.

“Uh...That kind of makes me nervous,” the captain grimaced, lowering the binoculars.

“Sir!” One of the soldiers ran in, saluting him formally. “We have new orders from the vice president.”

***

When Rinoa had broken Bahamut free from his cage, she had accidentally wiped out the entire first floor of the research center. All of the electrical components had been broken apart and turned to little more than dust. There was now a large hole in the ceiling through which the tree roots that had previously wrapped around the blue tube in the room were now hanging through.

Looking around at the crumbling room, Squall was impressed. 

“Nice work, Rinoa.”

She was blushing, embarrassed. “I didn't mean to take it this far...”

“It was effective. That's all that matters.” Squall leaned over the large hole in the floor, looking around at the large, circular metal room below. “Alright. Let's go.”

Using the tree roots, Squall climbed down through the hole. Zell and Rinoa followed after him quickly. Squall jumped down the last few feet and looked around.

The circular room was covered around the entire parameter with windows. He could see the base of the rest of the island above the ceiling, just under the surface of the water. A little further than that, he could see the round bottom hulls of the Estharian ships.

Gasping with pleasure, Rinoa ran to the window. She put her hands against the cool glass out and let out an impressed breath as she looked around. She could see so far under the water from here. And everything looked so different from below the surface.

“What's with this place?” Zell asked, frowning as he walked around.

Squall went the opposite direction, moving towards the central structure around which the entire floor had been constructed. Steam was billowing out of some of the pipes that had been cracked by the floor falling down around them. There was a terminal there. Covered in dust and debris, Squall had to spend a minute clearing it all away to reach the terminal.

The screen was manually operated, there was no touch screen. Squall pressed a few things experimentally before he chanced upon the power button.

With a low pitched groaning and hiss, the machine came to life. Zell came up from behind him, frowning as a distorted voice spoke from the machine. Warped from years of disuse, it changed pitch and volume randomly as it spoke to him.

“ _Low Energy Mode. Reserve steam pressure: 20 units. Calculating...It is possible to reach the excavation site on reserve steam pressure._ ”

“Excavation site?” Zell repeated, confused.

At the window, Rinoa leaned up on her toes as she looked down, trying to get a better glimpse of the dark thing she could see at the bottom of the ocean. Kind of circular...

“ _Display status report?_ ” The machine asked. Squall clicked the button to continue after a moment's search.

“ _Generating status report... … ...Complete. Tower level 0: Damaged but responsive. Tower level 1-10: Fully operational. Excavation site: Fully operational. Warning: Due to low energy levels it is difficult to access a path to the lower levels. Tower units must be rotated on specific routes to reach the bottom._ ”

“Cool. What's the route?” Zell asked, but the machine didn't respond to him.

“ _Warning: Facility is running on reserve steam pressure. Descent is not recommended. Level one door can be accessed with four steam units. Expend units?_ ”

Squall pressed the continue button again.

“ _Expending four units. Warning: Sixteen steam units remaining. Opening the door to level one._ ”

Zell cried out as the center tower began spinning. Underneath their feet, Squall could hear and feel the ground rumbling. The steam that had been leaking out in small amounts started gushing into the room, raising the temperature and obscuring his vision slightly.

It took about ten seconds. The tower let out a warning alarm. Squall turned when he saw something orange flashing against the wall. The light was originating from a hatch in the floor with yellow and black bands marking the door. The alarm rang out warningly for a moment then cut off as the hatch, then the second one beneath that, opened up. The staircase leading below was revealed as the steam in the room eased.

“So that place is creepy...” Zell frowned as Rinoa returned from the window. She stood at Squall's side, staring down into the darker circular room below.

“Shall we?” She asked happily.

Squall nodded and led the way down.

Level one was in much better condition than level zero. Spared from the ravages from above, the entire area was only dirtied by a layer of dust. The machine parts were still mostly shining, the windows remained bright and clear. From this depth, Rinoa could see dolphins playing in the currents and she gasped in delight at the sight of them.

Squall moved immediately to the next terminal. This one woke easier under his touch.

“ _Steam units required to reach level two: two. Warning: Sixteen steam units remaining. Expend units?_ ”

Squall continued again. 

“ _Opening the door to level two._ ”

The spinning of the rooms was softer this time, though the alarm that blared before the floor hatch opened was the same volume. Once again, the room filled with steam as the doors opened. It remained in place this time after the door had opened, billowing out into the room as Squall moved towards the stairs to the next level. Rinoa was disappointed to leave the dolphins behind, but she followed after Squall eagerly enough.

Level two was considerably darker than the first two floors. The low lights had mostly burnt out at this level and they were so deep under the water now that the sea was getting darker around them. The fish at this level weren't so pretty as the ones higher up.

From here though, Rinoa got a much better view of the thing below them. It was definitely round. And big. Bigger than the island itself. As Squall was expending one more steam unit to access the next level, Rinoa was trying to see down to the large thing below them.

The room shook a little precariously when the tower twisted this time. Rinoa turned back as rust and dirt fell down from the ceiling. Steam filled the room as the hatch opened again, the light of the alarm casting an eerie orange glow over everything.

“That computer said ten floors, right?” Zell asked, looking down.

“Yeah, so this should be level...three?” Rinoa joined him.

“I see a six on the wall,” Zell frowned at the area beside the staircase. They weren't traveling down level by level. They were traveling in increments.

Squall didn't immediately walk to the now open hatch. Instead, a second terminal in the room caught his eye and, curious, he made his way over. Rinoa looked over her shoulder as Squall brought that computer to life.

“ _Steam room: Locked. Administrative override?_ ”

Squall shrugged and pressed the continue button.

“ _Verifying...Confirmed. Steam room: Unlocked. Units required to open the steam room: four units. Warning: Thirteen steam units remaining. Continue?_ ”

“Are you sure?” Zell frowned. “We only have so many units.”

Rinoa pondered the door on the central tower. “Well, we haven't been using very many, I think we can afford it. Besides, it's called the steam room. Might be useful.”

Squall nodded and clicked continue.

“ _Opening door to the steam room._ ”

The tower didn't twist this time. Steam billowed out from beyond the door and, after a long series of groans, the door slid open. Squall stood and walked through.

The steam room was connected to all the various levels of the tower through a great many pipes that all connected to a central source here in the tower. The water reservoir was steaming through the rusty cracks in the cistern. There was another terminal here. As Zell went to investigate the cistern, Squall and Rinoa walked to the terminal.

This one was rusted worse than the others. It took Squall mashing against the buttons, beating against it a few times, to bring it to life. Even then, the light was weirdly dim and the voice from within as warped as the one on level zero.

“ _Warning: Steam machine in disrepair. Unable to create more steam. Warning: Water reservoir in disrepair. Unable to obtain more water. Warning: Low power levels. Unable to restore power level._ ”

“That's cheerful,” Rinoa frowned.

“Hey, Squall,” Zell pointed into the window of the cistern. “I think I see the water it's talking about. I think it connects up there.”

Squall thought for a moment. “Alright. Zell, see if you can heat the water. Make more steam.”

“Awesome!” Laughing, Zell put his hands against the metal tank. Pushing the heat of Ifrit's fire into the metal walls, into the cistern and water, he began cooking the water below. The disconnect between himself and the water itself made it take longer, but after a few moments, steam began gushing from all the pipes in the room.

Rinoa looked over to Squall as the temperature of the room rose. He was looking down at the panel, watching the steam levels on the readout rise with it.

“Squall?”

“Hm?”

“Aren't you hot?”

Squall blinked and looked over to her. “No. Not at all. Why?”

Rinoa looked around. “Well, I'm hot. It's like a sauna in here. And usually when it's hot Shiva practically has ice crystals in your hair. But you're not doing it now.”

Squall frowned and looked down at himself. Honestly, he hadn't been paying attention. He hadn't felt at all hot, so he hadn't thought about it. Now that he was, he realized that he didn't feel cold either. Shiva wasn't complaining loudly about the heat.

I don't feel heat, Bahamut told him simply.

He was the king of dragons. His breath carried, partially, the power of flame. So Squall wasn't affected by it anymore. And because he wasn't affected, neither was Shiva. Their powers were working together to make Squall immune to both effects.

Rinoa smiled at his realization. “That's amazing. So you're immune to hot and cold now?”

“I...guess so,” Squall shrugged. “Could be useful.”

Rinoa grinned.

“Hey, Squall,” Zell frowned, looking over at them. “I think that's it. I'm not seeing any more water in the tank. Did that do it?”

Squall looked back at the terminal and nodded. “We got seven new units out of that. We're up to sixteen. Not bad.”

Laughing, Zell ran from the room again. Rinoa and Squall followed after him and down the stairs to keep on going to level six.

It only took one steam unit from there to make it down to level nine. Then another unit to open level ten below that. Rinoa could look out the windows on level nine and see the deep sea fish swimming outside of the windows. They were a rather eerie sight, covered in darkness. She couldn't even see the surface from here anymore.

It wasn't a staircase that took them from level nine to ten. Instead, a lift was waiting for them there and carried there quite a distance down through the remaining tower. At the bottom, there were no more windows, nor was the central tower structure in place.

Instead, the entire floor was taken up by a steam machine. This one connected to a very large, thick metal door that was the only other thing in this room. Zell walked over to the machine as Squall investigated the door.

“This place is kind of creepy,” Rinoa said, frowning around at the large room. It was filled with echoes that were somehow hollow and disturbing.

“Squall,” Zell looked over to him. “This thing says we need four steam units to open the door. But I think I can mess around with the machine a bit and open it myself. Can I?”

“No,” Squall frowned at him. “Just expend the units. We have plenty to spare.”

“Are you sure? It would just take a minute.”

“No,” Squall repeated. He did not want Zell messing with that. Knowing him, he would probably just end up hitting it.

Pouting, Zell used to terminal to expend the units.

“ _Opening the door to the Ocean Deposit..._ ”

Squall turned back and watched the billowing steam opened the large metal door. Then the one behind that. Then the one behind that one.

“Uh...Seems a tad excessive,” Rinoa frowned.

“Let's just go,” Squall moved forward determinedly. He just wanted to get this trapped GF and leave this place already.

The large doors led to a metal walkway that extended across a long fall. Rinoa gasped as Zell cried out in amazement as they started across. Squall was looking around, surprised. He wasn't sure what he had expected to find, it wasn't an entire, abandoned city.

The entire area had been enclosed in by a glass and metal dome that was keeping the water away from the excavation site. It was pitch black out there because of how far underwater they were. The light being cast over the area was coming from the bottom of the metal tower and some strange, blue lamp like things set in intervals around the stone city.

It looked old. Ancient really. Most of the buildings were crumbling to pieces. Which made the blue lamps, which were obviously part of the city itself, rather more eerie. What was powering them that they were continuing to burn after so long underwater?

“What is this?” Rinoa whispered, leaning out over the metal walkway.

Squall didn't have an answer for her. All Bahamut knew was that Battleship Island had come to a rest here when the city was found. But Bahamut was already in isolation then. He had never seen the city and only heard about it when the researchers would speak of it around him. Which was rare since he was usually their topic of conversation when around him.

However...

“Bahamut says that, when this place was abandoned, he heard them yelling to seal it off. To seal something down here.”

“The GF?” Zell asked as they stepped from the metal walkway and onto the stone platform that was part of the city itself.

“No...” Squall frowned. “Bahamut says that the weapon was here before they discovered the city. He thinks they were experimenting on it as well as him. Until the day they sealed the excavation site. He says they pulled the GF down here when they did.”

Humming thoughtfully, Rinoa was leaning out a little far over the edge. Squall reached out and took her arm, worried she was about to fall. She turned and gave him a small smile of gratitude before pointing over the edge.

“There's something down there.”

“Yeah, the GF,” Zell grinned.

“Yeah, but I can hear her,” Rinoa pressed. Like a whispering in her head. No, that was too substantial. It was softer. Like the whisper of a feather dusting across her brain. If she hadn't been actively searching, had the the area around them not been so quiet, she might not have noticed.

“Then let's get down there,” Squall said simply. “We'll pull her out and get out ourselves. We still need to find those fuel cells, don't forget. That was the only reason we stopped.”

The others fell in line behind him as he started down the tall building the metal tower attached to. He went slowly at first, worried that maybe the path would crumble under his weight.

Not only did the stone remain firm and sturdy, but he didn't even hear or see a hint that their body weights were doing any sort of damage to the ancient structures. Eventually, they just started running flat out. Circling around a series of steps and platforms all lit with the dim blue lights.

Deeper and deeper they climbed into the ocean city.

Then further on. Following the gentle call that Rinoa heard in her head. They paused only once at the base of a statue of, what appeared to be, a god.

“Does it have an inscription?” Zell asked as they admired it for a moment.

Rinoa, who had come in closer, frowned. “Yeah, but it's not a language I recognize. Squall?”

He shook his head. “Kind of reminds me of ancient Centran.”

Rinoa sighed and stood up. She rather wished that no one had abandoned this place. There were so many questions about this place and, since the researchers had left it behind, she knew that she would never figure it out.

“Come on,” Squall jerked his head to the side. “Let's just get this over with.”

Rinoa nodded and they kept going. Down more stairs, more platforms. Squall was beginning to wonder what this place could possibly have been. What was the point of having so many platforms and stairs like this?

The final staircase didn't end at a stone platform like the others. Instead, it came to rest in a sort of grotto with a a small trickle of water falling down into the deep pond from far above. Squall couldn't see from where. However, he could see that they were almost directly beneath the metal tower. At least, the light from the tower was immediately above their heads.

And, coming from the tower, was a long cable. It hung, taut and firm, like a bow pulled tight. Squall stepped in closer, but he couldn't see into the water. What he did see was what looked like the other end of the cable trailing into the water, then out again connecting to a large machine. The screen was still bright, flashing dangerously red. Squall approached, frowning.

“What's it say?” Zell asked, trying to look over his shoulder.

Squall brushed away the dust from the screen. He didn't really need to though because the white words on the red screen were painfully easy to read.

LOCKDOWN IN PROGRESS. ALL STAFF EVACUATE IMMEDIATELY.

“Well...that's encouraging,” Rinoa frowned, leaning against Squall's arm.

“So, where's the GF?” Zell asked.

Rinoa frowned, listening again. It was easier to hear the GF from here, but it was still like trying to locate a sound with only one ear. After a moment, she pointed towards the pool.  
“It's down there. Um, but I don't think it's alone. I kind of...feel something?” She looked at Squall uncertainly, unsure if it was just the eeriness of her surroundings.

He nodded. “Yeah. I can feel it too. There's something there. Something the scientists sealed with a GF because they couldn't capture it safely.”

“So...are we pulling it up?” Zell asked, looking at the cable.

“We can only get the GF if we can get the monster.” Squall rotated his shoulders as he spoke, preparing for a fight. Quistis wasn't wrong. For those who couldn't fight, even the weakest grat seemed like a beast. While he didn't think whatever this monster was would be that weak, he was still allowing for the inexperience of normal men in dealing with monsters.

Squall reached out and hit the override command on the screen. The voice that came from the computer was still clear and powerful despite its long time down here.

“ _Warning: 10 steam pressure units remaining. Emergency backup generator initializing...Process complete...Use 10 remaining steam pressure units with backup fuel cells to continue excavation?_ ”

Squall clicked continue.

What were they trying to excavate anyway?

“ _Proceeding with excavation..._ ”

Rinoa frowned, stepping back from the terminal. “I...kind of have a bad feeling about this.”

Squall was inclined to agree. Too late to back out now...

The cable machine began whirring again, pulling on the remaining cable in the pond. It was protesting from so long in stillness, but it still performed its job without issue. Squall lifted his head to the cable that was entering into the center of the pond from the tower. He expected it to be being pulled down since one end was in this machine here.

He frowned, squinting.

No. That cable was being pulled up as well. Both cables were pulling up. Pulling something that was buried at the bottom of the pond...

They stopped, twanging tightly against something below. Squall took a quick step back as the water started bubbling. A second later, a blaring alarm began screeching through the air of the entire dome as the tower light flashed red in warning.

“ _Lockdown terminated. Excavation proceeding. Warning: High energy reading detected. Warning: High energy reading detected. All staff must evacuate immediately. All staff must evacuate immediately._ ”

“Uh, Squall?” Zell frowned. The surface of the pond was frothing violently now.

Something crashed from above. All three of them jumped back as the cable that had been pulling up just a moment ago began racing back towards the water. Too fast. Not like it was being fed. More like it was being pulled.

The red light kept blaring. But the blue crystals that were built into the city began pulsing. Resonating together. Getting brighter until the red light was absorbed into their glow. Squall could hear them beginning to ring. The voice warning of incoming high energy levels was almost lost under the delightful sound of the crystalline song.

It was beautiful. And terrifying. 

The air started getting heavy. The pressure in the dome pressing down on them. The cable kept being jerked into the pond. Slowly, he drew his Punishment from its sheath. He heard Rinoa and Zell quickly follow suit behind him.

Then the cable stopped.

The tightness gone, the tension completely reduced. It dangled loosely into the pond. Even the one pulling into the machine before him had stopped. The bubbling of the water calmed and he and the others shared a look.

Slowly, Squall stepped forward. His boots were strangely loud against the rocky ground even under the alarm and the crystal ring.

The pond water was still dark...

No...It was shadowed. From below...

CRASH!

Squall cried out as he was thrown backward from the punch. Rinoa screamed, throwing out her magic blindly to catch him. He sank into another water sphere, the cooling effects of it washing over his body before he could hit a hard stone wall.

Rinoa lowered him gently and he dropped from the bottom, completely dry. He looked up, his ribs sore, at the large, purple and silver...hoof that had erupted from the water and punched him like he was a sac of rice.

SLAM!

A second hoof landed beside it. The body that it pulled up after it was large, muscular, and built like a tank. Its torso was small in comparison, but the long, golden, translucent sword that it carried in its fist was big enough to make up for it. An ugly, angry head with razor sharp, gleaming silver teeth, glared at them hungrily.

“And first up! It's Zell, baby!” Laughing, he charged in.

Fists blazing, he jumped past the swing of the golden sword. He landed on the chest of the monster, grabbing it behind its neck. He used it to anchor himself as he began pummeling the thing's face. The burning streaks his fire left behind singed the thick skin.

But the monster made no growl of pain. Reaching out with its free hand, it took hold of Zell by the back of his shirt. Rearing back its entire tank-like body, it lifted Zell one handed over its head. Then dropped down, throwing him clear over the grotto.

“Zell!” Rinoa yelled, reaching out for him. She couldn't grab him with a water sphere because she couldn't see where he was landing.

“Rinoa! Drop!” Squall yelled suddenly.

She didn't think. Her body hit the ground. She wasn't even fully down when she felt the swishing of air that was the monster's sword slicing where her neck had been.

“Roll!”

Rinoa pushed away, spinning out of reach and barely avoiding the monster's hooves crashing down against her head and spine and crushing her to dust.

Rinoa jumped up and ran away from the creature. Breathing hard, she stopped and turned across from the grotto, completely opposite from Squall. The monster was looking between them, trying to decide who looked most delicious.

It had been trapped down there for a very long time. It was so very hungry...

Before it could decide, Squall acted. Throwing out his hand, his eyes flashing icy blue, he called forth Shiva's power.

“Diamond Dust!”

The icy tunnel froze the monster. The shattered shards couldn't rip through its thick skin. Shaking off the effect of the cold, the monster decided Rinoa would be an easier target. And she was closer to the stairs. He could catch her, cut off Squall's exit, then catch him.

Rinoa stiffened when the monster turned to her. A hungry grin spread across its angry, angular face. It turned slowly and Rinoa's gaze darted around quickly looking for a way out.  
She barely had time to decide. The monster was far faster than anything its size deserved to be. It charged her down, swinging back its large sword. Rinoa cried out and jumped away. Rolling and coming up, she ran towards it. Under its body. It turned as she was sprinting out from between its legs, running for Squall.

She stopped and turned just behind him. The monster was standing between them and the exit, grinning as it anticipated crunching down on their bones. Sucking out the marrow. And letting their hot, creamy blood slide down its parched throat.

Squall's hand tightened on his sword. He was scanning the monster's body, looking for any sort of weak spot in the armor.

Damn. He couldn't see one. The whole monster, even the underbelly and tender joints, were all covered in the same hard substance as the rest of it.

“Squall,” Rinoa said, worried, looking at the beast.

All right, if Squall could get in close, he might be able to pierce its heart. Assuming its heart was even in its torso and not in the tank body.

Letting out a ground shaking, ear splitting roar, the monster reared back. Then crashed back down onto its hooves. It charged.

Squall let out three quick shots that the monster dodged easily. It was going to run right over them and, with their backs to the grotto wall, they were stuck.

“Holy Judgment!”

The monster skidded to a halt as, from the far edge of the dome, a rain of holy lights fell down upon the monster. The purifying light burned it from the inside as Squall and Rinoa took that moment to escape from the corner they had been pushed into. Squall jumped out onto the grotto pond. His boots touched down against the surface and, immediately, ice spread out under his steps. He stopped and turned, the pond freezing over completely because of Shiva's touch.

Rinoa ran around the monster, aiming for the stairs. She wasn't trying to escape, she was thinking only of higher ground. She ran halfway up the lowest flight of stairs before turning, aiming her Cardinal at the monster as the gentle holy light faded away.

More irritated than hurt, the monster turned towards the origination of the lights. Zell, who had climbed over the buildings back their way, was grinning from the top of the grotto.  
Lifting one burning fist, he slammed it down against the ground. Rocks began falling but, more importantly, the force of it launched Zell over Squall's frozen pond.

He landed with a blast of fire and smoke on the monster's back. The burn and surprise caused its to rear up. Zell, grabbing onto the beast's shoulder, didn't fall. His feet kicked back and, as the monster came back down, Zell dropped them both forward into its spine.

The monster cried out. It reached back, grabbed Zell by the neck. It threw him over head. Zell twisted so he landed on his feet. Grinning, his eyes sparking, Zell faced it head on.

“Come on, ugly! You ain't got nothin'!”

The monster reared back to slam his hooves into him. Zell pulled back his blazing fist.

They struck at the same moment.

Crying out, Zell flew backwards and crashed against a stone wall of a nearby building. The stone cracked and splintered and his body collapsed over.

The monster, reeling from the blow, stumbled on its back feet. It hit the edge of the pond. The ice was thick enough for Squall's weight, not enough for the monster's.

The pond shattered and the monster fell back into it. Thrashing against the water, it started pulling itself back up again.

From above, Rinoa threw out her magic. The ice started crystallizing around him. Trapping its body into the pond. With brute strength, he kept breaking through the ice. Even as the crystals were breaking off, its thrashing was splashing its body with more water that Rinoa was able to freeze to create more of a trap around it.

Squall, quite comfortable on the slippery surface, ran up the ice, up the monster's flank. Crying out, he buried his Punishment into the monster's back. Blood, deep blue and bubbling, dripped onto Squall's hands and down the monster's chest. The monster's body locked up, twitching.

The torso tipped over. Gritting his teeth, Squall jerked the gunblade from the monster's body. Stepping backward, breathing quickly, the monster went motionless.

“Nice one, Squall!” Zell gave him a thumbs up.

Rinoa frowned. Then screamed. “Squall, RUN!”

The monster's torso jerked, the golden blade swung out. Squall didn't get a chance to move. Rinoa threw out her magic, jerking up a spear of ice. The sword broke through them, tilting awkwardly as it did so. Because it did, the blade didn't hit Squall directly. The blunt force still struck him painfully and Squall was thrown backwards.

Rinoa, focused on the ice, couldn't catch him with water this time. Squall struck the ground with a bone jarring thud. His gunblade slipped from his fingers and hit the ground beside him.

The monster got back to its hooves. Its small torso was slumped over, but the large body was still moving. A second face, grinning and mad, opened its eyes and mouth on the front of the body. It tossed the dead monster on its 'head' around like a weapon itself.

Squall started pushing himself up. Then cried out in sudden agony. Doubling over, he looked with horror at his hands. The blue blood that he had drawn from the monster was bubbling. No, it was his skin bubbling under the blood. Melting.

Quickly, Squall started wiping his hands off on the ground. The blue blood, his red blood, and the bruised flesh of his hands smeared on the rock.

Squall screamed, jerking back as his hands trembled.

Rinoa dropped down beside him. Gasping, crying out, she grabbed his wrists. Squall tried to yell at her to release him. To not touch the blood. It hurt too much. He couldn't draw in the breath.

Rinoa grabbed his bloody, mangled hands. She had to resist the urge to throw up at the feeling of his bones on her palm. She closed her eyes, fighting past the sensation. She forced her magic into his hands, tears rushing down her face.

His pain became her pain. She screamed and Squall cried out as the burning around his hands felt like it was getting worse. How did he still have nerve endings to feel with?

Behind them, Zell was fighting against the face-torso. Trying to avoid the blood that was being splattered around by the carelessly laughing monster. It burned through whatever it touched. The rocks themselves fizzing and melting under its presence.

He was keeping the monster busy though. Keeping it away from Rinoa and Squall.

Hot tears poured down her cheeks. Squall was fighting back unconsciousness as gray danced around the corners of his vision.

Rinoa was pouring her magic into him. She burned away the blue blood viciously. Then focused her entire being into repairing Squall's hands. The bones were melting now. She could feel them beginning to slip under her grasp.

More magic. More. Rinoa was crying out her pain as she kept forcing more into him. Past what she thought was her own limitations.

Zell cried out as he was struck by the monster's wildly swinging blade. Bleeding from his arm, he fell over, gritting his teeth.

The monster ignored him and moved towards Rinoa and Squall. The bigger meal. Just sitting right there for him to devour. They weren't even facing him...

“Squall! Rinoa! Run!” Zell yelled, trying to get back up. He ran towards the monster. It kicked its back hoof out and hit Zell square in the chest. All the air knocked from his lungs, Zell hit the ground. His heart felt like it had stopped for a moment and he was left flailing on the ground, struggling to draw in air that felt like was just sitting stagnant in his lungs.

The monster crept closer to the downed couple. Zell started gagging, coughing. He still kept trying to get up. He had to keep the monster back. Away from them.

Rinoa collapsed down to the ground. She stopped moving as the bright green of her healing magic disappeared like the source was drained dry. Squall was left sitting there on his legs, his arms resting on his thighs, out of Zell's sight. He wasn't even looking back at the monster.

Did they not see it coming?

Zell struggled to stand. His body collapsed. He couldn't do anything.

The monster opened its large torso-mouth, rearing up above them.

“SQUALL!” Zell yelled desperately.

The Punishment shined in the dull red and blue light around them. The monster gagged and twitched, its mouth hanging open, the gunblade embedded into the roof of its mouth. Squall, back on his feet, was breathing hard. His gloves were nothing more than tatters on his wrists.

But the skin of his hands was unblemished and whole. Squall let go of the hilt of his blade as the blue blood started dribbling down. He stepped back as the monster started twisting, trying to dislodge the gunblade buried in its brain. With no hands, it couldn't even touch it.

The blue blood started eating through Squall's blade and he clenched his teeth as he watched his beloved Punishment warp and melt.

But as the blade was destroyed, the hole in the monster's head opened allowing more blood to pour fourth. It bled into its own mouth. Down its throat. Into its lungs.

The monster crashed to the ground as Squall turned from it. Gagging, spitting, it glared at Squall hatefully as he leaned down and gently pulled Rinoa into his arms. The monster's limbs started falling still as Squall checked Rinoa for damage.

She was breathing, her eyes half open. She wasn't focused on anything though.

Squall nodded, satisfied. Being gentle with her, he walked her over to the staircase. He set her down on the bottom step before turning to the monster. It was still glaring at him in anger. Even bleeding from its brain, this monster wasn't dying.

Squall closed his eyes, focusing on a point inside his own mind. He could feel Shiva there. Her icy presence a constant comfort and sweeter for being frosty. Like a cold drink on a hot day.

Right there with her, his energy so different from hers, Bahamut was waiting for Squall to call on him with the infinite patience born from one used to captivity. He wasn't really hot. Squall wouldn't describe it as a heat. More like just simple raw energy. Not hot, not bright, just alive and vibrant and powering a force beyond Squall's understanding.

He reached out for that power and felt it slip into his hand like a familiar friend. His eyes snapped open, the gray orbs deeper and raging like a storm as Squall pulled on Bahamut's purifying flame.

The raw power of the King of Dragons. Purifying flame. Holy light. Living Lightning. The breath of the king of guardians.

“Mega Flare!”

The bright light called down from above washed over the area. The icy pond melted. The overgrown greenery disintegrated. The monster, still growling through its own bubbling blood, was razed to ash, then to nothing at all, in the face of that light.

Squall called the power back into himself. The monster's body, its alkaline blood, both destroyed in the path of Bahamut's Flare. The glowing pink and blue orbs that remained danced in the air, unaffected by physical attacks. Then, almost lazily, they blew past Squall. Aiming for the one that had heard its call, the GF sank down into Rinoa's chest. She moaned gently, but she was too tired to try to react in any other way.

“Okay, next time,” Zell glared, wincing as he got to his feet, “open with that.”

Squall ignored him. Everything alive had been burned from Bahamut's breath. But his Punishment had not been. The twin blades had been warped and melted from the blood though. Beyond repair. If it weren't for the mostly intact hilt, it wouldn't have resembled a sword at all.

Squall picked it up sadly, turning it in his hands. Worthless now. Letting out a sigh, Squall tossed the blade away. The Punishment sank down through the melted pond, rushing to the bottom. Let it rest here in honor at the sight of its last victory.

The cura spell slowly going into affect, Zell forced himself to stand upright. “Alright, we got the GF. And I think a few broken bones. Can we go now?”

“We still need a fuel cell,” Squall said firmly.

Zell groaned loudly. Squall walked past him towards the cable unit next to the pond. Their battle had left it a little battered and dented, but it was still in one piece. More importantly, when Squall broke it open, the fuel cell inside was still operational.

It took him a moment to disconnect the square black box about the size of a shoe box. It was heavy, weighing almost as much as a full grown man. It weighed barely anything when Squall absorbed it into his INVENTORY.

Nodding, satisfied, Squall stood.

“Alright, let's get out of here.”

“Finally!” Zell, already halfway up the stairs, yelled out.

Squall ignored him and leaned over to pull Rinoa back into his arms. She had fallen asleep and leaned against him helplessly.

Gently, Squall kissed her forehead as his completely intact hands held her snugly.

“Thank you.”

***

“Squall, really, I'm fine,” Rinoa assured him as Squall watched her stand up from their bunk. There was still some delicate bruising of exhaustion around her eyes despite the fact that she had slept through the rest of the afternoon and the night.

Back aboard the Ragnarok, the night had passed rather peacefully. Even with both of her GF in her head, Rinoa didn't have weird nightmares because of how exhausted she was when she fell asleep. It was mid-morning before she finally woke up. It had been so long, past twelve hours, that Squall had begun to be worried.

So that now when she finally was awake, he was hovering as she tried to stand up. It was a little difficult after spending so long in one position. She wouldn't let him help though. She wanted to get up on her own. It really only made his hovering worse.

When she tried to leave, he kept a little close to her. She didn't mind his nearness. In fact, she loved how much he cared. But she wanted to walk on her own right now. Exercise her sore body and get the blood moving.

The others were all gathered together in the cockpit, listening as Zell explained what had happened down below. When Squall and Rinoa joined them, he was busy embellishing the fight with the monster at the excavation site.

Squall let him brag a little as he sat on the far left seat. Rinoa perched on his lap after he did, getting comfortable on his thigh. She leaned against his shoulder. No one seemed all that surprised at the casual intimacy.

“So, I'm going to go out a limb and say that at least half of that isn't true,” Selphie said simply when Zell finished.

“Yeah. I bet money Squall's the one who killed it,” Quistis nodded.

“Or Rinoa,” Irvine added. “I'd believe she did it on her own before I believe that you managed to punch a monster so hard it flew fifty feet.”

Zell slumped over as the others laughed at him. Rinoa gently brushed her lips against Squall's cheek as Zell tried to insist he had done it all by himself.

When that failed, Squall released the fuel cell from the INVENTORY. Irvine and Selphie examined it and said that the age of the battery was a little older than the ship's cells, but they should be able to hook it up with a little effort.

“Guess that just leaves our destination,” Quistis said. “Still Shumi Village?”

Squall and Rinoa shared a look.

“Actually,” Squall looked back at them. “Rinoa wants to live in Grandidi Forest.”

The others frowned.

“But...There's nothing in Grandidi Forest but monsters and trees,” Selphie said simply.

“Yeah,” Irvine leaned against his hand. “Do you know how hard it would be to live there?”

“I'm up for it,” Squall shrugged.

“Oh, hell,” Zell leaned back on his hands. “Well...I suppose the monsters there would be a real challenge. Sure, I'm game.”

“It would take a little ingenuity to build a home there,” Quistis added thoughtfully. “I think I can come up with something if we take some supplies with us.”

“Oh, but the Ragnarok can't fit there,” Selphie told them. “It can't land through the trees.”

“More importantly, we still haven't found the chip,” Irvine pointed out. “If we really want to go off the grid, we need to find that first.”

As the others started discussing plans and supplies, Rinoa and Squall shared another look. She was nearly crying with happiness that they were all coming with them. It felt like they were a real family to the two of them. Unwilling to leave even in the hardest of times.

Rinoa put her arms around Squall and hugged him tight. 

They had the best friends. The best family.

His hand was stroking her hip gently as he agreed silently. She could feel in the warmth in her heart, in his. It was a good feeling.

When her eyes opened, looking past his shoulder to the communication terminal, she frowned to see the incoming transmission signal beeping. Beside it, the mute symbol was shown to be on. She sort of remembered Squall silencing it a long time ago back in space. He must not have ever turned it back on since they had no need to call anyone.

She leaned back, looking at the signal curiously. Squall followed her line of sight and frowned at the blinking light.

Do it, she urged him gently. She wanted to hear what it said.

Reaching out, Squall pressed the mute button again, allowing the voice to come through.

“ _-in Ragnarok. This is Vice President Kiros of Esthar attempting to contact the airship Ragnarok; come in Ragnarok. This is Vice President Kiros of Esthar..._ ”

“Kiros?” Zell repeated, surprised.

The radio signal had caught everyone's attention and they were all looking at the terminal in surprise. Not because he said his name was Kiros. Not just that. But also because it sounded like Kiros. The same tenor voice, calm and even. The Galbadian accent had dulled with time, but Squall could still detect hints of it when he spoke.

He was repeating the same phrase over and over again. His voice changed a little each time telling Squall it wasn't a recording. The vice president of Esthar, who's name happened to be Kiros, was attempting to contact them.

“Should we answer?” Quistis asked, staring in amazement.

“He can't mean...that Kiros, can he?” Zell asked, amazed.

“One way to find out,” Irvine urged Squall forward. Selphie nodded beside him.

Squall only hesitated another moment before hitting the button to accept the call. The signal clicked on and the man on the other end fell silent as he realized he had finally been heard. Squall's jaw tightened for a moment before he spoke.

“This is Commander Leonhart. I'm listening.”

He heard something like a sigh of relief before the man launched into it quickly.

“ _Commander Leonhart, thank you for taking my call. First of all I would like to apologize most emphatically for-_ ”

“Get to the point, vice president,” Squall interrupted him rudely. He wasn't exactly happy with Esthar at the moment.

“ _Right. Of course. Ahem. As vice president representing the president, I would like to extend an offer of employment to your organization, SeeD._ ”

Squall frowned. Whatever he had been expecting, it wasn't that. “I don't normally field SeeD requests myself, prime minister. In fact, I'm thinking of retiring.”

“ _It is a very high profile job. Esthar is more than rich enough to afford whatever cost you put onto it. I would hire you and all five of your friends for this._ ”

Squall's eyebrow raised. “Really? And what mission do you have in mind?”

“ _e would like to hire SeeD to defeat Sorceress Ultimecia. We have a plan prepared and need only someone brave enough to carry it out. And the agreement of Sorceress Rinoa. If she's obliging._ ”

Squall's fist tightened. “If this is a plot to get Rinoa back-”

“ _I assure you it's not! Sorceress Rinoa was seized under Dr. Odine's authority, not the authority of the government. We had nothing to do with it. We allowed you to take her back, didn't we?_ ”

Squall thought back to that blond bearded man who had let them escape. He had probably saved more Estharian lives than anything, but he had still let them go without a fight.

An enormous blonde man with blue eyes who spoke not a word...

“ _Our offer is genuine. Please, commander. You are likely the only one we can trust this too, and we cannot do it without the sorceress. You may come armed if you wish. Please, the president it awaiting you all most eagerly...Commander?_ ”

Squall said nothing for a long moment. He looked out over the others.

The chance to meet the Kiros.

The chance to defeat the sorceress that had destroyed their lives.

And what did they have to fear even from an entire army?

“All right, vice president. We'll be there by tomorrow.”


	40. The President of Esthar

The Lunar Cry had affected all of the planet. None so much as Esthar though. They had been right there, taking the brunt of the force. And it showed in the state of the city. What had once been a bustling, peaceful metropolis was now a battlefield. The Estharian army had been released into the streets so as to protect the citizens from the monsters that were now running loose. The population, meanwhile, had retreated into their homes and buildings to escape the danger.

There was an airstation in Esthar that was prepared for Ragnarok's landing. When Selphie parked it on the tarmac over the building, it was immediately converged upon by a group of technicians that had been instructed to repair and service the old ship that hadn't seen a human in seventeen years and was only running by a fuel cell they had stolen from another building.

There wasn't any sort of escort for them. One of the men handed Squall a transmission from the palace that apologized but all the soldiers were busy protecting the citizenry and the president refused to order a civilian into danger to bring them somewhere they knew how to reach.

Squall understood and the six of them began making their way towards the presidential palace. They needed to fight their way through the monsters roaming the streets. However, they had a much easier time of it than the Esthar soldiers. Even though Squall had no weapon, they were still fine because the others made up for his lack of strength.

The presidential palace was guarded by an entire regiment of guards that were keeping the monster's at bay. As Squall and the others approached, the man in charge ran up to them. He deliberately put his gun away as he approached.

“Commander Leonhart,” he saluted him respectfully. “Please, right this way, sir. The president is waiting for you.”

Squall fell into step behind him. Rinoa was walking very close to him by his order. She was instructed not to leave his side for even a moment.

They rode back up through the strange Esthar lift to the presidential wing. It was almost peaceful here, despite the clear glimpse they had of the entire chaotic city from almost all directions. The others walked through the quiet halls talking softly. The captain had left them to go to the president's suit on their own since he had soldiers to command.

“Will we be able to fight our way out if we have to?” Rinoa asked Squall softly. She was nervous being here. More than that though, she felt guilty. They were only so weary of Esthar because of her.

“They can't even handle the monsters down there. It will be too easy,” Squall assured her. He felt at a disadvantage without his weapon but he could pick one up from a downed soldier if he had to. He was best at a gunblade, but he could use a standard saber or gun separately.

The presidential suit was protected by the royal guard. They saluted Squall and the others respectfully as they approached.

“Commander Leonhart, welcome. The president is waiting for you, sir. Please go right in.”

Squall didn't even pause as he walked through the door. It was the first floor of the president's rooms and was just as bright and advanced as the rest of Esthar. To the point that it was almost blinding. There was a large holomap in the center of the room and three men. Two wearing Estharian style robes and one man in khaki pants and a blue dress shirt.

The two robed men turned as the others stepped through the door. Squall stopped, crossing his arms as he looked at them.

Big, blonde, blue eyed. He had aged noticeably, but not badly. He smiled brightly at the six of them like he had been waiting for them for a long time.

The other man's long hair was covered under his cap. But he was still easily recognizably because he had barely aged at all. There were a few wrinkles around his face but his expression and mannerisms had changed little.

Then that third man by the far window must be...

What was wrong with this country?

The blonde man walked around the holotable and moved towards the third man. He was saying something Squall couldn't hear from the other end of the room into a communication device with very expressive arms. The blonde man didn't speak to him because he couldn't. But after so long a mute, he didn't need to speak to be understood.

The third man turned and smiled at him The black of his hair hadn't dimmed through the years, but there were more lines on his face than Squall remembered from the last time he had seen him. But he still smiled brightly. He still stood with that careless posture.

“Oh, yeah, sure,” he said, before hanging up the radio. He nodded to the blonde before turning to the SeeDs that had come to stand before them.

His eyes focused immediately on Squall. There was something there in his face that Squall neither cared nor wanted to decipher. He met that gaze with a stony one of his own.

His smile widened and he rushed around the holomap. Over eager. Like a puppy. Breathing a little hard from the jog, he looked between them with a bright light in his face. No. Not them. Just Squall. He was looking at Squall very particularly and Squall didn't appreciate it at all.

“President Loire,” Squall said deliberately formally.

Laguna Loire said nothing. He continued to stare at him for a long minute as Kiros and Ward came around to join him. Squall's eye started twitching as he fought the urge to hit him. What the hell was he looking at?

“Laguna,” Kiros said sharply, reminding him of something with a single word.

Laguna cleared his throat, looking away. “Right. Oh, man. Sorry, guess I was just a little...”

He swallowed and looked at Squall again. A little more purposefully this time. “Been wanting to meet you. You guys are the ones who were inside our heads, right? Ellone told me on the Lunar Base. Man, you guys are something else. It was like there were some kind of waves running through my head. They gave us so much power during battle. Like, unbelievable. I can't believe that came from humans. We always kind of thought there were some kind of faeries flying over us.”

“What's this 'we'?” Kiros asked, looking at him dully. “The faerie idea was yours alone. Don't bring us into your stupidity.”

Laguna laughed at the insult. These three were so close that it wasn't an insult at all. He looked back at Squall and nodded to him.

“So, I'm Laguna. I guess you already knew that. President Laguna Loire of Esthar. It's a...real pleasure to meet you.”

Squall met his gaze calmly. “Commander Squall Leonhart of Balamb Garden.”

“Leonhart...” Laguna repeated breathlessly.

He continued staring. Squall resisted the urge to snap in annoyance.

“It's nice to meet you,” Rinoa interjected, smiling nervously, but wanting to take Laguna's attention from Squall. “I'm Rin-...Sorceress Rinoa Heartilly.”

“Ah, you're the sorceress,” Laguna beamed at her like he might actually be happy to meet her. “I really must apologize for Dr. Odine. He's a genius, but he's still an ass. I would never have demanded an innocent woman sealed away like...Wait, did you say Heartilly?”

“Hm? Yeah, why?” Rinoa tilted her head, looking at him through disturbingly familiar brown eyes.

Wow...

It was really a day for his past to come back and hit him hard.

He shook his head. “No, nothing. It's not important. It's nice to meet you, Rino-ah!”

Laguna, who had been reaching out to shake Rinoa's hand, was suddenly stopped when Squall's gloved fist snapped around his wrist. A burning cold sensation traveled up his arm as Laguna hissed in pain. Squall deliberately pushed him back.

“Do not touch her,” he growled warningly before releasing his wrist.

Laguna shook his hand, trying to force warm blood into the freezing limb. “Yeah. Yeah, that's no problem. I get it.”

“Laguna, you okay?” Kiros asked, frowning at Squall.

“I'm fine,” he assured them, happy he had insisted his guards remain outside for this meeting. “I deserved that. Listen, Rinoa's safe from me. I promise. I have no desire to hurt her.”

“Just the same, I don't trust you.” Squall glared him down warningly. “Don't touch her.”

Laguna nodded quickly. “Yeah, of course. Sorry. Nice to meet you, Rinoa.”

She nodded, smiling at him calmly. She felt safe having Squall right there. She knew he was being over protective, but it felt nice all the same.

“I'm sorry for Squall, President Loire,” Quistis said diplomatically, stepping forward to take over before her leader hurt Laguna. “He's...dedicated to his job. I'm sure we can come to a peaceful resolution before long. I'm Quistis Trepe. It's a pleasure.”

Laguna nodded to her. “How's it going?”

“I'm Selphie!” She announced, jumping in front of him. “I can't tell you how great it is to meet you. I feel like I know you already. Man,” she leaned in closer. “You still look cute even old. You know, just say the word, and I'm yours. You're my exception and Irvine already knows-EEP!”

Squall, rolling his eyes, pulled Selphie by the arm and pushed her towards a suddenly irritated Irvine who was glowering at the president.

“Name's Irvine. And I don't accept an old fart as her exception.”

“What up!?” Zell waved at them. “I'm Zell. And I want to apologize for those two.”

Laguna, smiling, nodded to each of them in turn. “It's a pleasure, everyone. If we weren't in a state of emergency, I'd talk to you some more, but...Well, whatever. Let's talk! Squall, I-”

Kiros deliberately and loudly cleared his throat. Laguna winced guiltily as his VP gave him a telling look.

“You'll never get out of here if President Laguna starts talking. So why don't you just ask a question and he'll try to answer them.”

Squall looked at Laguna coldly. Laguna chuckled in the face of it.

“Man, you look way too serious.”

“Whatever,” Squall said, uncrossing his arms and staring at Laguna eye to eye. The two men were the exact same height. Squall's gaze and his met directly.

Rinoa looked between them, surprised. She had seen stronger men than Laguna cower in fear of that look. Yet he met it with a smile.

“Before we get started,” Squall said immediately. “If we decide to leave, if we choose to decline your mission, will you let us go peacefully, or will I need to fight my way out?”

Laguna laughed nervously. “Come on, man. Don't say it like that. I don't want to hurt you.”

Zell, Irvine, and Selphie burst into laughter. Quistis hid her smile behind her hand. Squall's eyebrow raised and Rinoa choked down her own snickers.

“...Yeah, we wouldn't want that,” Squall said calmly.

That was somehow more eerie than if he would have just denied the possibility outright. Laguna felt a tingle on his skin. It had been a while since he had fought with the buzzing, but he didn't think he had forgotten just how strong it was. How much stronger would it be coming from the man himself instead of through Laguna's weaker body?

Somehow, his army didn't feel all that formidable any longer.

Laguna cleared his throat. “I will apologize as many times as it takes. I think Dr. Odine overreacted. I have nothing against you, Rinoa. Why would I want to hurt any of you? You guys have saved our lives so many times. Without you...Ward would have...”

Laguna shook his head, becoming suddenly serious. “Thanks. For everything. We owe you a lot.”

The others seemed to relax at the admission. Except Squall. His eyes were still hard. Rinoa knew it wasn't because he was angry. It was because he was irritated at the way Laguna kept sneaking glances at his face.

Squall just wanted to mission details. But even as he was opening his mouth to ask, Zell jumped in with his own question.

“Yo, where's Sis? Where's Ellone?”

“Sis?” Laguna blinked.

“We like to call her sis,” Quistis explained simply. “It's what we called her growing up. Do you know where she is? We don't know if she made it back safely from space.”

Laguna shook his head, frowning. “Our escape pod rescue team was a little too late. They put my safety on higher priority so everyone else was picked up afterwards. By the time they got to her, Ellone was taken into custody by Galbadia. We believe...based on our current information and deductions, that she's being held captive in the Lunatic Pandora. Part of your mission will involve rescuing her.”

Squall tried again to ask for said mission details. It was Selphie this time that cut him off.

“What are you doing here, Sir Laguna?” She asked eagerly making Irvine glare at him again. Laguna laughed at her name for him.

“How did you get here?” She pressed eagerly despite Irvine.

“Wanna know?” Laguna asked eagerly. “It's a bit of a long story.”

“Let's hear it!” Selphie said eagerly. “You've lived such an interesting life, Sir Laguna.”

“You really wanna hear?” Laguna looked at Squall as though for permission.

Squall let out a breath. Whatever. He didn't want to hear it, but he really didn't want to hear Selphie complaining later. So he nodded once, permitting him to go on.

“Okay! I'll tell you!”

“Laguna,” Kiros warned again.

“I know, I know,” Laguna nodded. “I'll clip it as much as possible.”

Kiros nodded, looking at Squall once before turning away. Squall's eyes narrowed. Why was everyone looking at him like that? It reminded him annoyingly of the way that Ellone had looked at him the first time she saw him in the infirmary. But at least she had the right to do so...

“You all know mostly what I've been doing all my life, right?” Laguna looked at Squall for confirmation.

Squall nodded. “You were a silly Galbadian soldier. I didn't like your attitude at all.”

Laguna flinched. “Ouch. You don't pull punches.”

“You were inept and foolish. I don't know how you've lived this long, I assume a great deal of luck was involved.”

Ward's shoulders were shaking as Kiros did his best to look away and fight back his laughter.

“However,” Squall continued, eyes moving between them. “I understood the bond between the three of you. You changed after you went to Winhill.”

“Yeah...I guess I did...” Laguna let out a sigh, thinking back.

“I don't know how or when, but Ellone was abducted by Esthar and you went on a journey to get her back. You traveled north to Shumi Village and south to Edea's Orphanage trying to get here. You wrote articles and appeared in a terrible movie to get by.”

“Oh, yeah!” Laguna laughed, eyes shining brightly. “I forgot all about that! Oh man. I wonder what ever happened to that movie? Think it was ever finished?”

Kiros and Ward shrugged.

“You were trying to get into Esthar,” Squall continued like he was giving a report. “I don't know how, but you got into Esthar and rescued Ellone. I also don't know what happened after that.”

“I had a lot of help along the way,” Laguna nodded, thinking back.

“What I don't understand is...Why are you the president?” Squall shook his head at the entire thing. It was baffling to him that anyone would make Laguna leader.

“Guess I'll just fill in...most of the blanks,” Laguna smiled. “It all starts back before I ever met Ellone. When she was about two, there was a massive manhunt for little girls in Esthar that extended all over the planet because of how much power Esthar had back then. They were looking for a successor for Esthar's then-ruler, Sorceress Adel. Esthar soldiers came all the way to Winhill and Elle's parents resisted. They were killed on the spot. But Ellone was spared.

“Afterwards, Elle was raised by...Raine who lived next door to her at the time. When I came, I got to know them both and...” Laguna cleared his throat. “Well, there was another massive hunt for a successor again. I think the first one was killed when Adel became angry with her. I didn't know about it at the time. Kiros and I had gone to pick up Ward as he was coming over the mountains. While I was gone, Elle was taken. It's...one of the most painful episodes of my life.

“When I was captured and put to work in the Pandora, they took me into Esthar. So when I broke out, I didn't have to go far to rescue her. To keep her safe, I sent her back to Winhill...It was shortly after that I got the message that...Raine and Elle had died. But the people of Winhill hated me. They didn't want me to get Elle. So, instead of just telling me the truth, they sent Elle straight to an orphanage. She was raised there for...”

Laguna trailed off as he looked over the others. He realized the implications of Quistis's earlier words and let out a long breath at the family unit gathered before him.

Far more than comrades.

“Why didn't you just go back to Winhill with her?” Squall asked, frowning.

“I wanted to!” Laguna insisted passionately. “But...I had to stay. I only came here to rescue Ellone, but that wasn't the end of it. Like I said, I had a lot of help along the way. Not the least of which was by the resistance. Back then, Esthar was ruled by Sorceress Adel and the ingenious, yet inhumane Odine. He played with human lives and she let him because it made her more powerful. Both of them became interested in Ellone after they found out about her special power. Even after I saved her, they both still wanted her. We couldn't just pack up and leave. Ellone would still be in danger and we might end up having to come right back here. So...for better or worse...I stayed.”

Laguna let out a long breath. “It was...a long road. I ended up staying far longer than I intended. But all we needed was to get Odine under our control. That would be like cutting off Adel's arm. He didn't care about right or wrong. He only thought about his research. We finally got him by giving him a challenge to his brilliance.

“It was a device to seal magic. To seal sorceresses so no one could inherit her power but she couldn't be free to do what she wanted. If we could do that, maybe Adel could be defeated. And since I owed a big favor to the Adel resistance, I was able to work with all of them.

“There were two main problems that came up. First: Stopping the Crystal Pillar in the Lunatic Pandora from calling monsters from the moon and destroying Esthar like it had Centra. And second: Freeing Esthar from Adel's hands. We planned and planned for months. Based on my brilliant ideas, of course.”

Laguna leaned his head back, caught up in his own memories. “He wasn't happy about it, but we convinced Odine to move the Crystal Pillar. We used his own sealing device as a threat. If Adel found out about it, she would kill him herself no matter how genius he was. So, with him on our side, we plotted the Pandora's course and set the drop point for a spot in the ocean. We let it go and...goodbye. That dealt with our first problem and gave us the keys for dealing with the second.

“When Adel found out what we had done, she chased us down. We let her follow us to the Sorceress Memorial that she didn't even know about. We had built it far from Esthar so she couldn't find out before we could trap her...”

***

Laguna dropped to his knees, subjugating himself before Adel. The woman was taller than two tall men, with bulging muscles that made her appear more like a man herself. Her long red hair twisted like a snake as she stalked forward angrily.

Head to the ground as it was, Laguna didn't see the confusion in her eyes as she beheld him and all those behind him. She had thought she was chasing an enemy. Yet these people were bowing themselves to her as was appropriate.

“What is going on?” Adel demanded to know angrily, her eyes flashing as she considered destroying these people just because.

Laguna lifted his head, making sure not to look her in the eye. That was an easy way to die.

“My Great Lady. We hunted down the culprit who moved the Crystal Pillar for you.”

“Where?” Adel asked simply, her voice rumbling.

“Inside there,” Laguna looked to the Memorial like he might be afraid of it. “We would have attempted to capture him ourselves for your pleasure, but he's taken Lady Ellone hostage. We dare not move for fear of harming the Successor.”

Adel glared up at the building. Stalking forward, her fingertips sparked dangerously. Laguna clenched his jaw in fear as he moved to follow after her. His idea to mention Ellone had worked perfectly. Adel wasn't willing to risk the loss of such a valuable successor.

He followed her into the building. All the technicians were gone now. The machines of the Memorial were humming, ready to click on. It would only take an instance.

Down through the control center and into the sealing cage. Tiny Ellone was standing inside, beating at the walls, clearly frightened. Adel stepped closer, then paused. Her eyes narrowed on the little girl struggling to get out.

She flickered.

Growling, she turned back to see Laguna subjugating himself behind her.

“You think I would fall for such a trick?” She asked angrily.

Laguna grinned, lifting his head back up again. “Of course. My plans are always perfect. NOW!”

Inside the control booth, Kiros slammed his hand down on the restraining device. The lightning struck Adel's very human body, freezing her in place. Laguna charged and slammed into her.

She flew backwards. Straight into the cage and through Ellone's hologram.

Ward smacked his fist onto the second button. It took only a second. The cold sleep gas that burst into the seal was concentrated and powerful. It actually froze Adel in place. Laguna was breathing fast, staring at her. Waiting for her to reach out. To break free.

Neither of which happened. She was trapped in a permanent cold sleep.

***

“Adel was careless,” Laguna shrugged. “She may be a sorceress, but she was still human. We were successful. But, we couldn't keep such a dangerous sorceress around as a...a trophy. We had to do something. So we decided to send her far, far away. Some place no one would ever reach her and she could never get free from. A place where we could control everyone who got close to her and keep her locked away. Into outer space. We even used incredibly powerful anti-magic barriers to keep her locked up. We didn't really mean to, but we ended up accidentally blocking even radio waves across all of Gaia. But it kept her locked away.

“That about wraps up that part. The real work started afterwards. A fierce debate ensued about who should govern this country after Adel was gone. It was around then that I received the letter from Winhill telling me that...Raine and Elle had died. Even as we were starting to return home, I suddenly had no home to go to. I really wasn't paying close attention while everyone made me up to be this great 'hero of the revolution'. One thing led to another, and by the time I looked up from mourning, I was president.

“It was a mistake to send Ellone back to Raine without me. Raine...died. And Ellone was sent to that orphanage. If I had only gone back...I might have at least been able to see Raine one last time. With my family...gone, I just ended up staying. My job kept me busy. Kept my mind off of everything. Before I knew it, all this time had passed...”

Laguna smiled at them gently, coming back to the present. “I've been hearing about Sorceress Edea for a while now. That broadcast Galbadia sent out came all this way and we got worried. We didn't know who she was or where she got her powers from. It made us little scared that maybe Adel had somehow managed to pass on her powers even in her seal. So I went up to the Lunar Base to make sure that everything was okay.

“While I was up there, I heard about their search for Ellone. I found out about this afterward, but...While I was here, Ellone was being raised at that orphanage. The owners of that orphanage were Cid and Edea Kramer. You know them better than I do, of course. They found out about Ellone's power and decided to take her into hiding because of a premonition that Edea had. The Kramers prepared a big ship just to accommodate her. Gracious of them, huh? I owe them a lot. After a while, the ship turned into another orphanage and Elle helped Edea look after the kids. She said her life on the ship was a happy one, but who knows? I don't know how she could've been happy on a ship. She was on that ship for over ten years.

“After I found out that Ellone was still alive, that Galbadia was searching for a girl named Ellone with a strange power, I sent my own men to search for her. I was trying to be quieter about it than they were. One of my fleet picked her up from her ship, saving her from the Galbadian's. It was honestly just pure luck that they did find her. I gave the order to have her follow me out into space. I figured if Sorceress Edea was going to burn the world to find her, I'd just take her off the world.”

Laguna smiled gently. “I still can't believe it when she found me...Little Elle was all grown up. She was just as surprised to see where I had ended up as I was to see her. She told me...everything.”

“Laguna,” Kiros cut in warningly.

“I know. I know.” Laguna ran a hand through his hair. “Sorry. It's just...a bit of an emotional thing for me.”

“What about Raine?” Rinoa asked, curious and sad. “What happened to her? How did she die?”

“Raine's story?” Laguna swallowed past a rather thick lump in his throat. “No...I can't. I'm sorry. It's too much for me to remember right now.”

Rinoa gasped. “You still love her after all this time?”

Laguna smiled at her sadly. “I've loved Raine from the moment I met her. I can still see her face perfectly when I close my eyes. I...Sorry. Some other time...”

Rinoa nodded, feeling guilty about reminding him of something so painful. She just couldn't believe that he would still be so sad about her death after all this time.

Laguna turned up to gaze again at Squall. That look was back in his eyes and Squall glared at him, wishing he would just stop.

“Explain the mission to defeat Ultimecia,” he said immediately now that he finally had a chance to speak.

Laguna laughed once without humor. “Straight to the heart of the matter, huh? Just like a workaholic SeeD.”

“It's the only reason I'm here.”

Laguna flinched. “Yeah...”

He straightened his spine, clearing his throat. “Well, let's get to it then. Not gonna lie, this isn't actually my plan. I mean, I approve of it and I helped, but I'm not the one who came up with it.”

“Then who?” Rinoa asked.

“Iz it my turn?”

Squall turned at that voice. That accent. So arrogant. Squall hated that voice.

Odine walked into the room behind the SeeDs, his ugly neck thing bobbing. Squall growled at him angrily, his hand reaching for a gunblade that wasn't here.

“Yeah,” Laguna nodded at him. His voice wasn't exactly welcoming. “Make it short and easy to understand.”

“I vill talk however I vant!” Odine snapped. He waved Laguna off. “Egh. Sorceress Edea told me everything. Sorceress Ultimecia comes from ze future to possess ze sorceresses of present day. Meaning she leaves her body in ze future and sends only her consciousness here. Does zat sound familiar to you?”

Squall frowned because it sounded intimately familiar. “It's like when Ellone sends our consciousness back to the past.

“Agh! You're a smart one!” Odine glared back at him. “My first guess was zat someone in ze future with an ability like Ellone was sending ze sorceress back here to our time. But no! Zat is not ze answer. So what is? How does ze sorceress come back to this time? You vant to hear how?”

Odine looked at Squall eagerly. Squall bit back the biting comment on his tongue.

“Please, do tell,” he said dully.

“Eghhh!” Odine twitched eagerly. “I surprise you now! It iz because of me, Odine! Yes! Haha!”

Laguna and Squall rolled their eyes at the same time and Rinoa chuckled behind her hand. Neither of which action discouraged the doctor.

“I researched Ellone's power long ago. I made out a pattern from ze electric current running through Ellone's brain when she's using her power and when she's not. Once ze pattern was determined, it was easy to mechanize. I've never used it successfully, but I am close. It may only be a toy right now, but in ze time of Ultimecia, it iz an impressive working machine! Which means there iz a machine which imitates Ellone's power. It iz I who made ze first model of zat machine. I named ze machine Junction Machine Ellone and it can be used in conjunction with a GF. It iz a vonderful thing to know that my invention is used in ze future!”

“Junction Machine Ellone,” Squall frowned.

“Yeah, so he's pretty much responsible for about 90% of our problems,” Laguna pointed to the little man. “I honestly forget why I keep him around sometimes.”

“So Sorceress Ultimecia came to know about Ellone from that machine,” Squall summarized.

“And Elle became Ultimecia's target in this time. You can try to blame Odine if you want. It's kind of useless though. He doesn't feel human emotions.”

“You vant to go outside?!” Odine demanded to know angrily. “You vant to fisticuffs?! No? Okay zen! We continue ze story!

“There iz one way to defeat Ultimecia. She only sends her consciousness back here. In zat, she is untouchable. You must kill her in person. In her own time. In ze future. There iz nothing we can do unless we go to ze future. Of course, there iz no way to just jump to ze future under normal circumstances. But don't dispair! Zere iz still a way! You vant to know how?”

“Odine, I will kill you for my own pleasure,” Squall threatened calmly.

It was like the doctor didn't even hear him. “Ultimecia plans to compress time. Compressing time wiz magic, vat good will it do for ze sorceress to do such a zing? Zere may be many reasons, but it doesn't matter. Zey are her own and what' is important iz zat she plans to do it at all. Zere is only one way to compress time. A person must exist in zree different times at once. Normally, zis is completely impossible, but Ultimecia has found a way.

“She, of course, exists in ze future. To zen exist in this time, she takes over ze body of a sorceress from ze present. Zat is two simultaneous points in different times. She needs only one more. Zere iz no equivalent machine in zis time to take her back. So, in order to do so, she must have Ellone. Only Ellone can take her furzer into ze past to complete the zird time point.

“Zat is why she iz desperately seeking her. To defeat her, we must take advantage of Ellone's power. Zere are two sorceresses in our time. Sorceress Rinoa and Sorceress Adel. Of ze two, Adel has not yet awakened. She has been in stasis too long. It would take days to wake her completely. We are on borrowed time now. Once regeneration is completed, neizer Laguna nor I will be safe. Sorceress Adel is probably in ze final stages of deep sleep awakening inside ze Lunatic Pandora. Adel is considerably more powerful zan Sorceress Rinoa. Ultimecia vill want to possess Adel if Adel wakes up. Zat will be a horrible event. Adel iz a horrible sorceress. And if Adel's consciousness should win over Ultimecia, Adel vill be powerful enough to destroy zis entire world.

“So, we must use Sorceress Rinoa to inherit Adel's powers, forcing Ultimecia to choose her instead. Wiz her inside Rinoa, the vorld vill at least be safe from Adel and we can use our plan.”

“Which is?” Squall asked pointedly.

Odine nodded. “First: Go to ze Lunatic Pandora. Ellone vill be held captive inside so Ultimecia can have her immediately after Adel awakens. So, rescue her first. Zen kill Sorceress Adel before ze awakening process is completed. Zen we will be left viz Rinoa as ze only sorceress of zis era. Zen we just wait for Ultimecia to possess Rinoa. It shouldn't take long. When she does, it's Ellone's turn. Ellone vill send Rinoa back to ze past with Ultimecia. Ellone vill have to send Rinoa and Ultimecia inside anozer sorceress she knows in ze past. Edea or Adel...zat's up to Ellone and it doesn't matter. Once Ultimecia iz in ze past, she'll use ze time compression magic. I don't know vat kind of effect zat will have on ze world, but it von't be pretty. Once Ellone feels the magic starting, she'll cut Rinoa and Ultimecia off from ze past. Rinoa will come back to this time. Ultimecia will go back to her time. The magic will be slow acting, but it vill vork. Vat will be left iz ze time compressed world. Past, present, and future will all get mixed together. Zat is your chance. You will move zrough ze time compression towards ze future. And once you are out of ze compression, zat will be Ultimecia's place. I'm sure I don't need to tell you what to do after that.”

“There you have it,” Laguna said, looking back at Squall with a sort of smile. “I don't really understand it, but Odine is a genius after all. He has a very greedy reason to save the world too. Specifically, he can't exist in time compression either. So I'm willing to bet on his plan. What do you say? Will you do it?”

Squall looked over to Quistis. She smiled, stepping forward.

“Of course SeeD is not shy about danger. There is, however, the cost of this mission.”

“Name it,” Laguna smiled, unconcerned.

Quistis laughed. “Oh, that's not my place. You'll need to speak with Xu. She's in charge of prices. I'm sure she'll be very...vigorous in negotiations.”

Laguna hesitated, blinking. “Um, can Esthar please still be standing after we pay up?”

“That's up to Xu,” Quistis smiled sweetly.

“I'll deal with that,” Kiros said simply. “I'm sure we can work something out.”

“Squall?” Quistis looked to him.

Squall regarded Laguna for a long moment. Laguna was smiling hopefully but, unlike so many people before him, he could still meet Squall's eyes even while he was glaring.

“Let's get something straight right now,” Squall said, his voice low and dangerous. “If I have to come after Rinoa again because of you, things will be very different. I will burn this city to the ground whether you give her up peacefully or not.”

Laguna flinched back. “Come on, man. I didn't order that. Odine did. I wouldn't have taken her.”

“Then you better make sure it doesn't happen again. I will destroy everything without blinking. Do you understand me?”

“Yeah, of course,” Laguna nodded quickly. “She's safe from us. Don't worry about a thing.”

Selphie, grinning, leaned in close to Rinoa. “You hear that? He'd be willing to commit mass genocide for you.”

“I know. It's so romantic,” Rinoa sighed dreamily, leaning against Squall's arm.

“Romantic?” Zell looked at her like she was crazy. “Puh-lease, woman.”

Squall looked at Rinoa and she beamed up at him. Laguna's eyes moved between their gazes, frowning as understanding came over him.

Oh...

Far more than friends.

“Hey, Squall, I didn't mean anything by it,” Laguna assured him again, his voice soft. “I wouldn't have taken her, even if she wasn't with you. I won't punish someone for crimes they didn't commit. The second I heard, I sent Ward to release her. It just so happens that you got there first.”

Squall stared at him another long moment before nodding. “Very well. We accept the job.”

“Really!?” Laguna brightened. “All right! YES! Let's go! We'll need to get aboard the Ragnarok. That will be the only way to get into the Pandora. We'll do our final briefing in there.”

Snickering, he sent them a confidential grin. “I always wanted to ride that thing. Plus the name sounds so cool!”

“Laguna, please act your age,” Kiros told him calmly. “It's embarrassing. Is what Ward would say.”

Ward nodded along.

Laguna shrugged, laughing. “It's all good. Come on, SeeDs. The technicians should have finishing repairing, refueling, and rearming by now.”

“Hey, Laguna. Don't forget...”

“Oh! Right!” Laughing, Laguna smacked his head. “It almost slipped my mind. I'm not going to be sending you in just like that. I have some gifts for you. Come on, this way.”

Grinning, Laguna led everyone from his room. The guards at the door saluted him formally as he walked past. Down the hall, past the lift, onward deeper into the palace. He took them to a more normal lift – normal for Esthar – that just took them down a few floors. Then onward to a room with a locked door and two guards on either side of it.

“President Loire!” The men jumped to attention.

“Morning, guys,” Laguna waved cheerfully. “Come on in, SeeDs. I spared absolutely no expense on this stuff...”

The armory that had been prepared just for them took everyone's breath away. They all gasped in pleasure like it was the most beautiful sight in the world, including Rinoa. Multiple glass cases on their own private plinths surrounded by all sorts of gear and, in the very center, a large, thin box that was closed with the Estharian royal seal on the cover.

“Come on in,” Laguna invited them forward. “Let me show you the highlights. First up, you're probably familiar with this...”

From a large glass case filled with many similar such things, Laguna lifted a tiny ball about the size of a pinkie nail. It was, Squall remembered dimly, very similar to the one Piet had pressed against him on the Lunar Base.

“This is Odine's newest magic capsule. The latest model,” Laguna said, smiling at the tiny thing. “It takes up a fraction of the space, holds six times the magic contents, and comes with this handy carrying case so you don't have to lug them about in your pockets.”

From beside the case, Laguna pulled out what looked like a miniature pencil case. It flicked open and there were multiple spots inside for the tiny Odine capsules.

“I've got every magic type you could possibly want,” Laguna said pointing to the next case where lines of full Odine capsules were organized by spells. “High level magic, all of it.”

“High level?” Quistis gasped, coming in closer. “But Odine capsules can't hold high level magic.”

“Well, not the older models,” Laguna laughed. “We've been collecting magic for years for Odine to study. I figure you all can put it to much better use. Firaga, blizzaga, thundaga. Um, those are pain, flare...oh, you get the point. Help yourselves to whatever. But, first...”

Grinning, Laguna moved to the next gadgets. “We've got the next generation of communication devices that we just finished a few weeks ago. They can act over vast distances. Better than that, you can speak using video, not just sound. Cool, huh? There's six of them, enough for each of you. Go ahead, take one. They're yours, free and clear.”

Rinoa picked up the two Laguna was holding out to her. She beamed and passed one to Squall as she turned it on. It looked almost like a PDA, but it functioned like a communicator.

Squall turned it over, impressed. His face didn't show it.

“Like it?” Laguna smiled as Zell leaned over the magic capsules. “It gets better. Come on over here. It took me a while to gather the materials for these.”

He pressed a button, releasing the lid from the first glass case. Irvine was already coming in close, his eyes wide at the beauty of what he was seeing.

“The height of Estharian technology,” Laguna said, coming around and smiling at the way Irvine was ogling the shotgun. “Mythril, moon stones, and star fragments with dino bones for strength. There is no match for this baby in range, accuracy, or raw strength.”

Near tears, Irvine lifted the gleaming silver gun from its blue cushion. It fit just right into his hands, the smooth body practically arousing him.

“Plus...” Laguna reached around and pulled the drawer out from under the case. “Pulse ammo. Homemade here in Esthar. Packs a magical and physical punch at the same time. You can one shot just about anything with this.”

Irvine couldn't stop staring at the gun. “Is this mine...?”

“All yours. I call it the Exeter.” Laguna grinned. “Talk to me later and I'll hook you up with a sniper rifle, too. I hear you're the best sharpshooter in Balamb Garden.”

Irvine couldn't step away. Which was fine. Laguna moved on without him to the next case. Selphie pushed forward eagerly, already recognizing the nunchaku shape on the blue satin pillow. She almost didn't wait for Laguna to open the case before grabbing them.

She gasped at their gorgeous red body tipped by three, gleaming, blue pronged blades on each end and connected by a gleaming silver chain.

“Strange Vision,” Laguna introduced. “I've heard if you're good enough, you can swing them around so fast you hypnotize your opponent. Those are curse spikes too, so plenty of bang for your gil.”

“It's so lightweight,” Selphie admired, swinging it around gently just to get a feel for it. The Vision swept around her gracefully as she laughed in delight.

“If you'll follow me over here,” Laguna said, directing the others past her. “You'll find Miss Trepe that we've gone out of our way to provide you with the best whip that can be crafted. Made of Malboro tentacles and curse spikes, it's the absolute, most powerful of whips. We call it Save the Queen.”

Laguna opened the next glass case for her and Quistis sighed in delight at the golden piece of art resting like a coiled viper just waiting to strike. She reached out to stroke the firm leather. Then picked it up and purred at the weight.

“Thank you, President Loire,” she breathed, caressing the whip. “It's absolutely beautiful.”

“You're welcome,” Laguna beamed. “And-oh. Yeah. Those are yours, Zell.”

Unwilling to wait for Laguna to open the case for him, Zell had jumped the line to grab his new gloves from the box. The red and black gauntlets had gleaming fury stones built into the knuckles. They accepted fire easily and hit hard.

“The Ehrgeiz,” Laguna told him, smiling. “Nice, right? Feel the supple dragon skin and the strong fury fragments. How do they fit?”

“Perfectly,” Zell grinned, pulling them over his fists. He tightened his hands, taking a few test swiped at the air. “Oh, yeah. This is what I'm talking about.”

Laguna nodded and looked to Rinoa and Squall. They were standing back, holding hands. He gestured to the big box in between the other plinths.

“I made these specially for you two.” The others were all top of the line, unparalleled in their fields. These two weapons though, he had custom made just for them. They didn't even have names yet. One was crafted out of guilt and hopes to mend bridges.

The other...

“Here you two go,” Laguna said, flipping the latches on the box. He lifted the lid back and revealed the objects nestled within.

Rinoa reached out first, releasing Squall's hand. The edge that was nestled into the box had been crafted with her in mind. The white and gold feather was connected to a central disk decorated in turquoise and tiger's eye gemstones. When she pressed the center disk, the single feather spiraled out, unfolding like it would from the blaster. She was left holding a disk of razor sharp white and gold wings. But it was also lightweight and beautiful.

“Do you like it?” Laguna asked, smiling.

“It's stunning,” Rinoa touched it gently. Her eyes moved past it to the blaster that was set onto the cushion next to it. She pressed the central disk again, folding the wings together once more. She set it down and picked up the blaster that came with it.

Lightweight and made of gold and white materials, it was elegant and beautiful. The golden straps fit snugly over her arm and hand. Squall helped her put it in place then she fit the edge into it. Unlike her last blaster, that had the trigger on the side of the body, the trigger was against her palm. She could shoot it without needing both hands.

“Thank you, President Loire,” she beamed at him, lowering her arm. The weapon was very comfortable on her arm. Like it was supposed to be there.

“Call me Laguna,” he grinned. “Don't forget to name that beauty. The best weapons have names.”

Rinoa smiled as she pressed the release to unfold the wings. They came up and spread out easily, winking in the light. Shining like a star.

“Shooting Star,” Rinoa said, looking to Squall. “I'm calling it Shooting Star.”

“Beautiful,” Laguna nodded before turning to him. “So, Squall? Pick up yours...Please?”

Squall eyed him for a moment before turning his eyes down to the gunblade that had been resting beside Rinoa's weapon. Cradled against the satin pillow, it was winking up at him.

The blade wasn't made of metal. The gleaming blue material was clear and shimmering. Beautiful but deadly sharp. The strongest material on the planet. Squall wasn't entirely sure how Laguna had managed to obtain such a large piece that an entire blade could be carved from it. Adamantine. Strong and sharp and incredibly rare.

The gun was made of gleaming silver mythril. There was a pouch of pulse ammo beside the gun so Squall could hook it onto his belt. The leather of the pouch was emblazoned with his own lion embalm so it fit in with him. There was a lion head at the end of the gun where it joined the blade, twin paws reaching forward like it was pouncing. And coming off of the gun, almost like it was coming from the lion's back, was a silver wing that acted as a hand guard.

“A winged lion...” Rinoa breathed.

The wings from her back. The lion from his necklace. Joined together.

Squall reached out and picked up the blade. It was heavy, of course it was. But Squall had chosen strength when he had picked his first Revolver and it was easy to lift this one. It fit very easily into his hand. Like it was designed for him. It _had_ been designed for him.

Reaching into his pocket, Squall pulled out his lion pendant. Notching back the hook, he secured it onto the end of the gun so it dangled like it had from all the gunblades before it.

“Lion Heart,” Rinoa whispered to him.

Squall looked at her. She smiled and he nodded. “Lion Heart it is.”

Laguna smiled. “You like it?”

There was a sheath inside the box. Squall pulled it out and tied it onto his belt. He slipped the Lion Heart inside. The beautiful blue blade was hidden away, but the gun still showed proud. He rather liked the look of it there. He hooked the ammo box onto his belt.

He didn't answer Laguna. Rinoa thanked him profusely for both of them.

Everyone armed, they moved back towards the magic cache. Taking one of the capsule cases, Squall hooked it onto his belt. They took their time choosing from the magic available. Thinking of their own affinities, divvying up the choices from that.

Selphie picked up a cache filled with dispel. A magic spell that could break magic. It sapped away the strength of magic barriers. She also found break which was used to break down defenses. She hoarded the high level magic spells, adding them eagerly to her current collection.

Irvine picked up meteor. It was a spell none of them had heard of and needed Laguna to explain. It was used to summon multiple asteroids from the sky to crash against their enemies. It was very powerful and a bit rare.

Quistis got thundaga, of course. She also chose tornado to match with Pandamona. The two spells together were strong enough to cause a breeze in the room. Quistis smiled at the amount of power running through her now.

Zell chose firaga and meltdown. Two heat based spells that Ifrit latched onto eagerly.

Rinoa picked life and death. Two very powerful spells. Life wouldn't actually save you from true death, but it could reverse the process and awaken the unconscious and allow curaga to work which she also picked. The three new spells fit into her easily. She might not need them since she was a sorceress, but she preferred to have them all the same.

Squall chose the other death containing capsule. That magic he set onto his blade. He also picked blizzaga, junctioning it to Shiva. Then flare, junctioning it to Bahamut. The two spells were powerful and Squall could almost feel each molecule of water in the air. Like he could reach out and begin gathering them into an icicle if he chose.

“I dare say there's no one more prepared for a fight than you all,” Laguna smiled at them. “Now let's get to the Ragnarok. We've got all of existence to save.”

***

Laguna squealed like a little girl when Selphie took to the air. Standing below in the crew launch room, he stared with wide eyed wonder out of the window. Since Irvine and Selphie were flying the ship, that left only Squall, Rinoa, Zell, and Quistis to witness the event.

“This is the best thing ever,” he laughed, watching the land rush under them. “Hey, you think she can get it close to the water? I want to splash.”

“Laguna,” Kiros groaned.

“All right!” He turned abruptly, facing the SeeDs. “We're doing this for real! Straight to our final target, Ultimecia! Let's go over the plan again. First, we enter the Lunatic Pandora and rescue Ellone. Next, you fight Sorceress Adel. It'll be a surprise attack, show no mercy. Then, here comes the tricky part, Adel will need to pass on her powers before being defeated. Quistis, neither you nor Selphie can be close to her for this and make a mistake. Rinoa, will you be willing to accept them.”

“Yes!” She declared eagerly.

“Good!” Laguna nodded. “Next, we wait for Sorceress Ultimecia to possess Rinoa. This part will be hard on you, Rinoa, but will you do it?”

She hesitated this time but eventually said, much less enthusiastically, “Yes...”

“That's the spirit!” Laguna cheered loudly. “One quick trip back is all it will take, then you guys are heading straight for the future. The present and past are all going to be destroyed in the time compression. Basically, until you kill Ultimecia and reset everything, everything will cease to exist. We have to trust in you for that one. I trust you.”

“So, wait,” Zell frowned. “If time compression destroys everything, how are we supposed to survive?”

“There's only one way to make yourself exist in a world like that,” Laguna grinned. “Rinoa, this one is on you. You have to use your power to keep everyone from being absorbed into time. Believe in your friends' existence, and they'll stay with you all the way. To be friends, to like one another and to love one another, you can't do these things alone. You need somebody!”

Quistis laughed at Squall and he gave her a long look.

“And when you want to come back, you'll have to work backwards through the decompressing time. What place reminds you of your friends? Imagine being in that place with all your friends. Once time compression ends, think of that place and try to get there! That's all you have to do. That place will welcome you. You'll be able to get there no matter what period you're in. You need love and friendship for this mission! And the courage to believe in it. It's all about love, friendship, and courage. I'm counting on you guys.”

“Woo!” Yipping loudly, Zell ran out. Quistis followed after him, winking at Squall on the way.

Rinoa leaned in close and weaved her finger's through Squall's. He sighed.

“It sounds corny...but everyone seems to be up for it,” Squall said calmly.

“Think it'll work?” Laguna asked hopefully.

Squall shrugged. “There's no guarantees about the future. But we'll try.”

Squall turned to leave. He didn't get very far before Laguna called out for him. Pausing, he and Rinoa turned back at the same time.

Laguna let out a long breath. He looked rather uncertain of himself. Kiros and Ward were watching him with sympathetic gazes. That look in his eyes was back and Squall felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise in anticipation of what he would say.

“When this is all over...” he paused, then swallowed hard. “I'd really like to talk to you.”

Squall frowned at him. He looked to Kiros for clarification. The more reasonable man wasn't any help at all this time. He smiled sadly.

“Squall...You look very much like your mother.”

Squall froze.

Across from him, Ward nodded, his eyebrow coming up. Kiros grinned and added... 

“He says, it's a good thing you don't look like your father.”

Squall heard Rinoa take in a quick breath as she realized what they were saying. Squall's eyes darted back to Laguna who was looking at the ground solemnly.

“If you...don't want to talk...I'll understand.” Laguna looked up to him, his eyes searching Squall's face for something.

Squall took a quick step back, pulling on Rinoa.

“Come on. We'll be coming up on the Pandora soon,” he said, quickly trying to escape.

Rinoa hesitated only a moment before following after him as he ran from the room. The door shut behind them and Laguna let out a long breath.

“Damn...” he groaned, his fists tightening. He was having to fight back tears here.

“You did well, Laguna,” Kiros told him gently. “It's the best you can reasonably hope for.”

“Damn...” Laguna leaned over, his leg cramping painfully in nervousness.

For what they were doing.

For what he had just done.

This was so much more painful than he imagined. And the worst part was thinking that he had just met him, and there was a chance he was never going to see Squall again...


	41. Lunatic Pandora

The Lunatic Pandora was still floating over tears point. Floating high off of the ground like it was it was far out of the reach of the monster rain it had brought down upon the planet. It was too big to be challenged and too far away from anything below for any normal vehicle to attempt to enter. Only with the flying Ragnarok was it possible.

As they came in on approach, everyone took their places. Selphie at the pilot controls, Quistis on the arms and weapons. Zell was leading up navigation and back up controls. Irvine was standing behind Selphie, beaming in excitement. Rinoa had perched at the communication seat. She flipped the switch for the intercom allowing Laguna and the others down below to hear.

“Here we go!” Zell laughed loudly. “We're busting in there!”

“I hope we can get through,” Quistis frowned at the strange material that made up the walls of the Pandora.

“Ah, don't worry about it,” Irvine grinned. “Waiting on your orders, commander.”

“Weapons check,” Squall looked to Quistis.

“Machine guns and main cannon online,” Quistis assured with a smile. “Ready to fire on your order.”

“Just fire like crazy!” Selphie laughed. “Make a big hole! BOOM!”

“Go, Selphie!” Squall ordered, voice calm but face blazing. Focused. Commander Leonhart.

Laughing like a maniac, Selphie launched the Ragnarok forward. Aiming for the dead center with a hungry look on her face. Like she was having the time of her life.

The ship rocked and stalled when they hit something like a wall. Squall caught himself before he fell as Irvine looked out the window to the magic barrier they were fighting against.

“Shields!” He called back.

“Selphie, turbo!” Squall ordered.

“WOO-HOO!” Selphie hollered, slamming her hand on the button.

The afterburners kicked on and the ship began grinding across the barrier. Slowly. Then they stopped and stalled.

Damn. It wasn't working. They were going to be forced back out.

“Rinoa!” Squall looked at her. “Break it down!”

“Huh?” Rinoa jumped, surprised to be addressed. Then nodded as her own training took over and she jumped to her feet. “Right!”

Looking the window she screwed up her face in concentration. She reached up, pushing her magic out of the ship and into the barrier. She didn't need to destroy it, she just needed to open a hole big enough for the Ragnarok to fit through.

Slowly, groaning at the strain it was putting on the hull, the Ragnarok began bursting through the barrier. The dragon head. Then the guns. The second those cleared the barrier, Squall yelled towards Quistis.

“Fire machine guns!”

Quistis's thumb jerked down on the button. The ship didn't even rock as a volley of shots burst out and slammed into the side of the Pandora. Large chunks of the strange rock broke off. No complete hole.

“We're through!” Rinoa announced as they jerked free of the barrier.

“Fire main cannon!”

Quistis slammed her hand down onto the large button on her console. The biggest gun on the bottom of the dragon head drew in power. Charging for a second.

BOOM!

The hole the blast carved into the Pandora was more than large enough for the Ragnarok. Selphie pulled up close. There was no real place for them to land, so-

“Deploy the arms. Lock us in place,” Squall ordered.

Quistis pushed back the weapons controls and grabbed for the arm controls. Rinoa watched with wide, impressed eyes as first one hand came up over the window, then the other. They slammed down into the rocky ground, the spiked fingers locking the ship in place even hanging halfway out of the Pandora like it was.

“Good work,” Squall nodded at them as the ship settled into place.

Humming, rocking in the pilot's seat, Selphie looked like she was coming down from the best orgasm of her life. She let out a sigh of delight.

“That was so great. Can we do it again from the other side?”

Squall rolled his eyes. “All right, Zell, deploy the front landing gear. We'll jump out from there. Rinoa, Zell, you're with me. Quistis, you've got the second team. You three secure this location then escort the president out after us. You're his guard, got it?”

“Yes, sir,” Quistis nodded.

“No mistakes, people,” Squall said, moving to the lift. Rinoa and Zell were right behind him.

At the bottom of the lift, Laguna was standing in the door of the launch chamber. Squall looked at him once before deliberately turning away.

“President Loire, it's best if you stay here until the area is cleared.”

“Of course,” Laguna nodded and watched as Squall led the others down and out through the hanger. He knew that Squall wouldn't want to hear it now, so he waited until the door was closed. “Be safe...”

They didn't get far outside of the airship. As Squall was helping Rinoa down off of the rubble pile the Ragnarok had created, they heard voices calling out from the other end of the large room.

“Big sound, this way! It's probably them, ya know?”

“THEM? NO. IMPOSSIBLE.”

Zell frowned back at Squall. “Hey, doesn't that sound like...”

The three of them stepped forward as Fujin and Raijin ran down the steps towards them. Raijin called out like he was shocked as they stopped before the SeeDs.

“It is Squall, ya know!?” He pointed to him, laughing at Fujin. She didn't join in.

“SHOCK,” Fujin tilted her head quite calmly. She reached back for her weapon. “GOOD. CONVENIENT.”

“That's right,” Raijin grinned wickedly. “Hand over Rinoa, ya know.”

“No!” Squall snapped, stepping before her. Rinoa smiled at him, at how protective he got. “I'll never hand over Rinoa. And we're taking Ellone back. I won't let you resurrect Adel, Either.”

Raijin pouted, slumping over. “You're greedy, ya know. Not fair, ya know.”

“PRESUASION, USELESS,” Fujin tossed back her hair. She pointed at Rinoa. “SEIZE.”

Raijin laughed. “Sorry, man. I don't fight girls. Fu, you get her. I'll take out Squall and Zell.”

“WIMP,” Fujin glared at him.

Raijin jerked his staff off of his back, grinning. “Been waiting to fight you again, ya know.”

“Can't say I've felt the same,” Squall said calmly, stepping forward.

“I have though,” Zell smirked. “Let's do this, Rai.”

Squall didn't get a chance to draw his weapon. Allowing Zell to run forward and take Raijin on, Squall glanced over to where Fujin was approaching Rinoa. The one-eyed woman was looking at her shrewdly. Rinoa was aiming her new Shooting Star as she came in closer.

“SURRENDER,” Fujin said calmly.

“Stay out of our way,” Rinoa warned, her beautiful face fierce.

Squall looked between the two fights quite calmly. He didn't need to interfere. He stood there observing the way both of them were fighting. Rather...proud.

Zell had always been a superior fighter. It was, in fact, the only reason he had passed his SeeD exam at all. While Squall would hardly call him incredibly more professional than he had been, his fighting skills had only improved with time.

Raijin was an excellent fighter himself. He always had been. But while Raijin had been following Seifer, commanding an army, Zell had been fighting. 

It looked like it surprised both men how much faster Zell was now. Each strike from Raijin's staff was easily blocked by the hard knuckles of Zell's Ehrgeiz. Zell started smiling as he realized that it was far easier than it had been last time to fight against Raijin. So easy, in fact, that he was able to start punching in between deflecting blows.

Raijin was grunting in pain. In effort. Zell was laughing as his fists broke out into flames. It took no more than a thought to summon the fire now. It didn't take long for Raijin to be put completely on the defensive. He was taking quick steps back, trying to avoid Zell's blows.

Zell punched for his face and the flames burned his eyes. Raijin snapped them shut, reeling backward with a cry of pain. Zell punched for his chest.

Raijin went flying, his body smoking. His staff skittered away from him and Zell stood with a grin, smoke coming from his nostrils as a shiver of delight ran down his spine. He loved the feeling of raw power Ifrit brought him.

Fujin and Rinoa were clashing their aerial weapons together. Fujin's chakram vs Rinoa's edge. The two women were being careful to stay away from each other, trying to conquer the other with accuracy and shot strength.

Rinoa's Star worked by magnetic technology and was assisted by her own magic. Fujin was a master at using her chakram that had trained for years to use it.

Rinoa may not have been training for years, but she had been trained by the best. First by Squall the by a specialist blaster edge teacher. She was smart, brave, and determined. It was an absolute joy to watch the graceful, almost dancer-like, way she moved to avoid the chakram.

More than that, it made Squall feel fierce pride and desire to see her fight. From a scared girl who tried to hide behind his jacket to a skilled warrior standing her own against a SeeD trained she-demon who once disciplined mercenaries.

Rinoa launched the Shooting Star. Fujin dodged easily. Rinoa reached out and took hold of the Star with her magic. Growling, she jerked it back. Unprepared for the sudden change in trajectory, Fujin was struck in the back. Blood splattered across the ground but Rinoa jerked her hand up, pulling the Star away before it could kill her.

Fujin still collapsed down, gritting her teeth against the pain.

Rinoa caught her Star and Squall walked up beside her. He hadn't even drawn his gunblade. He looked between the two downed former cadets calmly.

Panting, Raijin moved in closer to Fujin and helped her up.

“I don't want to kill either of you,” Squall told them easily. “I will if you force my hand, but for our own past, I recommend you retreat now.”

Fujin glared at him, clinging onto Raijin because she couldn't stand on her own. Raijin nodded, accepting his clemency.

“RETREAT...” Fujin growled. “TEMPORARY.'

“R-Right!” Panting, Raijin pulled her back. “We're not through yet, ya know!”

Squall said nothing and let the two of them escape. Rinoa watched his face as they left. She let out a breath.

“Do you regret it?”

“Not killing them? No, I don't.”

“No, I mean...” Rinoa frowned, looking after them herself. “They were with you at garden, right? You guys kind of grew up together.”

“I can't say that I have many pleasant memories of them,” Squall shrugged.

“You don't have many pleasant memories of Seifer either, and I know you regret what's happened to him.”

“That's different.”

“How?” She tilted her head curiously.

Squall shook his head, trying to think of how to phrase himself. “Seifer...he's different now. He's changed a lot from how I remember him. Those two? No, they're doing exactly what they want. I kind of respect them for it.”

Rinoa smiled. “Even when you're fighting for opposing things?”

Squall shrugged. “If circumstances were different, I might be them.”

“And what circumstances could possibly change that you would be in their position?” She laughed in disbelief.

“You could be the one wanting to conquer the world,” Squall looked at her quite seriously. “Of course, I wouldn't be failing you like those two are Seifer. The world would already be yours by now.”

Rinoa bit her lip. “It's so sexy when you talk like that.”

“Seriously?” Zell cried loudly, looking at her in confusion. “How is that possibly attractive to you?”

Rinoa laughed, not bothering to explain that she loved the idea that he was so loyal to her. That he would do anything for her. She was never going to try to conquer the world, of course. But it was nice to know that if she wanted to she would have a loyal knight helping her.

Squall grinned her way. She didn't need to say it. He could hear it through their bond.

“Let's get going,” Squall said, jerking his head towards the exit Fujin and Raijin had taken.

As they moved up, they spotted two Galbadian soldiers talking at the end of the path. One in blue, one in red. They were talking rather loudly, angrily, making it easy to hear them as they came in close.

“Why the heck do I have to take orders from some punk kid?” The angry red one asked.

“Well, he is our superior,” the calmer blue one said simply. He didn't sound all that happy about it either, but there was resignation in his tone.

Zell frowned, recognizing the voices.

“Don't you think I know that?!” The red one snapped. “I chose the wrong career. Demotions are handed out like candy. No one ever listens to me-”

“I'm listening, sir.”

“-and now I have to take orders from a punk who's young enough to be my own son.”

The blue one laughed. “That's pretty funny. If it irks you that much, why don't you just quit and find another career, sir?”

The red one's back suddenly straightened, his mouth falling open. The blue one laughed again.

“I'm just kidding, sir. It's a joke-”

“You're right! You're absolutely right! I quit!”

“Uh...” the blue one looked at him, confused.

“Wedge!” Biggs grinned triumphantly. “Let's go home and have a drink.”

“Oh-what? Me, too?”

“Of course! Now, come on!” Laughing, like he might have just discovered the secrets of the universe and gained enlightenment, Biggs started walking away. He nodded at Squall as he passed, whistling merrily. He wasn't afraid of them. He quit, he wasn't SeeD's enemy any longer.

And Squall let them pass unmolested for just that reason.

“But...but...” Wedge stood there, mouth gaping, unsure what to do. “Oh...All right...”

Shaking his head, he walked after his SO. He nodded as he passed them. Then grinned.

“Hey, Zell.”

“How's it going, man?” Zell high-fived him as he passed like that was a completely normal thing to do.

Squall and Rinoa stared at him as the two walked away.

“What?” He asked innocently, shrugging. “He's cool.”

Squall rolled his eyes as Rinoa laughed.

“Let's just go,” he said.

The two followed him up the staircase to their left and into the Pandora.

Zell had been through here once in his failed attempt at stopping it early. Squall had been through here once as Laguna. Things had changed since then in a strange way. Almost like everything, from the walls to the doors, had all been knocked on their sides. Between the two of them though, they were able to navigate their way through the labyrinth of crystal corridors.

“This place is creepy,” Rinoa frowned at the glowing walls. The way her footsteps echoed was just as eerie as her own distorted reflection. “What is this stuff anyway?”

“Odine called it moon crystal,” Zell told her as they ran through. “He said that this crystal stuff is what calls the monsters from the moon. He doesn't know how it works though. Laguna made him dump it in the ocean before he could work that out. He's, uh, kind of bitter about it.”

“Who cares?” Squall frowned as they stepped through a doorway into clear orange tunnels. These weren't crystalline at all. “We just need to dump it right back there. Destroy it outright if we can.”

“Hey, Squall?” Zell frowned as they moved down the tunnel. “I should probably warn you. Me, Selphie, and Irvine made it just past here before we found this thing-”

He didn't get to finish. As they were running through the other door at the far end of the tunnel, they came out onto a familiar metal pathway. Raijin and Fujin were standing there. Fujin was still bleeding, she didn't have any cure spells to use on herself. Raijin jumped when they came through. It had taken them less time to catch up than they though.

“We meet again, ya know?!” He growled, reaching for his weapon. “I ain't scared! We'll take you on, ya know!?”

“NO!” Fujin held out her hand, stopping him. The two of them were backing up slowly to the double doors just behind them. “NO FIGHT. NEXT TIME.”

Raijin looked up and laughed. “That's right! We have a surprise, ya know!”

“Ah, shit!” Zell growled. “Rinoa! Lock us down!”

“What?” She looked confused.

The giant robot that had evicted them so easily before crashed down onto the walkway. Rinoa heard Diablos cry a warning just in time. She reached out quickly, increasing gravity on Squall and Zell even as the machine tried to jerk them up. Squall and Zell both grimaced as the two opposing forces worked on each other, canceling one another out and leaving them as they stood but creating an oddly dissonant feeling in their bones.

There was no attempt to evict Rinoa. They wanted her to stay.

The machine rumbled as its anti-gravity generator fought against Rinoa's gravity magic. A machine was no match for a blood and flesh sorceress. Something in the back of the machine started smoking and sparking as the anti-gravity generator broke. Rinoa released Zell and Squall as the machine beeped and hummed threateningly.

The silver and turquoise machine gleamed dangerously. Just another one of Galbadia's mechanical creations intended to stop them. Squall had to admit that this one was considerably more slick and effective than the last if it had stopped Zell before he could touch it.

That anti-gravity machine was the best shot it had. The lasers it shot afterwards were large, easy to dodge, and the machine itself easy to take down. Mostly, with its annoying habit of shooting wildly and a whipping tail coming from its base, it was just time consuming. By the time Zell had punched his way through the hull and Rinoa had fried the electrical components with a blast of lightning, Fujin and Raijin had already retreated beyond the doors.

The machine crashed down off of the walkway, falling below them to the base of the Pandora. Squall still hadn't needed to draw his new gunblade. Their power ups, their experience, the GFs energizing their limbs with their new, powerful magic made this too easy. In only moments, Squall stepped through the double doors, his gaze cold and piercing.

Seifer was standing on top of a raised dais with circular stairs leading up to him. Taller than everyone, looking down with a smug smile. His coat was ragged and torn. His eyes were sunken, his skin pale. It looked like he hadn't been doing anything more than strictly necessary to keep himself alive and functioning. The hungry look in his eyes was mad and manic now.

Standing below him and the dais, Fujin and Raijin were there. Raijin had his weapon out. Fujin was holding onto Ellone who gasped upon seeing him.

She looked tired and hungry, but she wasn't hurt. Squall nodded to her before turning up to Seifer.

He grinned down at Squall. Happy he was here. Happy to fight him. Hyperion was at his side, dull even in the bright light. Seifer had been taking as good care of the blade as he had himself.

“We've come to take back Ellone,” Squall said simply, lowering his hand to the hilt of his gunblade.

“Looks like we got company,” Seifer smirked at his friends. “Show'em your hospitality.”

Raijin nodded, his jaw tightening, as he stalked forward. Zell lifted his fists.

Fujin hesitated. Then-

“RAIJIN, STOP!”

Raijin let out a sigh that could only be described as relief. His shoulders slumped as he turned back to Fujin. The two of them nodded, coming to a silent agreement.

Seifer frowned at them. “What's up?” He asked, smiling calmly.

Raijin shook his head. He suddenly looked exhausted. “We've had enough, ya know...”

Fujin released Ellone's arms and jerked her head. “GO.”

The other girl didn't need more permission. Though it was difficult in her white pencil skirt, Ellone ran quickly towards Squall. He reached out and took her shoulder. Checking once to assure himself that she was okay, he nodded, satisfied.

“Wait outside. Laguna will be here soon with the others.”

“Thank you,” Ellone said breathlessly before running from the room. Squall stepped deliberately between her and Seifer, though she was far from him now.

“Hey, hey...” Seifer looked at his friends like they had lost their minds. “Come on, people. Have you forgotten your role here?”

Raijin shook his head. “Seifer, we're quittin', ya know? Don't know what's right anymore, ya know...”

“Exactly my thoughts. I thought we were a posse...” Seifer actually looked hurt at their betrayal. Maybe there _was_ something that could break through the spell the sorceress had over him.

“POSSE...” Fujin looked up to him. She let out a long breath. She bit her lips, grabbing for her elbows in a helpless move Squall had never seen from her before.

“Seifer...we are,” she said softly shocking Squall and the others. Seifer frowned at the sound of her normal voice. Only Raijin didn't seem confused.

“We always will be,” she continued, taking in a deep breath. “It's because we're a posse that we're doing this. We want to help you. Whatever it takes to fulfill your dreams, we're willing to do. But...you're being manipulated, Seifer. You've lost yourself, and your dream. You're just eating out of someone's hand now. This isn't you anymore. We want the old you back! And since we can't get through to you, all we have now to rely on is Squall. It's sad...Sad that we only have Squall to rely on.”

Swallowing, Fujin looked up and faced him head on. “Seifer! Are you still gonna keep going down this destructive path?”

Seifer shrugged at her as if to say 'what-are-you-gonna-do?'. Grinning, he lifted his blade and saluted them with it respectfully. “Raijin, Fujin! It's been fun!”

Fujin let out a long breath of disappointment. Neither she nor Raijin attempted to fight Squall, but nor did they attempt to stop Seifer. They couldn't attack him.

They turned and started to leave. Fujin nodded to Squall on the way.

“We have only you left,” she said sadly.

“Bring back our Seifer,” Raijin added just as solemnly.

Squall nodded and the two of them walked from the room. Squall stepped forward.

“Are you gonna continue with this 'knight' thing?” He asked calmly.

“The knight has retired,” Seifer grinned. Stepping forward, he dropped off of the dais and landed neatly on his feet. He stood and kept coming closer. “I guess you could call me...a young revolutionary.”

“What do you think you're doing?” Squall growled at him. “Do you even understand the implications of this mad scheme you're part of?!”

“You know me,” Seifer laughed. “I've always gotta be doing somethin' _big_!”

“This isn't you, Seifer! She's warped your brain! You have to stop this!”

“I don't wanna stop!” Seifer laughed loudly. Madly. “I'm gonna keep running! I've come this far...I'm gonna keep going until I make it to the end. To the goal! And there's no way that I'm sharing it with you!”

Seifer charged in a berserk rage. Squall barely pulled his Lion Heart out in time to catch the Hyperion's metal blade before it took his head. Steel rang against adamantine and Seifer's eyes went wide at the clear, blue tinged gunblade material.

Squall's teeth clenched. But it was easy to hold off Seifer. The Lion Heart was heavy and Seifer's own lack of upkeep made him weaker.

Slicing out, Squall threw Seifer back easily. He flipped over, landing on his feet and glaring with bared teeth.

“An adamantine blade? Squall, when did you become so flashy?” Seifer was laughing as he got to his feet.

Squall held onto his Lion Heart confidently. He didn't mind the flashiness, not considering how much power he got in return.

“I don't want to fight you, Seifer. I've settled my grudge with you already.”

“Chickening out?!” Seifer laughed wildly.

The insult rolled off of Squall, not even touching him. “You're no match for me any longer. Stand down and let us help.”

Seifer's eye twitched at the response. Why wasn't Squall rising to the challenge? He always rose to the challenge! He had to rise to the challenge!

“Show me what you got, Squall! Let me give add another scar to that pretty face of yours!”

Seifer charged. Squall caught his attack easily. And the next. And the next. It was a simple matter for him now. He realized now that Zell and Rinoa weren't the only ones to grow and change. Fighting Seifer used to be a challenge.

Now it was sadly similar to sparring with the underclassmen. Squall held his defense, not even trying to attack. Seifer's wild and energetic strikes had that unpolished, messy quality that the untrained young cadets had when wielding a blade for the first time. Seifer had lost his edge. Squall didn't even want to try to attack him like this.

“Fight me!” Spittle flecked against Seifer's lips as he continued charging. He started panting, sweating as Squall knocked each strike away like they were bugs coming for his face.

The calm expression, the easy manner with which he deflected annoyed Seifer. It was like Squall wasn't even trying. Which infuriated him. Who was he to pretend that Seifer wasn't a challenge?! They were rivals! The ultimate force that drove the other! Squall was no better than him. Seifer was the hero of this story. He was going to win!

“Give Rinoa to me!” Seifer yelled, nearly foaming at the mouth.

“Rinoa is mine,” Squall's eyes flashed. “Surrender and get help, Seifer.”

“Yours?” Seifer laughed. “Her power belongs to Ultimecia! What? Don't tell me...”

Stopping, Seifer threw back his head and started crying with laughter. “Don't tell me that you really think you're her knight?! An evil mercenary like you?! Blood bringer! Death dealer! Do you think you can be a sorceress's knight?”

“Knight, lapdog, bootlicker,” Squall shrugged, uncaring. “I'll be whatever she wants of me. But at least I'm doing it of my own free will. You're nothing more than a puppet, Seifer.”

Seifer glared, madness flaring in his eyes. “I am a dreamer! I will change this world!”

“You're a shell,” Squall corrected. “You're going to kill yourself.”

Crying out, Seifer charged once more. Squall side stepped, slicing his Heart up and to the side. Not enough to kill, just enough to injure.

Seifer coughed and collapsed behind him, blood trickling from his chest. Squall let out a breath and let his eyes close. Seifer wasn't dead...

At least not physically. Squall still felt like he was mourning.

His partner. His rival. His brother.

Rinoa sighed behind Seifer, frowning at the sight he made on the floor. Tattered jacket, messy hair, broken body. He was nothing like the confident, vibrant man that had once escorted her from Galbadia to Timber.

But she had already mourned his loss. She could just shake her head. “Seifer...”

Her voice failed. She wished she could say something. She didn't know what. With nothing else coming to mind, she turned to leave. She was going to go check on Ellone. To stay with her until the others arrived. Someone had to explain the plan to her.

“You alright, Squall?” Zell asked, stepping past Seifer.

“I'm fine,” Squall assured him, sheathing his Lion Heart. “Come on, we still need to find Adel and-”

“SQUALL!”

The two of them turned quickly.

There was a blood streak where Seifer had been. He had jumped up while their backs were turned and he had chased after-

“RINOA!” Squall sprinted outside.

They ran outside to find Seifer having caught Rinoa in a choker hold as he moved up the stair ladder on the side of the walkway. He had Hyperion cutting across her abdomen, his arm into her neck, not quite drawing blood but being dangerously close to doing so.

“Not yet, Squall!” Seifer laughed. “It's not over yet!”

Rinoa squeaked, reaching out for him. Squall cried out her name, chasing her up the stairs. She was scared to attack Seifer, afraid that if he fell from this height she would fall with him. Sorceresses were only human, after all...

“Stay back, Squall,” Seifer laughed, moving the Hyperion closer to Rinoa's heart. “If you don't want her blood running down the walls, stay back.”

Squall stopped like Seifer had hit his 'pause' button. He swallowed convulsively as the two of them started moving out of sight.

“Squall!” Quistis, leading the others including Laguna, ran into the room. “Is that Seifer with Rinoa?”

Squall stood still for only a moment. Letting him enter the room above. Out of sight so he didn't see Squall chasing after them. Squall sprinted up the steep stairs the moment he was gone. He heard the others follow behind him.

Rinoa's fear and desperation for him was breaking through their bond. It was driving Squall mad to feel her panic. He had to get her back.

He had to get her back!

***

Rinoa was breathing fast. Her mind was moving faster. Seifer's hand was heavy on her shoulder, sweaty and almost shaking a little bit. She could feel his panicked breath on her ear as he pushed her closer to the glowing, warm orb that was Adel's Tomb.

Rinoa felt a chill go down her spine at the sight. Adel wasn't awake yet, but she looked very different from the last time Rinoa saw her up in space. Her skin was brighter. Her chest was moving within the clear wrap that contained her. Breathing.

Awakening.

“Seifer, stop it,” Rinoa begged softly. “This isn't you.”

“What's wrong?” He asked, smiling at Adel but speaking to Rinoa. “Can't stand my touch anymore? Do you prefer Squall that much? He's not much better than me. Do you know how many Galbadians he's killed?”

“I know what he is. I don't care. And I know what you are. You aren't this person. I know that this isn't you. You've done enough. Just stop!”

“I can't stop!” Seifer shook his head wildly. “Can't go back now. I can't go anywhere!”

Seifer was twitching wildly now. His eyes were wide, inhuman. The sorceress had her claws deep in his brain. Twisting him. Warping him.

“The sorceresses as one!” Seifer yelled. “That is Ultimecia's wish! ADEL! Awaken to your new master!”

“Seifer!” Rinoa gasped.

Adel's gleaming red eyes snapped open.


	42. Time Compression

Adel was moving within the orb. Rinoa was trembling. Shaking her head.

“Seifer...No more...Please...” She was begging him now.

“Rinoa...” Seifer leaned his chin onto her shoulder. Attracted to her warmth. To the healing energy that came from her.

“It's not too late,” Rinoa whispered. Adel's mouth was opening. Recognizing the power in Rinoa as she recognized the power in her.

“Seifer!” Squall's voice was like an avenging angel. Rinoa nearly cried in relief. “NO!”

Growling, Seifer pushed Rinoa off of him, holding her roughly by the shoulders. “Rinoa and Adel! The sorceresses as one! Watch closely, Squall! Let's see how a knight serves when his sorceress becomes another!”

Laughing, Seifer threw Rinoa to the ground. Squall was sprinting their way. Adel's claws were pushing at the clear substance encasing her.

“Rinoa!” Selphie yelled. The others were just behind Squall. Trailing them, Laguna was running with Ellone. He was watching Adel awakening with wide eyes.

She was, probably, his greatest nightmare come to life.

Adel's claws breached the clear sealant. The burst of air that came out hit Squall like a blizzard. He cried out, covering his eyes.

He heard Rinoa scream. In fear. In pain. Their bond was still strong. He could hear her crying out for him in their hearts.

When the wind calmed and Squall could open his eyes, his heart sank. His eyes widened as his mouth filled with the taste of bile.

Adel was standing up. Her enormous height was more than a little intimidating.

Stuck into her chest, being absorbed into her body, Rinoa's head and torso were hanging out. Her arms had been pulled back, her legs absorbed already. Her eyes were rolled back into her head. She was shaking almost like she was seizing.

Adel was feeding on her.

The wicked sorceress had a hungry, angry grin on her face as she beheld Squall. Her ruby eyes narrowed on him.

“You...” she growled, her voice rumbling like gravel. “You!”

“You got a problem with me?” Squall asked angrily, coming in closer. He was pulling out his Heart once again. He was going to slaughter her. He was going to bath in her blood. He was going to enjoy doing it for daring to touch Rinoa.

“I know you...” Adel growled, she sounded confused. The brown haired, gray eyed youth was not someone who looked familiar. But there was still something about him. An air surrounding him that reminded her of that hated man who trapped her for so long.

“Sorry, we've never met,” Squall growled.

“You're his,” she hissed.

“I'm hers,” Squall corrected, looking at Rinoa. “You're going to pay for this. I'm going to kill you. I'm going to enjoy it.”

Seifer charged for him. Squall jerked his blade up and to the side. Seifer cried out as a second slash, deeper than the first, opened on his chest. He dropped down, bleeding violently. He landed close to Squall and the blood formed a small puddle on his boots.

Squall stepped forward, trailing footsteps stained red. 

Adel grinned as though pleased by the action. “You will die first. Then him...”

Rinoa collapsed forward, her hair falling over her face. Squall couldn't see whether or not she was still conscious, but he knew that she wasn't able to help him at just this moment. And he couldn't use any of his magic for fear of it hurting her.

That was fine. He had defeated a sorceress once already. He could defeat another one. Yes, Adel was more powerful than Edea. But Squall was also stronger now than he had been then.

Adel was a sorceress. She was more than capable of magic. Yet, somehow, that wasn't her first attack. She moved before Squall so fast she was a blur. The claws on the end of her gloves slashed out for him, burning slightly with magic.

Squall swatted it away with his gunblade. She twisted to slice with her other hand. Squall ducked. He kicked out, planting his boot onto the side of her knee. She buckled, turning. Rinoa's body jerked and Squall cursed as he drew back.

He jumped around, trying to hit Adel from behind. The sorceress punched back. Her fist didn't hit him, but the raw energy did. Squall cried out as he was tossed backward. He slid on his back for a few feet before pushing himself up onto his feet and skidding to a halt.

Adel's attention was on him. Her back to the others. She didn't see nor hear Zell charging. He cried out at the last second, slamming a burning fist into her back. Adel choked out a breath, her back arching from the strike. Rinoa made a small sound of distress and Squall had to bit his tongue to avoid yelling at Zell. They had little choice at this time.

Adel turned to swipe her claws at Zell.

Selphie moved in front and to the side. The prongs on her Vision slashed across Adel's face. The black tattoos on her chest and face were stained with her blood as Selphie jumped onto her back, then pushed her down as she jumped over the sorceress.

Adel turned, throwing her magic. Selphie ducked under the blast that hit the wall with a crashing sort of explosion.

Squall lifted his gun while Adel's back was to him. He held back his magic and shot three quick pulse shots. The ammo packed a hardy punch and Adel cried out. She turned to him.

Quistis's Queen whipped out and struck her. Adel cried out, her back arching. Quistis struck a second time, wrapping around Adel's neck. She jerked, pulling the large woman down. She crashed onto her side then fell back, turning over and grabbing Quistis's whip. Electricity sparked from her hands, shooting up the body.

Quistis grinned as the sparks absorbed into her body. They felt good. Rejuvenating. More than just a simple immunity, with thundaga she was actively absorbing the energy. It felt almost like a cure spell sinking into her body.

Quistis grabbed the lightning, and shot it back towards Adel. The sorceress cried out, her body jerking in pain. Rinoa cried out, thrashing as part of her body.

“Quistis!” Squall yelled out desperately.

Gasping, Quistis cut off the magic. She hadn't thought Rinoa would be affected too.

Laughing, Adel pushed herself up. She jerked the Queen away from her throat. Rinoa was panting, whimpering against her chest. Adel stroked her cheek gently.

“Forget something?” She asked, smirking.

BANG!

Adel cried out. Irvine's shotgun blast to her back had her bleeding down her long skirt. His lifted his Exter with a growl.

“Forget something?” He mocked.

Adel turned. Zell struck her back. She turned again. Squall let out a blast. She turned. Selphie hit. Adel yelled in pain and frustration, Quistis hit her back.

Sorceresses were powerful, but they were still human. SeeDs were trained to attack in groups and bring down a target as a team. The exact sort of thing that a single sorceress had trouble fighting against. It was a swarm against a lone target.

Laguna let out a breath of awe as he watched them all work like a well oiled machine. Dodging, attacking, provoking. There were no extraneous movement. Every finger twitch, every breath, was carefully placed so as to do the most good.

Laguna had seen how they could fight through himself and his friends. He had thought that to be impressive. Back in their own bodies, the SeeDs that had lent them their strength seemed like something far more than human. Laguna knew they were holding back, too. None of them wanted to hurt Rinoa, so they were only carefully striking Adel from behind.

It was a strange thing of beauty. Like watching a deadly ballet. These human weapons were trained to kill sorceresses. They did their jobs expeditiously and with far more ease than Laguna would have imagined possible.

Adel had been in the back of his mind for seventeen years. He knew that if she ever broke free, his death was assured. He honestly believed that, if the impossible happened, nothing would be able to stop her. He knew of SeeD, but he had always thought that their abilities had been exaggerated. He had been in Esthar for so long that he had begun to believe as most of his subjects did. That the outside world was more backward, weaker than the mighty Esthar.

SeeD may not have Esthar's technological advancements, but they more than made up for it with strength and magical abilities given by their GF.

Squall was the clear leader. He often didn't have to do more than call out a name and the person knew exactly what he wanted. When it was Squall's turn to strike, he was fast and deadly. Pouncing like true predator, with eyes that weren't quite blank nor really alive.

“What do you think?” Ellone whispered to him, as though she could possibly disturb them. “He's amazing, isn't he?”

Laguna took a breath to keep himself calm and nodded.

“Zell! The princess!” Squall ordered.

Quistis had her whip around Adel's wrists, pulling her backwards with Irvine's combined strength. Selphie had brought her to her knees with a strike to the back of her legs. Zell ran forward, jumping over Adel's body.

He took hold of Rinoa's shoulders, snarling at Adel's face that he found himself directly in front of. The sorceress attempted to bite him. Zell headbutted her.

Squall ran forward, his Heart shining. He jumped down beside Adel. The woman glared and Zell pulled back on Rinoa.

“Selphie!” Squall ordered.

The spunky girl jumped onto the sorceresses back. She tossed her Vision around Adel's neck. The chain bit into her skin. Selphie put her foot down between Adel's shoulder blades. She jerked back and Adel choked.

Squall moved the Lion Heart into her view. Adel glared at him hatefully. Squall's eyes were blank as he looked at her.

Adel was breathing hard, panic in her eyes. This couldn't happen! She was all powerful! How did these little whelps beat her so easily?!

“Garden trains SeeD,” Squall quoted calmly. “SeeD destroys the sorceress.”

Twisting his blade, her dropped low. His Heart speared up, through Adel's chest at an odd angle. The sorceress coughed blood onto her lips. Zell pulled on Rinoa, Squall and Selphie pulled onto Adel. It was like peeling glue from skin, ripping Rinoa out of her.

“Selphie, Quists! Fall back!” Squall ordered.

The girls ran away. Irvine took Selphie's place and helped Squall jerk Adel away. Rinoa was separated from her body with a sickening 'squelch' sort of sound that made him feel sick. The large sorceress collapsed down against the ground. A bright, purple gas expelled from her body. It rushed towards the nearest girl. Towards Rinoa.

Rinoa gasped, her eyes snapping open as a rush of power flowed into her. She pushed away from Zell, grabbing for her heart. She was breathing hard, surprised. Squall moved quickly to her side, dropping down beside her.

“Rinoa?” He reached for her gently.

She looked at him, her eyes wide and scared. She threw her arms around his neck and clung tight onto him. She was shaking slightly, but she wasn't hurt.

Squall held her back, letting out a small breath.

Knowing she had to be dead, that was the only way she could give away her powers, Laguna approached Adel slowly. The Tyrant of Esthar had been taken down by the six of them like they had done such things many times before. True experts in sorceress killing.

“He did it,” Kiros whispered, looking at Adel's body. It was ragged and bloody from the treatment the SeeDs had given her.

“I guess...that takes care of that,” Laguna ran his hand over his long hair. “Wow...”

He looked back at Squall who was cradling Rinoa gently. The same mercenary that had easily and carelessly killed a woman in cold blood was now caressing his lady like she was made of spun glass and might break if he was too rough with her.

Rinoa sniffed, pushing back slightly to look at him. “Thank you, Squall.”

He nodded, standing up and pulling her with him. He set her down on her feet. Rinoa frowned as she felt a pressure against her head. Familiar. Uncomfortable.

Squall frowned as well. He didn't quite feel the pressure, but he could feel Rinoa's heart falling away from his slightly. No, being pulled away.

“Rinoa,” he took her shoulder. The spark of energy that threw the limb away was familiar and painful. He looked into her eyes as Rinoa's head fell back, her eyes rolling into her head.

The others gathered around, watching her trepidatiously. Rinoa's hands moved out, her breathing deepened and hastened. She wasn't wavering like she had been last time, but Squall couldn't feel Rinoa anymore. Her mind was gone.

“...Ultimecia?” He asked softly.

Rinoa's eyes opened but it wasn't her that looked out at him.

“Ellone!” Laguna looked to his girl. “Now's your chance!”

Ellone nodded, her eyes closing. She focused and Squall looked to Rinoa. She flinched and he could imagine the high pitched squealing that must have started in her head. Her eyes rolled and her body slumped forward. Squall caught her before she hit the ground.

“Okay, Ellone,” Laguna whispered to her gently. “She only needs a moment. Bring Rinoa back and force Ultimecia out.”

Ellone nodded. Her eyes scrunched up in concentration. Squall watched Rinoa carefully until her eyes opened again. She looked up at Squall.

“I...was....inside Adel,” she shivered. “The younger Adel. It was...weird.”

“Perfect,” Laguna nodded. “Ultimecia was in three time periods, exactly as she needed. Okay, this is the showdown folks! Time compression is about to begin!”

The ground started rolling, like water, under their feet almost like in response to his words. Squall and the others gasped. Rinoa clutched onto Squall's arm, her eyes wide.

“Love, friendship, and courage!” Laguna reminded them, but it sounded like his voice was coming from a far tunnel.

“Guys!” Rinoa reached out for the others. They ran for her quickly. Everyone took hold of her hand and, even as the world around them rippled and rocked in a most nauseating way, everyone's bodies remained solid and firm.

“Show 'em what you got!” Laguna yelled. His voice was so distorted now that they could barely understand what he was saying.

Squall turned and watched as his face faded away.

“Is everyone okay?” Rinoa asked, her voice echoing strangely.

“Still here,” Selphie laughed nervously.

They all cried out as it felt like the ground suddenly fell out from under their feet. The warped and blended world was washed away as the six of them crashed down through the floor.

No, through the sky. Through the water. It was impossible to tell where they were, where they were going. It felt like they were seeing the entire world melting into one big boiling pot of color, sound, and images.

“Where are we supposed to go?” Quistis asked, disturbed by the lack of reality around them.

“To Edea's house!” Squall answered easily. The place where his family had grown. It was their place.

Rinoa frowned. “I...don't think I can get there. I'll probably disappear.”

Squall's arm tightened around her waist. “Just stay by my side. I won't let you disappear! That place is ours. All of ours. Including yours.”

Rinoa looked up at him before leaning against his chest. 

Lights and images continued to flash through the compressing world around them. The images they could see were quick, often blurry snapshots of time and it was hard to focus on anything.

A huge city built of stone and light. A large ship flying on the clouds. People, faces, that had been lost to the ages. Odin. An eye in the sky. A green machine under the water. Two moons in the sky. A woman in a manned, running machine.

It was a strange thing to see. Harder still to understand. Squall didn't think he ever would. His arms tightened around Rinoa and he focused on her instead. On what was most important to him. Nothing else mattered at all.

Until-

“Squall,” Rinoa said softly, confused.

He looked up again. Kind of surprised to find himself now standing. The room they were in was unfamiliar to him. But it wasn't to Rinoa.

“This is...the guest room at the presidential resident in Deling City,” she frowned, turning. “This is how it looked when Edea-uh, Ultimecia was here.”

“So what do we do?” Irvine asked, turning around.

“Well...there's a door there,” Squall said simply, looking towards the double doors.

The others shrugged. Together, they started walking forward. It felt weird walking, like they were doing so through water, but not quite as dense. Selphie reached the doors first and pushed them open but they didn't lead to the hallway before the podium outside the residence.

“Um...” Selphie looked around because they were now standing on the path into Balamb garden, back when it was still on the ground.

“So, that's weird...” Zell looked around. It kind of looked like the sky was...melting.

Laughing from overhead caught their attention. They turned quickly to see someone coming down from above. A woman. A weirdly dressed woman with a pretty face but the oddest dress. She had painted her face pale white, her lips bright blue. She looked out at them through artificially bright pink and blue eyes with a grin on her face.

Lifting her hand, she cast a firaga spell.

Everyone cried out and jumped away.

She turned, continuing to laugh. It was a slow, deep, familiar laugh. Squall had heard it many times from Matron's throat when she wasn't Matron.

“Ultimecia?” He looked at the woman, confused. He honestly hadn't expected finding her to be quite so...easy.

The woman continued laughing. She cast a blizzaga spell this time. Everyone dodged again. Irvine lifted his gun and let out a quick shot.

The woman screamed. Then twisted, and disappeared.

“What was...” Squall shoot his head, confused. Surely killing her wouldn't be that easy...

More laughter. They all looked up again. Another woman was floating down. Wearing a thin black dress and a strange orange, yellow, and red cape and hat. She landed before them, still laughing. Her face was still wight, but her lips were orange now. Her bright eyes blue.

The same face.

Ultimecia again?!

Quistis struck this time. Save the Queen cut through the woman easily. The sorceress cried out, floating away. As dead as the last one.

The scene around them was melting through different places. They weren't in Balamb Garden any longer. It looked almost like the Tomb of the Unknown King, but a lot less overgrown. Almost like how it would look while under construction.

Even as Squall turned, looking for something else, the scene melted again. This time forming a huge stone city. They were standing on a walkway in the sky, looking around at tall buildings big enough to rival those in Esthar.

Laughter made them turn. Another version of Ultimecia was descending. This one was wearing a bright yellow gown, adorned with red ribbons. They could see her long black hair tied back into a complicated bun.

She landed, throwing out a thundaga spell. Selphie jumped over the lightning strike and, crying out, hit the prongs of the Vision directly into the woman's chest. She cried out, then spun and followed the others into nothingness.

“What the hell is goin' one here?!” Zell demanded to know.

The scene turned into an open field with a gentle breeze rustling the grass. Laughter announced the arrival of the next sorceress. Wearing a strange blue dress that looked to be tied around her body like a long scarf, they couldn't see her face through a veil over her head. But that laughter was undeniable and she attacked with a blizzaga spell the moment her feet touched down.

Selphie took her out in two hits.

Zell killed the next one; an Ultimecia wearing all black who cast more magic than the others.

Squall killed the one after that; an Ultimecia with alternating gold and black stripes in her long hair wearing all white.

She disappeared into the nothingness and Zell threw up his hands.

“Just how long is this going to last?!” He demanded to know.

The laughter that answered him had the same cadence as Ultimecia's, but it was deeper. Somehow more distorted. The world around them melted again from what appeared to be an underwater city with bright lights in all directions to a thick cyclone of dirt and rust that wrapped all around them. The ground died under their feet and everything got dark and distorted beyond reason.

From a hole in nothingness above them, yet another Ultimecia fell. Unlike any of the others before her, she was not dressed in any outlandish outfits with bright make up. Though her face remained human-like, the rest of her did not. She looked like a cross between a caterchipillar and a forbidden monster, grotesque and every rainbowed color of a bleeding bruise. Long, spindly arms hung off of a segmented body with no legs. Her face was large and it looked like it was only half formed, like a clay sculpture that hadn't been given full form. She towered over them, wavering around in the air as though her own body were foreign to her.

“Uh, that thing is ugly,” Selphie grimaced, looking at it in revulsion.

Ugly, big, and fast. It was a bad combination. It looked like a caterchipillar but struck like an anacondor. Its spindly arms smacked out, hitting like whips. It roared something that might have sounded like words right before a blast of firaga struck for them.

Everyone leapt out of the way.

Rinoa came up and let out a quick shot. Her Star cut up along the segmented body, opening up a long slice that bled deep purplish-black blood. It didn't so much bleed as it oozed though. Rinoa caught her edge and grimaced at the leathery skin and blood that remained.

“That is nasty!” She grimaced, shaking her arm in an attempt to dislodge the flesh.

Squall ran forward, his Heart shining even in the weird, light absorbing walls around them. He sliced out, digging into the strange beast. The Ultimecia thing yelled, slamming down her hand as though to crush him with the appendage.

Squall jumped away. Her hand hit the ground. The quake spell she sent into the earth started rocking the strange piece of land they stood on. Everyone cried out as they fell, the earth itself pounding against them.

All except Irvine. He was seemingly immune to the rocking affects. His affinity through the brothers made the bucking ground feel completely steady and natural. Lifting his Exeter, he let out a quick shot aimed for the eye of the beast. It hit true.

Crying out, the sorceress reared back in pain. The earth stopped shaking and, groaning in pain, everyone got back to their feet.

Selphie was up first, charging with an angry cry. The prongs on the end of the Vision dug into the sorceress's skin, digging out long chunks of meat. The Ultimecia screamed, sweeping out her long, segmented tail.

Selphie attempted to dodge but was too slow. The tail hit her broadside and, crying out, Selphie went flying.

“Zell!” Quistis yelled, running for him.

He put his hands together, holding them out for her. Quistis used him as a stool and jumped up, Zell helping send her flying. Quistis caught Selphie in the air and the two of the fell down together. Irvine was there to help catch them so Selphie wasn't slammed to the ground.

Squall lifted his gun and shot six times, the blizzaga laced bullets hit the giant sorceress with an explosion of multiple spires of razor sharp spikes. Blizzaga was considerably more powerful than blizzara and the entire area got colder as a result of the attack.

Growling at the temperature change, Zell pulled back his burning fist and shot out six explosive firagas. The fireballs hit the remaining ice spires causing them to burst into instant explosive steam bombs. The sorceress cried out as the burning gaseous water broiled her flesh. The already bruise colored skin darkened and bubbled from the heat.

Rinoa clenched her teeth, putting her hand to her Shooting Star.

She had to remember, though it was hard to keep in mind, that she wasn't bound by the constrains of specific stocked spells. She was a sorceress, too. Any magic she wanted...

Biting her lip, Rinoa touched the various feathers of her Star. Firaga here, thundaga here, water here, ect. She went around placing various spells on the different parts of her weapon. It took a fair amount of concentration to keep them all on their own feathers, but it wasn't impossible.

Beaming to herself, she raised the magic charged weapon and aimed for the Ultimecia's face. She had to clench her jaw together. It was getting harder to hold the spells apart. She didn't want to let them all touch before the weapon left her hand. They would hit her instead.

The sorceress stopped moving for just a moment. Waving her spindly hands together to gather the magic for a spell. Rinoa grinned and shot her Star.

The spinning blade burned bright white as it shot through the air. It hit the sorceress and she cried out loudly in pain. The magic all released at the same time and the resulting explosion was...strange.

The white light of her Star started absorbing all the energy around them. The white light shrunk and everyone felt a strange rumbling in the air. It bundled together, pulling on a magic in the air and through Rinoa.

She paused, blinking. She had thought all the magic would just hit at the same time. This combination was not at all what she had...

All at once, the energy exploded outward. Green and black, engulfing everything. Rinoa cried out and threw out a shield out around her friends. The magic explosion ripped through the air, decimating the area. If it hadn't already been nothingness, it would have been destroyed.

It didn't make a sound. No, more like it absorbed all the sound. The light and lack of sound faded slowly and Rinoa was left blinking at the crater she had made around the sorceress. A sorceress who now had a ramrod straight back. Her skin had been blasted away, her face torn off. It didn't even really look like whatever it had been before.

“Um...” Rinoa blinked as it began absorbing into the nothingness, following the sorceresses that had been killed before it.

Squall blinked, looking over to her. “What did you do?”

“I have no idea!” She shook her head, struggling to wrap her mind around that.

“Well, it worked,” Irvine laughed, clapping her on the shoulder. “Nice job, Rinoa.”

She smiled. “So...now what?”

They looked up, waiting for more laughter.

None came.

“Was that perhaps the last Ultimecia?” Quistis asked, frowning.

“Then, does that mean we won?” Selphie looked between them.

Squall frowned. That was still too easy. How could the sorceress be defeated that easily?

The world was rocking around them now. It wasn't melting into anything else, but was rumbling like it was shaking apart. Rinoa reached out quickly for Squall. He held her close, his eyes moving around as the world vibrated to the point that it was just a blur.

Rinoa frowned as she felt something rushing towards them. Something...big...? No, that wasn't the right word. Powerful?

“It's not over,” Rinoa said, closing her eyes to the world around them. It was getting harder to look at the longer it went on. It was giving her a slight headache. “There's more. We're almost there.”

“Almost where?” Selphie asked, rubbing her eyes.

The weird nothing world they were standing in shattered like glass. The shards twisted and wrapped around them, settling to dust under their feet. Air, not quite fresh, blasted against their face. It smelled wet, like it was near the sea. But the scent was wrong. Not like fresh salt water. More like that distinct, polluted smell from dirty dishwater.

Squall opened his eyes again and drew in a quick breath. Behind him, in his arms, he heard the others all make similar exclamations of awe.

They were standing on the rocky outcropping of a cape next to an ocean. Just below them, there was a large chain, thicker than their bodies, that ran up and out towards an enormous floating castle over the water. It had demonic wings that didn't beat. The chains clinked loudly together as they moved in the air coming off of a dark green sea filled with dirty foam.

“Squall!”

He turned at Quistis's cry. She wasn't looking up at the castle though. She was pointing behind them to the ruins they were standing in front of. They were...familiar...

“It looks like the orphanage,” Rinoa gasped.

Squall frowned. It did. But...different. Worse. The orphanage hadn't looked in the best shape when they last saw it, but the ruins of it looked centuries old now. The stone was weathered, the roof was completely collapsed, and most of the walls had fallen.

Squall turned and looked back at the castle. Ultimecia's castle. He gritted his teeth.

“Come on. We're here now. We just have to take her out.”

He released Rinoa, leading the way down the rocks to where the chain was anchored. He frowned as he came in closer.

There were people here. Dead and laying face down on the ground. They wore the uniform of White SeeD. He couldn't see their faces but they were all in various states of decay.

“Future SeeDs,” Squall looked at them. “We're fighting her across generations.”

Rinoa stepped beside him, frowning at the dead SeeDs. “They didn't even make it to the chain.”

“Come on,” Squall jerked his head forward. “Let's get to the castle before she realizes that we're here. We end Ultimecia's reign now.”

He led the way. The chain links were enormous. So big that even when Squall put his full weight upon them, they didn't shake or really even move. He could walk across safely, only needing to worry about the ocean winds that gently rocked the long chains.

Despite how steady it was, it was still uneven and awkward to walk on. Squall had to slowly work his way across each link. Behind him, he heard the others carefully following him. When he turned, he could see Selphie leaping between links like she had done it all her life. Rinoa was being more careful, her arms outstretched to keep her balance, Zell was nearly on all fours.

Squall turned and focused more on not falling himself.

Halfway across the chain, three archways came up on their left. Squall frowned into the colorful vortex spinning within them. They looked almost like teleporters. He wasn't interested. He turned from them and continued up the chain.

The castle had looked enormous from far away. The closer they got, the more it seemed to consume everything in its massive shadow. Squall frowned because, despite the chain, there really wasn't anything there to try to keep them out. She had to know that they were coming for her. Why wouldn't she have guards of some kind?

The chain ended at the base of the steps to the castle doors. Squall jumped from the last link, landing on the dark gray, dry dust that covered the slightly uneven marble steps. He turned and made sure that everyone came off okay. Zell was the last one, having moved the slowest. Selphie was laughing, her cheeks bright red as though she were having the time of her life.

“Good,” Squall nodded when Zell hit more solid ground with a sigh of relief.

Zell lifted his eyes and groaned at the massive double doors. “This is her castle? Jeez, has she heard of any color besides gray?”

“We already knew that she has no taste,” Quistis grinned. “You saw how she dressed Matron.”

“Hm,” Selphie looked thoughtful. “You know, Matron always favored long black dresses. And Adel wore that really weird costume thing. Maybe it's a sorceress trait. Maybe sorceresses just lose their sense of fashion.”

“Please don't say that,” Rinoa frowned.

Selphie and Quistis laughed at her.

“Don't worry,” Quistis touched her shoulder gently. “Squall will still like you even if you decide to dress like a bird or something. Right, Squall?”

“I might draw the line at full bird,” Squall said simply.

Rinoa gasped, her eyes going wide. “Squall, are you teasing me?!”

He gave her a very small grin and Rinoa laughed. She threw her arms around his neck, pressing a kiss to his cheek that had the smile widening just slightly.

“I trust you to protect me from a lack of fashion sense,” she said, cuddling her cheek to his. “If I start buying excessive amounts of feathers, you let me know.”

“So, basically,” Irvine grinned salaciously, “you'll wear whatever he says to? Squall, please tell me you see the possibilities here.”

Squall looked thoughtful for a moment and Rinoa grinned salaciously. She leaned into his ear and whispered softly.

“Whatever you want...Or whatever you don't want.”

Squall continued to look thoughtful, then gave her a smoldering sort of look. Rinoa grinned, pressing herself just a little closer to him.

“Hey,” Zell frowned. “We're right here. Also, right outside of Ultimecia's castle. In case you forgot.”

“Hey, I'm all up for defiling our enemy's front door,” Irvine raised his hand. He winked at Selphie. “It's kind of kinky.”

“I'm down,” Selphie beamed.

“I'm not,” Quistis rolled her eyes. “We are professionals and we were hired to do this, don't forget. I want to kill her and get back to our proper time already. This place is freaky.”

Squall nodded as Rinoa released him. 

“Seriously,” Zell gave Irvine a look. “How can you possibly get it up here of all places?”

“A true master can practice his craft anywhere,” Irvine said simply. “You're not wrong about the creepy factor though. You think what's-her-face really lives here? Seems more like a palace for Death himself.”

“She's here,” Rinoa said certainly, her eyes moving up to the tallest tower. “I...I can feel her. She's powerful.”

“She can't be more powerful than you,” Quistis reasoned. “You're both the only sorceress of your times so you should have the same amount of power.”

“That doesn't mean she doesn't have more experience with hers,” Squall said. “I agree with Quistis though. I want to get this over with and go home already.”

Rinoa smiled, taking her hand in his. “Home. I like the sound of that.”

“We stick together,” Squall said simply, looking between them. “Like Laguna said, we can't do this without each other. We started this together, we end it together. No man gets left behind.”

“Yes, sir,” the others nodded, firmly.

Squall led the way up the stairs. The others fell in step behind him. He was considering asking Zell to help him pull open the large double doors when they opened on their own. Fog came spilling out and Squall squared his jaw as he stepped through.

The interior architecture was no less gothic and gaudy than the exterior. A large, swirling staircase took up most of the foyer leading to a landing that wrapped around the second floor. Double doors on their left were sealed shut. At the top of the landing, a large monster was waiting.

It was the only bright colored thing they had seen so far with vibrantly colored skin and an elaborate golden headdress and mask. It stared down at them, strangely feline. It stood up as they entered, getting to its feet and growling.

“I was wondering when we'd meet her guards,” Quistis said, pulling out her whip.

“ _I am Sphinxaur,_ ” the deep voice rumbled from above. “ _The Great Sealer. You are forbidden from walking here._ ”

“Well, that's never stopped us before,” Zell snickered, raising his hands.

“ _None shall touch the mistress until her work is complete,_ ” Sphinxaur growled. Though he looked feline, the sound he made was very canine.

“Your mistress's reign ends tonight,” Squall promised.

Sphinxaur glared down at him. “ _I never liked you._ ”

Squall frowned. “What?”

“ _You die first!_ ” With a roar, Sphinxaur leapt from the balcony.

Everyone jumped away to avoid being speared by Sphinxaur's claws. Squall rolled and came up just in time to catch a swipe from the large, jagged appendages. He grunted at the force that reverberated up his arm. The way the thing spoke, the way he acted, Squall was starting to believe he wasn't a monster. He almost acted like a...GF.

“Squall!” Rinoa shot her Star.

Sphinxaur dodged, jumping over the blade. He came back down, trapping it under his palm. He glared at her, then turned right back to Squall to continue his onslaught. He was faster than Squall anticipated and he was immediately put on the defensive.

Quistis and Selphie were attacking Sphinxaur's flanks, but his skin was like a rock. From behind, Irvine let out two shots that broke holes through this flesh, but they didn't bleed. Zell ran around to the front of the creature and took up place beside Squall. The two of them together were able to hold off the attack without being forced back further.

Rinoa clicked the recall trigger on her Star. It shot out from under Sphinxaur's paw, upsetting his balance. As Rinoa caught the edge, Squall jumped forward, slamming his gunblade through Sphinxaur's chest. The adamantine stone was far more powerful than his skin. Squall sank down deep and Sphinxaur started shaking. Squall had deliberately missed his heart.

“Give up,” Squall ordered. “I won't kill you.”

Sphinxaur was laughing. “ _I will not betray my mistress._ ”

Squall frowned and moved to back up quickly. He didn't want to kill a GF. Not because he respected this one's power, but because it was dangerous. GF energy exploded outwards when they died. Squall and the others would be caught up in the blast if they killed him.

The blow Squall had landed was deep, but it shouldn't have hit anything important enough to instantly kill. Sphinxaur, however, fell to his side. The wound didn't bleed, but he was still laughing at them.

“Guys, back up,” Squall said, quickly stepping away.

“ _Too late,_ ” Sphinxaur laughed. _“I am the Great Sealer. Your power is mine. I die to steal it from you. The others shall guard your power from you._ ”

“Run!” Squall turned.

It was too late.

A loud rumbling came from Sphinxaur's body followed by a bright light. Not a second later, he exploded and the power burst forth. Everyone cried out as it slammed them.

Squall gasped as he felt Shiva and Bahamut scream together before fading. They took his magic with them, the power they afforded him. Squall attempted to grab for them, but they were gone. Squall hit the ground with a grunt of pain.

A second blast hit him and he heard his friends all cry out.

“Squall!” Rinoa screamed. It sounded like her voice came from too far away.

Squall tried to reach out for her, but he couldn't even see where she was.

Sphinxaur's laughter was fading now. Fading into a distinct, cough like bark.

Almost like...a dog.


	43. Ultimecia's Castle

Squall shot up quickly, his heart racing. He didn't need to look around to know that he was alone. The others had all been blown away. As he had been.

He wasn't in the front hall any longer. He didn't know where he was. He got to his feet slowly, looking around at the room he was in now.

Squall was standing at the top of a double staircase landing, but both stairs were broken so that he couldn't climb up or down. However, the landing was exactly on level with an enormous chandelier hanging very low from the ceiling. When he turned around, he spotted a pair of double doors. They were closed, but Squall could still feel freezing air coming from the crack underneath. And for the first time in a long time, he actually felt it.

He closed his eyes, focusing. He didn't need to do so to know that Shiva and Bahamut were no longer in his head. They had been stripped from him along with his magic.

He felt empty without them.

So instead he focused on Rinoa. His teeth clenched in worry because he couldn't feel her any longer either. It wasn't like she was gone, but like there was a wall between them now.

It made him panic. He was already used to her being there. It felt like his heart had been cut out because she wasn't there any longer.

Turning around, his heart was beating faster along with his breathing. He didn't see her. He didn't see anyone.

“RINOA!”

***

“Squall...?” Rinoa opened her eyes slowly, frowning at the strange pattern on the floor below her. It was golden with black marks. It wasn't until she had sat up on her knees that she realized there was a clock built into the ground below her. The hands each pointing to a different number.

Frowning, Rinoa pushed herself up, feeling a bit dizzy. Her eyes lifted to a large painting directly before her filled with clashing colors. It felt eerie somehow. The name of the painting was smudged so she couldn't see what it was titled.

She turned and looked around. The room was filled with candles, accounting for the golden glow on everything. It was also filled with more paintings. She was in a gallery. Ultimecia had a gallery. Rinoa let out a breath, turning to face the large staircase leading up to the second story.

There were two sets of double doors, both shut tight, on either side of the room. None of her friends were with her though. She frowned as she reached for her heart.

“Squall?” She called, getting scared.

Where was he? Why didn't she feel him any longer? Was he okay?

“Squall!” She turned around again quickly and found herself facing that frightening, large painting. It took up most of the large two story tall wall.

Rinoa frowned, reaching into her head. But her two GF were gone.

Trembling, she held out her hands. “Fire!”

Nothing.

Rinoa whimpered, holding her hands to her belly. Her power was gone. Not just the power connected to her GF, but her sorceress power.

But...That was impossible!

***

“Hello!” Selphie turned, frowning and crossing her arms. “You guys suck!”

Pouting, she sat down hard onto the staircase in the small room she was in. It had three doors, all of which were locked, and a small stream running under a tiny bridge leading to one of the doors. She was all alone and annoyed for it.

“What happened to no SeeD left behind?” She grumbled to herself, kicking a pebble.

Doing so made something metal in her boot shine. She remembered at the last moment the communicator that Sir Laguna had given them. Crying in delight, she reached down and pulled the little computer from her boot. She brought it to life with a touch and sent out a mass call.

“He- _lo_!” She yelled into it. “This is Selphie calling. ANSWER!”

“ _Yo! Stop yelling in my ear!_ ”

“Zell!” Selphie laughed loudly. “You're okay! Everyone else okay?”

“ _Rinoa?_ ” Selphie laughed at Squall's worried tone.

“ _I'm here, Squall. I'm okay. My GF are gone though. All my magic with them._ ”

“ _Mine as well,_ ” Quistis jumped in. “ _Sphinxaur called himself the Great Sealer. I guess this is what he meant._ ”

“ _So, like, what do we do?_ ” Irvine asked. “ _Where did everyone end up?_ ”

“ _I think I'm in a cellar,_ ” Quistis replied.

“ _Kind of looks like a dungeon,_ ” Zell said thoughtfully.

“ _I honestly have no idea where I am,_ ” Irvine said.

“ _I'm in an art gallery._ ”

“ _It looks like a great hall. There's a big chandelier here._ ”

“I'm by a stream in a weird room,” Selphie looked around. “It doesn't really look like anything. There's a bunch of doors here though. But they're all locked. I already checked.”

“ _Oh, shit!_ ”

Selphie frowned at her communicator.

“ _Quistis_?” Squall said quickly. “ _What is it? What's going on?_ ”

“ _One of those things is down here,_ ” Quistis said, her voice softer than before. “ _One of her monsters. It's flying near the ceiling by the wine. I think...I think it sees me. But it's not coming in closer._ ”

“ _Get out of there!_ ” Squall ordered.

“ _I can't! The only way out is a hatch above the stairs and it's locked. I can't push it open._ ”

Irvine cursed as Zell started stuttered. Selphie could hear Squall thinking on the other end. Her hands tightened on her communicator.

“ _Okay,_ ” he finally said. “ _Remember what Sphinxaur said. The others shall guard our power from us. Maybe he meant more guardians like himself. That thing might have someone's power._ ”

“ _Squall?_ ” Rinoa said his name fearfully.

“ _Quistis...Attack it._ ”

“Are you crazy?!” Selphie snapped. “We don't have our GF or our magic or anything!”

“ _Selphie! What is SeeD?_ ”

She replied automatically to her commander. “SeeDs are mercenary's. Combat specialists. We...Oh...”

“ _We are_ combat _specialists. We use GF and magic, yes. But it was only ever meant to be an enhancement to our weapon specialties. That's the reason that using our GF loses us points on our exam. We don't need our magic. We only need our weapons. We got our GF and magic using those weapons in the first place. We can do it again. Quistis, attack that monster. Everyone else, look for more guardians._ ”

“Yes, sir,” Selphie nodded with the others. She turned off her communicator and looked up.

***

Quistis slipped her communicator back into the pouch on her belt. She peered over from the seat she had taken on the steps under the ceiling hatch and looked back at the monster floating over the open area in the cellar.

Quistis got to her feet slowly. Her boots echoed hollowly on the wooden steps as she walked down the catwalk towards the spiral staircase that led into the cellar. Save the Queen, gold and beautiful, shined at her waist as she moved. She felt no more electricity, the wind was gone. It was just herself, Cerberus's three voices were missing from her head leaving her as hollow as the wooden steps under her feet as she moved further down the stairs.

The monster, the GF thing, that waited for her looked almost like it an airship. Three large spikes connected on each side and over its dragon like head. Yellow, gray, and red, it floated in the air and watched her with a glittering gold eye as she moved slowly. It seemed in no great hurry to get any closer than she was.

Curious if it would attack her, Quistis moved to the wall of wine shelves. She carefully picked up one of the dusty bottles and ran her finger over the label to clean it. The monster made no move to come any closer. Quistis couldn't even really read the label she was so focused on the monster.

She grinned at the year though. The year of her birth.

“An excellent vintage,” she said into the cool stone room.

“ _The year of your birth._ ”

Quistis gasped, turning quickly. The GF/monster thing was looking at her calmly from where it floated on the ceiling. It wasn't any closer to her and she knew that she hadn't spoken aloud.

“Can you read my mind?” She asked, worried.

“ _I cannot._ ”

“Then how...?”

“ _I am Tri-point. Some call me Trythos. The Eye of the Storm._ ”

That didn't answer her question. Quistis gently set the wine back down, looking at Tri-point. Her voice had been feminine, calm and cool. Quistis stepped closer to her slowly, fingering the coil of the Queen on her hip.

“Are you guarding someone's power?”

“ _I am guarding your power._ ”

Quistis blinked. She hadn't expected a straight answer like that. “Why are you doing this? Why aren't you attacking me?”

“ _It is my purpose. I am called to serve my mistress and can do nothing else. I have been here for a very long time. She used me as an aerial weapon of war to subjugate those who came against her. It is my power that destroyed the Island Nation of Balamb._ ”

Quistis drew in a quick breath. “You destroyed...Balamb? The entire island?”

“ _It is rubble beneath the sea now._ ”

“Why?! Why would you do that?!”

“ _Balamb sent their men to attack us. They had to be destroyed so the mistress could continue her work._ ”

“You're insane!” Quistis was breathing hard. At this time in the future Balamb, her home, was sunken beneath the waves? No! Then that meant that everyone was...

“ _I have no wish to fight you. If you choose to leave now, I shall not attack or follow. I will even open the door so you might-_ ”

“NO!” Quistis's hand struck out, her Queen slicing through the air. The wine bottle on the table was split in half and bright red wine stained the wood and stone. “I will not! You destroyed an entire country!? My country?! I will get revenge!”

Tri-point didn't seem all that surprised. “ _I do not want to fight you. But I will if you attack. My mistress's law is absolute. I cannot fight against her._ ”

“Is that how you justify their deaths?” Quistis growled, her whips shining in the light as it coiled about her, like a snake ready to strike.

“ _There is no justification. She is my mistress. I fight her enemies because she commands it. Is that not how your GF work?_ ”

Quistis started. “What?”

“ _Have you ever asked if Cerberus was more favorable towards Galbadia or Balamb? Did you care if Pandamona preferred Fujin to you? And Quetzalcoatl. The GF you earned to participate in your SeeD exam was handed off to your student like it was nothing. Did you care for their feelings then?_ ”

“How dare you?!” Quistis reared back and struck out. Her whip smacked against empty air as Tri-point dropped to avoid being hit. “Return my GF to me!”

“ _You have attacked me. You leave me no choice. You shall face my wrath for seeking your sealed power._ ”

Tri-point rose up again, drawing in power as it did so. Quistis's eyes widened at the bright blue electrical energy that sparked between the three points on her body. Electricity that she was no longer immune to. If it hit her...

Damn. No magic. No GF. She was even less proficient with her whip without Pandamona's air ability to help her guide it with supernatural accuracy. She was knocked back down to just her basic combat skills and, honestly, it had been a long time since she had needed to fight this way.

Tri-point, with a loud blast, shot the electric beam. Quistis cast her whip up. It caught around the railing on the catwalk above. She jerked herself forward and swung away. The blast hit the far wall and exploded with a burst of electricity that made Quistis's hair stand on end even as she was swinging away from it.

She landed with a click of the heels on her boots. She jerked her whip free and brought it down in the same moment. Tri-point jerked and cried out when the leather struck her skin, the cursed spike at the end digging deep into her flesh.

Quistis jerked the whip backward, using surprise and brute strength to slam Tri-point into the wall. The GF rocked and stumbled, trying to regain its balance as Quistis pulled her weapon back.

Okay, no magic.

Well, mostly no magic. Quistis did have her own natural abilities.

Her whip. Her agility. And her uncanny ability to copy monster abilities. The last was not something she needed often, but it was still something she could do.

Running for the spiral stairs, she started up. Tri-point turned with a growl of anger. Her offer to let Quistis leave was one-time. She wasn't getting away now.

Quistis wasn't trying to get away.

Another blast of electrical energy exploded against the door, missing Quistis completely as she threw herself over the rail of the staircase-

-and right onto Tri-point's back.

The flying GF dropped from the sudden addition of weight but quickly floated back up. Quistis struck out with her whip, wrapping it around the GF's neck. Tri-point choked as Quistis jerked back, wrapping her whip around her arm and holding on like it was a horse's reins.

From here, Quistis would be safe from the electricity. It could hit her, surly, but since she wasn't grounded, it couldn't hurt her by ripping through her system.

“Quetzalcoatl is one of my dearest friends!” Quistis snapped at the GF. “It broke my heart to surrender him to Squall. I only did it because Squall is my little brother, and I would do anything for family! Quetz knows that! I could never give him up for anything less!”

Tri-point bucked forward, sending Quistis over her head. Her hand still tight on her whip, Quistis jerked down against her and they both hit the ground. Quistis, much more nimble than Tri-point, was back on her feet in a second, glaring at her.

“Pandamona never once complained, but I assured him that if he was unhappy I would find someone else to hold onto him. I would even have set him free if he wished it. He was the quiet type, but I know Panda loved to hear Quetz sing!”

Tri-point, still on the ground, started gathering energy. Quistis ran forward. She put one foot on each of the two side points, grabbing onto the third with both hands. She wasn't grounded again, so the electricity couldn't use her as a conductor. She could feel it though. Running through her body, charging every hair and making her grit her teeth against the tingles.

“And how dare you insult Cerberus! He's a great, mighty warrior! He fought against us for the specific purpose of trying to determine if we were good enough for him. Galbadia would never have used his power and he wanted dearly to be useful! 

Tri-point started floating up again, Quistis still hanging onto her points. They looked each other directly in the eye. Glittering gold to electric blue.

“I would do anything for family,” Quistis repeated angrily. “For Squall, my GF, all of my siblings from the orphanage!”

“ _Are you sure he's just your little brother? Maybe you're just saying that to avoid the heartache you would feel to realize that he doesn't love you back._ ”

Quistis smirked. “I've already faced that truth, Tri-point. And maybe I did love him as a woman at one point, but if I did I can't remember that feeling now. Because I have someone else in my life. Someone strong and brave who listens to what I say! Someone who's eyes are only on me and someone I know would never turn their back on me.

Tri-point said nothing. Quistis growled at her.

“You would destroy the world Xu and I want to live in. You destroyed Balamb, our home! I don't know what our future has in store, but I can say this: Neither of us are going to stand aside and let something like you take away everything we cherish!”

Crying out in effort, Quistis took hold of the electricity running through her body. Tri-point cried out in surprise. They fought over the power, Quistis pulling it into her body. 

“NOW! GIVE! ME! BACK! MY! FRIENDS!”

Screaming, Quistis thrust the power back into Tri-point's body. Not lightning, just the raw energy. The GF cried out in pain. It was her affinity, but just in that moment it was Quistis who was benefiting from it.

Quistis!

Something that felt very much like a hug wrapped around her entire body. Quistis kicked back, jumping off of Tri-point's head. She twisted in the air, landing with a clicking of her boots onto one of the wooden wine barrels in the room. Tri-point was bobbing erratically.

Quistis jerked her whip back, electrical power shooting down the body. Crying out, Quistis struck out, creating a tornado in her wake. Tri-point screamed as the razor sharp wind began ripping her body to pieces.

Quistis stood there, unaffected in the explosion of electricity and wind that blasted against her face. She absorbed it in, taking in a deep breath as Panda, Quetz, and Cero called her name in joy. Her friends, her battle mates, that had wanted to join with her again.

“I know, guys,” Quistis smiled, touching her hair gently. Their love washed over her like a cooling wind. She jerked her whip back, coiling it in her hand in one smooth motion. “Come on. Let's get out of here and find the others.”

***

Irvine frowned at what he was looking at. After a few minutes of study and thought, he had come to conclusion that he must be in some kind of mausoleum. At least, he was looking at four crates with insignias burned into them that looked like they might be coffins. They were a little short to play the part though.

Either way, he was confused. There wasn't really anything else in here. Just the four coffin/crate/things set into their own arching alcoves opposite a small staircase that led to the only door in this room. He had already tried the door. It was locked.

Maybe the GF he was looking for was _inside_ one of the crates...

Stepping forward, Irvine grabbed for the center one. As he lifted the lid, the crate two down also lifted up. Irvine frowned. What the...

***

Zell frowned at the door baring him inside his prison cell. There were two doors. One was unlocked but led only to a steep overlook too high to jump and too steep to climb. The other door was locked tight and no matter how hard Zell hit it, it wouldn't budge. There was a keyhole and a doorknob. And Zell did see the key.

The problem was that his cellmate had it. A corpse in the corner was holding it up. It wasn't an undead monster, Zell had already checked. He still wasn't going over there. Not unless he had to and, with each minute that passed, it looked like he was going to have to.

Sighing, Zell turned back to the corpse. Its hollow eyes were staring out rather eerily. The key sparkled from the chain in its fist. It was so obviously a trap that even Zell could see it. At the same time, it was likely the only way out.

“Alright. Let's just get this over with.”

Tightening his gloves, Zell walked over to the corpse. The key shined in the moonlight coming through the bars from the high ceiling. Zell reached out and took it in hand. The corpse collapsed down. The ground shook as the GF rumbled into existence.

Zell turned and found the entirety of his vision was taken up by an enormous creature wearing blood red armor and carrying an equally massive sword.

“ _I am called Red Giant, the Berserker. Face my wrath for seeking thy sealed power!_ ” The giant GF roared.

“What? No foreplay?” Zell grinned, raising his fists.

“ _We are not the kind to think before acting,_ ” Red Giant said, a grin in his voice. “ _We fight!_ ”

“All right!” Laughing, Zell charged.

And was punched right back into the wall. His back hit the stone and all the breath rushed from his lungs. Zell coughed, gagging for air, as he fell down. Growling, he stood up and hissed against the pain in his chest.

Red Giant had barely moved. The fist he had hit Zell with came back again.

“ _Weak! You are good only for fighting, and you can't even do that._ ”

“Shut the hell up!” Zell charged again.

This time he jumped when Red Giant punched. Zell landed on his forearm and ran up. Red Giant twisted but couldn't stop Zell from planting his own fist into the eyes of his helmet. Red Giant cried out as Zell was tossed back down onto his feet.

“Judges?” Zell laughed, holding out his arms.

“ _WEAK!_ ” Red Giant brought down his sword. Zell cried out and jumped out of the way. The sword crashed against the stone wall, sending pebbles and dust falling from the ceiling.

“You ain't got nothing!” Zell laughed, putting in some fancy footwork like he was dancing.

Red swung his sword around. Sweeping up the corpse, cracking the walls and shaking the floor. Zell leap-frogged over the weapon, landing neatly on his feet. Crying out, he aimed a punch for Red's incoming shoulder.

His fist nearly bounced off of the impossibly strong armor. Zell yelped in pain and only the padding on his Ehrgeiz kept his knuckles from breaking.

“ _I am not one who can be killed by force!_ ” Red roared. “ _You cannot hope to defeat me!_ ”

“That's debatable,” Zell growled, taking his stance again.

“ _Give it up. You are only good for brute strength. You've never been good at using your magic. You've never been good at thinking. Your punch is all you have and it is completely useless against me._ ”

Zell's eye twitched. “Don't talk like you know me!”

Red turned to bring down his fist. Zell jumped forward. He took hold of one of the armor pieces and flipped himself over the arm. He landed on top of the arm and charged. Red was ready this time. He moved to throw Zell off.

He bucked him forward. Zell grabbed hold of Red's head. As he twisted around, he jerked Red's head with him. He heard a snap but it wasn't the sound of the GFs neck breaking. The red armor cracked a bit with the force of the jerk. Zell hit the ground as Red shook his large head, trying to shake off the pain of having his head twisted so violently.

He laughed as he turned around. “ _Admit it. You're useless for anything but a brawl._ ”

“Who the hell asked you?!” Zell ran for him. Red swung the sword around to hit him. Zell twisted so the sword fell down in front of him. His fist pulled back. He cried out as he punched forward. The metal dented under his brute strength. Red yelled in fury.

He smacked Zell with the flat of the sword. Zell cried out, slamming against the broken wall. He grunted against the pain as he fell to the ground once more.

“ _You want to be trusted and relied upon. You look at Squall with respect and admiration. You want to be like him. A leader. A tactician. A professional._ ”

“Yeah? So? Squall's a great guy? Why wouldn't I want to be like him?”

Red was laughing at him. “ _You will never be like him. You are going to be a petty thug for the rest of your life. Uninspired, overeager. Your strength will be your own destruction._ ”

Zell growled, angry. “Shut up!”

Red laughed when Zell charged him down. “ _You see? Your only response is to fight. Basic and worthless. The moment your strength dries up, you'll be tossed aside._ ”

“And what are you?” Zell yelled, running towards him. “All you're good for is shit talking and taking a punch! You're no better than me!”

“ _Sure I am. I got the shit talking._ ”

Zell punched. Red brought down his sword. Zell's fist slammed into the sword

Red cried out in pain as his fingers were twisted back and broken as the sword was punched away. He was left with only the one hand good for punching. He growled, bringing it down.

Zell black flipped out of the way. Because he was good for more than strength. Damn it! He was agile too! And yeah, he may have a long way to go to be as good as Squall, but he was learning.

“ _Hold still, insect!_ ” Red yelled, turning.

Zell ran around him, forcing Red to keep turning to keep up with him.

“Yeah, I'm not as good as Squall,” Zell admitted, running around him again.

Red twisted. His armor groaned, trying to keep up with Zell's speed.

“But who cares?! I'm _not_ Squall!”

Red twisted again. His muscles strained to keep up with the smaller, faster Zell.

“I'm gonna be the best! No matter how long I gotta work at it!”

Zell sprinted around once more. Red cried out, twisting to follow him. He moved too fast for his own body. His foot stayed planted, his leg twisted. The force of his own body moving snapped his knee out of place. Red roared as he fell to the ground. The dungeon cell shook with the force of his body and armor slamming down.

Zell ran forward, taking his head. Grabbing him, he jumped up and jerked his head around. The snapping sound was Red's neck this time.

The explosion of energy shattered against the wall. Though the energy was powerful, it didn't hurt Zell because Ifrit, Doom, and Alex absorbed the force of it. Zell grinned as their voices called out in relief at joining his mind. Ifrit cheered his revenge and power, Doom grunted happily, and Alex very properly admired his skills.

“Thanks, guys,” Zell grinned, slamming his burning fists together. “Now let's get out of here and catch up to the others.”

***

Irvine yelled loudly in annoyance. How was it that whenever he opened one of these damn crates, others opened or closed. There was nothing in them. He had already seen into each one. But he was getting annoyed. He wanted them all open!

Damn it!

***

Selphie kept hearing loud banging coming from beyond one of the three doors in her room. She was frowning at it from across the small bridge. She had no idea what was going on beyond there, but it didn't really sound all that encouraging.

Hm...

Break in?

Don't break in?

Choices...

Selphie turned and started pacing up and down her room. She knew she was supposed to be looking for a GF, but she didn't know where to look. This room was small and, besides the twin streams, there was really nothing here. And the doors were all locked. And what was that?

Selphie stopped when, as she turned, she caught sight of something sparkling in the water. Curiously, she moved forward and spotted what looked like a key at the bottom of the little stream. Letting out a cry of delight, she dropped down and reached into the water.

The bronze key was heavy and, after looking at the available doors, she saw a keyhole that looked liked it matched. Beaming, she moved across the nearest bridge.

Laughing and humming, Selphie skipped over to the door. The key fit on the first try and Selphie opened the door to the armory. Cooing in delight, she stepped inside and beamed at all the suits of armor and weapons.

At the far end, something that looked like a mummy wrapped in bandages was looking up at her. It was buried to the chin under the floor, with only its hands accompanying its face.

Selphie beamed and waved. “Hi! What's up?”

“ _I am Gargantua,_ ” the GF replied. The voice didn't sound nearly so happy, though it was just as feminine. “ _I am called the Deranged. The Insatiable. The Unhinged._ ”

“How many names do you have?” Selphie laughed at her. “I am called Selphie the....Adorable. Probably.”

“ _You are deluded,_ ” Gargantua told her sadly. “ _You will fight me now._ ”

“But of course! You have my power, don't you?” Selphie laughed. “Let's do this!”

Reaching down into her boots, she yanked out her new Vision. The nunchaku jerked free, spinning around her body. Selphie caught the other end and beamed at her.

“Shall we dance?”

Gargantua placed her large hands against the ground. With a loud groaning, rumbling, the massive GF pulled her torso up from the ground. Wearing a blue and gold tunic over her bandaged body, her large arms swung free. Selphie laughed at her, twisting her nunchaku around in boredom.

“You're silly,” she laughed.

“ _I will devour you! Face my wrath for seeking thy sealed power!_ ”

Screaming, a high pitched, terrifying sort of sound, Gargantua slammed her hand towards Selphie. Who danced out of her way, laughing and carefree.

“That all you got?” Selphie asked, jumping up and away as Gargantua swung her hand around trying to swat Selphie like a fly. “You know, for one of Ultimecia's GF's, I thought you would be better than this! Whoop!”

Giggling almost manically, Selphie jumped up onto one of the suits of armor. As Gargantua reached for her again, Selphie kicked the sword free. She grabbed it with one hand and turned, burying it to the hilt into Gargantua's incoming hand.

Crying out, Gargantua jerked her limb back. The Sword fell, as did Gargantua's green blood. Selphie made a face at it.

“Gross! That's nasty. Don't get any of that on my dress!”

“ _You talk a lot!_ ”

Gargantua reached for her with both hands. Slamming them together like she meant to crush Selphie between them. Selphie jumped forward, barely avoiding the clapping hands. She landed on one of Gargantua's arms and dove down, driving the triple points of her Vision into her arm. She pressed the draw button on the side as she did so.

Gargantua cried out and swiped at her. With a happy 'Whoop!' Selphie threw herself over the arm. She landed on her boots and jumped up again. She hit the release button on her nunchaku and a tiny Odine capsule fell into her hand.

Laughing, she broke it open and laughed in delight when Siren's song joined in her mind again. She replaced the capsule into her Vision and turned to face Gargantua at the other end of the room with a bright smile on her face.

“One down!” She beamed. “Don't worry Carby, Levy, I'm coming for you!”

“ _Your smile is fake._ ”

Selphie blinked at Gargantua like she was confused. Then smiled. “I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about. Siren! Silent Voice!”

The wave of water wasn't anything as powerful as what Leviathan could summon. Gargantua wasn't able to fall under Siren's silence spell, but the water did do damage. Gargantua's bandages soaked in the water and revealed decaying, gray-green skin underneath.

Selphie cringed. “Nasty! You are mega-super-gross! Seriously, keep your weird blood away from me. This is my favorite dress.”

“ _You talk and smile to disguise what lies within you,_ ” Gargantua growled, holding herself aloft with her hands to the ground.

“And what lies within me?” Selphie laughed, balancing her Vision on her shoulder.

“ _Evil. Darkness. You smile and laugh because you're afraid to let anyone see the wretched wickedness that writhes in your soil._ ”

“Hm...” Selphie said thoughtfully. “Doesn't really sound like me...Nope! I'm going with 'wrong'!”

Laughing, Selphie charged in. “Water!”

The bursts of magic damped Gargantua's bandages further, making her squirm and thrash. Selphie got in close and slammed the end of her Vision into Gargantua's torso. She pressed the draw button again and beamed as more magic flowed.

Gargantua reached down and plucked her up. Then threw her back. Selphie cried out in pain when she hit the door to the armory. The wood absorbed some of the force, as did Siren, but Selphie still took a lot of it. Stars danced in her eyes as she hit the ground.

“Owie...” she pouted, rubbing her head.

“ _You sought out the SeeD program because you knew it was the only way you could satisfy your murderous impulses without being hunted yourself. You find thrill and joy in battle that you know others do not. In your heart, you understand Ultimecia's desire to destroy. And it scares you because you think you may be just like her._ ”

Selphie sat up, her legs crossed. She pressed the release on her nunchaku and the glowing Odine capsule fell into her hand. She released Carbuncle from inside and beamed as the sweet little creature joined with Siren.

“One left,” Selphie beamed as they released a curaga spell into her body. Selphie got to her feet, dusting off her dress.

She reloaded her Vision and grinned at Gargantua. “You done talking yet?”

“ _Give into your darkness, Selphie,_ ” Gargantua urged her softly. “ _Join with Ultimecia and find the sweet release of finally fulfilling all of those desires you have. Hunt. Kill. You will find great pleasure in doing so._ ”

Selphie laughed. “You're silly.” She stepped forward, swinging her nunchaku around.

“ _You deny it?_ ” Gargantua asked, her eyes flashing.

“No, not at all,” Selphie beamed brightly. “But there's a big difference between me and Ultimecia. She wants to destroy to be alone. Whereas I want to be surrounded by my friends. Yeah, I enjoy hunting and killing. I can't deny that's part of me. But I joined SeeD so that desire could be carefully controlled. And I surround myself with my friends so I remember there's more to life than death. I'm demented and deranged, but the people I love are not. And I take pleasure in fighting. But I also take pleasure in music and dancing and stealing kisses with Irvine when everything thinks we're just having sex. Maybe I'll teach Ultimecia that there's more than just death and loneliness too.”

Drawing her arm back, Selphie threw her Vision, slamming her thumb against the draw button. The three pronged end drove straight into Gargantua's eye. The enormous GF screamed in pain as Selphie ran to the wall. She grabbed one of the swords off of the rack. As Gargantua clawed at her injured eye, Selphie ran forward.

The end of the sword was driven deep into her heart. Selphie jumped onto the hilt and grabbed her Vision. She jerked it free, pulling out Leviathan's capsule with it. She opened it and let her last GF join with the others. Beaming, she jumped of of Gargantua.

Turning, she reached into her mind. Her eyes burned and bubbled as she took hold of Leviathan's power waiting just for her.

The Sea King. The monolith. The Lord of all Waters. Bringer of the storm and the tidal wave. No match existed for him under the waves. He is Legend, one of the Eight.

“Tsunami!” Selphie yelled loudly.

The crashing, swirling of water withing the armory was far above what Siren was capable of. Filling the room to the ceiling, Selphie floated at the bottom breathing without issue. Gargantua thrashed and twisted as her decayed body was dissolved and destroyed.

Her power exploded outward as she died, absorbing into the water. Selphie continued smiling as Leviathan's water faded away. The only thing that remained of Gargantua was green blood staining the wall where Selphie had pinned her with a sword.

“Excellent work,” Selphie laughed. “Let's get Ultimecia next.”

“Selphie? Is that you?”

She turned as the door opened and Zell poked his head in. He frowned at the dripping wet mess that was the armory.

“Zell!” Selphie beamed, jumping up and down. “Was that you making all that noise before?”

“I guess,” Zell frowned. “I could ask you the same thing.”

Selphie laughed. “Let's go catch up with the others.”

“Yeah,” Zell grinned. “I'm so done with all this dark and gloomy thing.”

“Ugh, me too,” Selphie sighed, racing after him.

***

“HA!” Irvine yelled in victory when, finally, he opened one of the crates and the ones that opened with it led to them all being open. He smirked, stepping back and putting his hands to his waist. That's right! He was the man!

As Irvine celebrated finally opening all the coffin/crate/things, he didn't notice the smoke forming behind him. He didn't realize he was no longer alone until he felt the hot breath of something large on his back.

Grimacing, Irvine turned. The red and black beast behind him looked like a cross between a boar and a bull. His large horns, black as obsidian and streaked with bright red like lava, were pointed nearly directly at Irvine. He could see, just under a mane of black fur, piercing red eyes that looked at Irvine with something like derision.

“ _I am Catoblepas._ ”

“Gesundheit,” Irvine said pleasantly.

“ _I am the One Who Remembers._ ”

“Eh, I'm not impressed. How about the Great Horny One! Get it? Hehehe...” Irvine grinned as he pulled his Exeter from his coat and notched it against his shoulder. “So are we doing this?”

“ _I contain the complete history of Ultimecia's rise to power._ ”

Irvine frowned, the barrel lowering slightly. “You know how she got here? How she destroyed the world?”

“ _I do._ ”

“Then how!?” Irvine asked quickly. “Tell me!”

Catoblepas said nothing for a moment. Then, with a toss of his head, he roared. “ _Face my wrath for seeking thy sealed power!_ ”

“You gotta be-WOH!”

Irvine barely dodged in time to avoid being speared by the large horns. The wall behind him wasn't so lucky. Stone and wood crashed down as Catoblepas gouged out a hole into it. The enormous beast stepped back and looked to Irvine.

“ _You make many jokes. To hide the weakness within._ ”

“Stronger than you,” Irvine assured him, raising his gun.

The pulse ammo that Laguna had given him was a great deal more powerful than even the AP ammo Squall had taught him how to make. It almost exploded on impact, carving out large chunks of whatever it hit. Catoblepas was no different. The single shot exploded against his shoulder, dark red blood spilled down his arm.

“ _You would kill me? You will lose the history that I hold,_ ” Catoblepas warned.

Irvine shrugged. “Won't be the first past that I forget. Doesn't really matter either, since we're going to keep Ultimecia from taking the future.”

“ _Do you not wish to know?_ ”

Irvine let off another shut. This one burst against Catoblepas's horn. Pieces of the obsidian colored bone peppered the ground.

“I wish you to return our power. That's all I want from you.”

Catoblepas swept his large horns around. Irvine dropped and rolled to avoid being struck. He came up to his feet again and let out three more shots against Catoblepas's other side. The large beast roared in pain when one of the shots hit his chest. He came up, then crashed back down. Irvine cried out as the ground bucked under his feet.

“ _Her story begins years ago,_ ” Catoblepas started, charging for Irvine as he lay, helpless, on his back.

Irvine jerked up his Exeter and shot Catoblepas on the forehead. He started bleeding but he kept coming forward.

The horns crashed into the ground on either side of him. Hot breath filled Irvine's lungs and face as Catoblepas's bright white fangs flashed over his head.

“ _When he died, she couldn't handle it. She began gathering power to bring him back. She was attacked for that power. So she began destroying everyone who dared fight against her._ ”

Irvine pulled up his gun. Capturing Catoblepas's teeth before they could sink into his torso. Irvine kicked up, slamming his foot into Catoblepas's mouth. Hot blood hit his leg as he broke the delicate skin of the muzzle.

Irvine jerked to the side. He slammed the butt of his gun into the ground, aiming up. He shot out, the blast of pulse ammo throwing Catoblepas off of him.

Irvine got to his feet, grunting in pain. He pulled up his gun and took aim. Catoblepas shook his large head, sending droplets of blood flying. The large beast looked back to him, continuing his story without pause.

“ _She continued fighting as the world turned against her. It wasn't important. All that mattered anymore was the mission. The rest of the world could die so long as she was successful._ ”

Irvine took aim at his face. The pulse ammo was large powerful enough. Catoblepas knew that. He gazed at Irvine calmly, not trying to attack again.

“ _Time passed. Years changed her. Changed the world. The obsession never faded, but the memories did. Time must be destroyed so it can be made right. All must be destroyed so it can be made right._ ”

“You first.”

The blast to his face seemed to shatter all of Catoblepas. The GF exploded in a massive burst of rock and stone. Irvine was caught up in it, but it only hurt a moment. As the Brothers, Cactuar, and Tonberry joined into his mind again, the pain faded away.

Irvine let out a long breath, pushing himself back to his feet. He dusted off his jacket, straightened his hat. He didn't care about Ultimecia's story. All that mattered was her death so that everything could be fixed in their time.

The door had been blown open with Catoblepas's death. Irvine ran out into the moonlit hall and looked left and right before sprinting left.

***

Rinoa frowned as she moved around the upper story of the gallery. She didn't know why, but this room was strangely...comforting. Eerily comforting. Not quite like it was soothing, more like this was a place that she was meant to be walking in. But that didn't take away from how creepy and unusual the candlelit room was.

It was the only room in the castle so brightly lit. The only one filled with color. The paintings on the wall surrounding her were set in gilded frames. As she moved around, she took in each color and splash of paint against the cloth of the canvas.

Had Ultimecia painted these? Or was she merely a collector? Whatever the answer, it remained that Ultimecia had strange taste in paintings.

Apparently, Rinoa shared that same taste. Each painting captured her eyes. While she wouldn't call them all beautiful, she found herself drawn to each one. All of them were titled in ancient Centran, but she still could somehow tell what each one meant.

Ignus. Burning fire. Obsession and passion. Bright, bold colors. Splashed against the canvas almost angrily. It was all consuming and had a stranglehold over her just by gazing at it.

Vividarium. The second brightest painting in the room. Depicting a beautiful garden, like a paradise. It was lovely and sweeping. And lonely and sad. Filled with yearning.

Inaudax. A man cowering as his friends were killed by winged demons. For some reason, Rinoa felt the most related to the cowering man.

Viator. A large bird carrying a missive. A message. Desperate and seeking. A cry for help that Rinoa somehow knew wasn't going to reach the recipient.

Xerampelinae. A woman in red clothes. She wore a golden circlet crown over her dark brown hair, she looked out into the room. It was frightening to Rinoa, because she almost reminded her of something, but distorted. Like the painter only partially knew what she looked like.

Iudicium. A winged creature casting judgment over the dead sprawled out before her. Angry, dark, and, more than anything, bitter.

Xystus. A lone rider on a chocobo down a tree lined path. He looked to be fleeing. Rinoa knew that there was something chasing after him. Hunting him down.

Vigil. Three men keeping watch with the light from their lanterns. It was eerie. Not like they were guarding something, more like they were waiting for death to come.

Inandantia. Flood waters cascading down from high above. Sweeping all of the dirt and debris that threatened to coat the land. Though, individually each color was calming and cool, somehow the painting was angry and disturbed.

Xiphius. A swordfish. Surrounded by yellow and blue light. It almost looked like it could possibly be swimming. Rinoa knew that it was dead. Steamed and about to be served as food. 

Intervigilium. A creature, almost like a monster, sleeping against a gnarled tree. It wasn't quite sleepy, it was exhausted. Bone tired. Like someone laying down after working for far too long.

And Venus. Bright pink and exploding colors. It was the only painting in the room that Rinoa really, truly liked. Beautiful, bright, and happy. Somehow...sad...Longing. Just looking at it nearly brought tears to her eyes.

Rinoa spent the longest time gazing at that painting. Drinking it in.

***

Squall looked between the two staircases available to him. Both broken. Both a little too high off the ground to safely jump. Well, maybe not. He could probably make it.

He was honestly just thinking about running across the low chandelier. From this height, he didn't doubt that he could make it to the other landing directly across. He was only worried about it being able to take his weight. The chandelier was massive, but it looked to be hanging onto the ceiling only barely. He would hate to start crossing only to end up crashing to the ground.

Of course, there was still the door directly behind him.

Squall turned again and faced the double doors. The steady stream of cold air coming in from outside wasn't just chilly. It was downright freezing. 

Squall had a good idea that there was a guardian behind that door. He didn't know that he was willing to face it yet. Not until he knew that Rinoa was safe.

He had heard her on the communicator, of course, but he wanted her by his side. Without their connection, something he had come to depend on, he felt lost and directionless.

At this point though, he might not have a choice but to face the GF behind the door. If the cold was any indication, he imagined he knew who's power this GF possessed. If he got his power back, it would make finding Rinoa easier.

“Okay.” Squall rotated his shoulders then reached for the door handles.

He swung the double doors open at the same time. The blast of cold air beat at his face like spears of ice. Squall stepped out onto a terrace looking out towards a broken hallway. As Squall walked through, the doors shut closed behind him.

The ice guardian floating at the end of the terrace turned away from the tallest tower in the distance to face him slowly. He had one large arm, a thin face, and gleaming black eyes.

“ _I am Krysta, the Fallen,_ ” he introduced himself formally. His rigid, almost robotic voice echoed hollowly in the freezing cold air.

“Squall,” he nodded back to him. “Are you going to fight me?”

“ _If you force me. I will fight as she commands me._ ”

“Why do you obey her will?”

“ _I must. I am hers to command. Such is the price to be a GF. We no longer have free will._ ”

Squall frowned. “What do you mean 'no longer'? Did you have free will once?”

“ _All humans have free will._ ”

“You are not human though.”

“ _Not any longer. We are her GF now. As she made us to be._ ”

Squall shook his head, confused. “I don't understand.”

“ _I don't imagine you do. This is magic beyond your understanding. Will you face my wrath to seek your sealed power?_ ”

Squall looked at him confidently, grabbing his sword. “If I must. I don't mind killing you.”

“ _I know you don't, blood bringer. You are as cold and heartless as myself. You and I are made of the same cloth. She loved me once, too. What makes you believe that she'll keep loving you?_ ”

“Shut up,” Squall told him simply.

He raised his blade and struck downwards. Krysta died easily under his slash. Shattering with an explosion of ice and snow. Squall felt Shiva and Bahamut join with him again. The snow swirled around him, Krysta's body scattering in the wind.

“ _She loved me once, too..._ ” His voice whispered as he faded away.

***

After a long while, Rinoa finally stepped away from the Venus painting. It was done regretfully. She really loved that painting. She almost wanted to take it from the wall and keep it with. It called to her, beckoning her forward.

But she had orders from Squall. She needed to find the guardian around her. For some reason, her eyes kept moving to the large painting on the biggest wall. The only one who's name was hidden. Dark and desolate, it wasn't like the others.

It looked like it had been covered with dust, smudged and unclear. Covering the painting itself like the name written on the frame. It was dark and distorted. The clouds in the sky cradling something strange, almost like Ultimecia's castle. Over the crumbling ruins next to the sea.

Was this painting Ultimecia's castle? Why would she smudge and destroy it?

Rinoa reached out and began wiping away at the title card. As she cleaned away the words, she was so focused that she didn't notice the painting was clearing away with it.

Vividarium.

She knew that word. It was written on the painting on the beautiful garden.

Intervigilium. The sleeping monster.

Viator. The messenger.

“Vividarium et Intervigilium et Viator,” Rinoa read softly. Putting them together, it would be...“In the Garden Sleeps a Messenger.”

Her eyes moved up and she somehow wasn't surprised to see that the painting was clear now. The clouds cradling the castle shape were gone. It was a clear picture of a stone building at the end of a cape. A familiar, beautiful image that felt very much like home.

Rinoa reached out and touched the paint gently. She heard something large moving behind her, but she didn't bother to turn to face the guardian that she knew had appeared.

The painting was taking all of her mind. Beautiful. Longing. Loving. Obsessed. It was a painting of everything she wanted. Everything she didn't have. Rinoa could feel that easily. Like it was her own feelings coming to her through the painting.

“ _I am called Trauma,_ ” the GF behind her said.

Rinoa's hand trailed gently down the image.

“ _I am the Destroyed Dreamer. Fight me._ ”

Rinoa finally turned, slowly and without fear. She faced the large, golden knight that had appeared in the center of the room.

“I don't want to fight you,” Rinoa said softly. “You don't want to fight me either.”

“ _What I want doesn't matter. My lady commands me to fight. So I must. If I want peace._ ”

“You cannot fight to obtain peace,” Rinoa said calmly. “If you want peace of mind, that must come from you. It can't be given to you.”

“ _I know that. It's too late now. I no longer have the choice. Fight me. End me. End my fight._ ”

Rinoa pressed the release on her Star. The feathers burst out from her blaster. She took aim but she knew that Trauma wouldn't allow her to hit him. He was still being commanded to fight. He had no choice but to face her.

Rinoa shot and the edge flew wide. Trauma barely moved to escape. Rinoa didn't flinch. The Star twisted in the air, drawn backwards by the magitech in the blaster. On the return, the sharp feathers sliced across Trauma's shoulder piece. The shrieking of ripping metal echoed as the armor was shredded by the razor sharp weapon.

She caught the edge and ran to the side as Trauma started shooting at her from his hands. She moved around as two smaller bots came off of him. Little obedient fighters that served him. They burst out and floated around her. Always willing to fight for him, she heard the pair whispering but she didn't understand what they were saying.

Rinoa turned, shooting her star. The mini-drones shot at her in return. Rinoa ducked out the way, her duster flaring up as she rolled away.

The Shooting Star cut through one drone easily. Trauma let out a cry of despair. As it returned, the Star cut through the second one. Trauma screamed in pain. He couldn't help it. He knew they would die, but that didn't lessen the pain of losing them.

His hands moved outside of his will, aiming for her. Rinoa ducked under his legs, running up the stairs to the second level. Gunshots peppered the ground where her feet had just hit. Rinoa ran around the second floor. Trauma followed, shooting for her.

She lifted her arm as she ran and shot out.

The Star buried itself deep into Trauma's chest. Spinning, carving through its heart. Trauma let out a cry of pain as he fell backwards. Rinoa ducked behind a wall, cowering in a corner by a painting. The explosion of energy still burned along her skin.

Diablos cried her name as he joined with her. The other didn't, but the other GF didn't speak much. She hadn't even introduced herself yet. Which Rinoa thought was fine. She was fine just holding onto her, allowing her to heal with time.

The two of them blocked the remaining explosion of energy from hurting her. Neither of them could prevent the paintings from being razed to ash. Rinoa felt tears pricking her eyes at their loss. She didn't want to see them go.

Venus was gone. Rinoa closed her eyes and the tears fell out.

The explosion faded and Rinoa sniffed. She frowned when she realized that only her GF had returned to her. She still couldn't feel her connection to Squall. That was still blocked from her. Worried, she began walking back around the gallery towards the first floor.

Her full power wasn't back. So did that mean there was another GF to kill? Frowning, Rinoa ran through one of the doors and out into the palace. She wasn't surprised to find it unlocked now. Of course it was. Trauma was dead.

***

“Rinoa!”

She was so focused on running up the long spiral staircase leading up to the top of the large clock tower that Rinoa didn't hear anyone coming up behind her until they called out her name. The familiar voice, filled with relief, made her heart drop. She turned quickly on the step, breathing hard from the run up, and her eyes lit up to see Squall rushing towards her.

“Squall!” She yelled, reaching out her arms.

She didn't have time to take a step before Squall was there, wrapping his arms around her. Laughing, feeling like a great weight was lifting from her, Rinoa clung to his neck as he squeezed her tight. She started kissing the side of his face, happy to have him back.

They still couldn't feel each other, their bond was still blocked, but it didn't matter. The only important thing was that they were holding onto one another at last. In this creepy, deserted castle, just having each other was enough.

The giant pendulum of the clock moved determinedly back and forth as Squall drew back. Just enough so that Rinoa's frantic kisses moved across his cheek and landed on his lips. His fingers dug into her skin just a bit as he pulled her tighter against his chest.

“Are you okay?” She asked desperately.

“Yes,” he assured her, kissing her back just as eagerly. “You? Are you hurt?”

Rinoa shook her head, finally leaning away. She beamed, touching his face gently. She kind of missed him being cold, but it was nice feeling the warmth of his body all the time instead. 

“Have you seen the others?”

She shrugged a bit. “I thought I saw Irvine running up these stairs earlier, but he didn't hear me when I called for him. So I've been going up myself. I feel like Ultimecia will be in the tallest tower. What better place for an egomaniacal bad guy?”

“Why didn't you call him on the communicator?”

Rinoa opened her mouth, hesitated, then smiled sheepishly. “I didn't think of that. I'm really not used to being able to call people whenever. That's such a weird thing.”

Squall nodded as he reached into his jacket pocket. He pulled out his communicator and called the others with the push of a button.

“Where are you all?” He asked.

Rinoa took that moment to rest from the constant climbing, looking around to take in the scenery, such that it was.

Hm? Was that an open archway?

“ _I think I found Ultimecia's room,_ ” came Quistis's reply. “ _There's this double door on the highest tower. There's candles burning beside it. Zell and Selphie are with me._ ”

“ _I'm almost there myself,_ ” Irvine's voice called out. “ _At the top of this exhausting staircase, right?_ ”

“ _Yeah, that's how we got here._ ”

“All right,” Squall said into the device. “Rinoa and I are on the stairs, we'll be up there soon. No one goes into the room until we all get there. Understand?”

“ _Yes, sir!_ ” Came the four voiced reply.

Squall nodded, hung up, then slipped his communicator back into his jacket. “I suppose that's that then. We're almost there.”

“Yeah,” Rinoa frowned. “But...Something's still missing.”

Squall looked away from her. “Yeah. Do you have your magic back?”

Rinoa nodded, summoning a short breeze to demonstrate her point. “It's just our bond that's gone.”

Squall wanted to say they could do without it. In the scheme of a battle, it wasn't really necessary. In fact, Squall could probably focus better without needing to feel her emotions and thoughts. He knew that intellectually.

But he felt like he was off balance without it. He hadn't had the bond for very long, but already he was beginning to wonder how he had ever lived without her. With Rinoa's heart barred to him, he felt honestly like he was missing his own heart. It's beat was hollow and meaningless in his chest. He needed that piece of her to feel whole.

“There must be another GF around here,” Squall said.

“Where? My GF was right where I woke up.”

“Mine as well.”

“Then where is this one?”

Squall frowned, uncertain. All the GF before had been right there. This one wasn't though. None of them had tried to hide, so where was the final creature?

“Squall,” Rinoa's hand on his shoulder caught his attention. She wasn't looking at him though, she was looking through the archway across the pendulum.

“What is it?” He asked, looking as well.

“I thought I saw...Something passed by the archway just now.”

“What did it look like?”

“I don't know. It was too fast. It was dark though.” Well, wasn't dark around here?

Squall looked to the doorway, frowning. It wasn't quite directly across from them. It was slightly higher up. As though it was a landing on the spiral staircase. But all the steps leading to and away from it were broken and gone. The staircase they were on missed it completely thanks to a couple of wooden planks that had been placed between the end of the broken path and connecting above the door.

They couldn't reach it at all. The only way to go across would be to fly.

The pendulum rocking between the staircase and the door caught his eyes. He followed the movement for a few ticks with a frown.

“Squall?” Rinoa tilted her head curiously.

“Let's jump on the pendulum,” Squall told her, walking to the edge.

“Let's what on the what?!” Rinoa shook her head as though his voice had been garbled. “Squall, you can't-AH!”

She reached out but wasn't quick enough to stop him from jumping onto the pendulum. He held onto the shaft, his feet on the disc, as he rode it across. At the apex of the swing, he jumped off and slightly up, grabbing onto the edge of the landing. He pulling himself up in one smooth move and turned, facing her coolly.

“Come on,” he gestured his head.

“Are you crazy!?” Rinoa let out a long breath, holding her heart. “You could have fallen.”

“You had me hanging off the side of a moving train the first time we met,” Squall reminded her, one eyebrow going up.

“Yeah, I know, but...” Rinoa looked at the pendulum, a bit concerned about making the jump herself.

“You don't have to come. I can check it out myself. Just wait right there for me.”

“No!” She frowned at him. “Don't leave me again!”

Squall nodded once, accepting her demand. Rinoa's face heated as she took a breath. Grumbling about him asking the impossible, Rinoa moved as close to the wall as she could.

Turning back, she got ready to run. Her eyes tracked the pendulum carefully. She let out a long breath and, as it was swinging back, sprinted forward. She only had enough room to take two steps but that was enough to pick up speed.

Letting out a cry of effort, Rinoa jumped out onto the pendulum. Her body slammed into the shaft, her feet finding quick purchase. The enormous metal thing was so big her weight didn't even jar it. It kept on swinging back then forth.

As it was coming up, Rinoa pulled back and jumped up. Her fingers found purchase on the edge of the landing, her feet swinging down over the far drop. She repeatedly told herself not to look down as she started lifting up her body.

She didn't need to do it alone though. Squall reached down, taking her by the arms. He helped lift her up and over the side. Rinoa cry of fear escaped as she held onto him. Squall grinned wryly as he helped her onto her feet again.

“That wasn't so bad, now was it?”

“I'm so sorry for making you go down the side of a moving train,” Rinoa said, holding him tight. “If I ever ask you to do that much again, just remind me about this.”

Squall chuckled, rubbing the small of her back. “Come on, let's go check out what you saw.”

Rinoa nodded and let go. She followed him out through the archway.

The balcony outside had survived as well as the stairs leading to it. What remained of the large stone area was crumbling and unsteady. Squall frowned around at the broken area. There were holes where he could see straight down.

He was just about to tell Rinoa that they should go back inside, that this platform wasn't nearly steady enough for his liking, when he spotted something flying out of the corner of his eye.

Squall turned quickly but he just missed the black thing shooting behind the tower.

“What was that?” Rinoa asked, her hand tightened on his jacket.

Squall turned again, looking to the other side. It only took a moment for the thing to circle around the tower and fly back around to the balcony. As Squall watched, the enormous dragon twisted in the air directly in front of them. It's large, leathery black wings snapped open as it faced them. Burning blue eyes, bronze scales, and dark blue wings. It almost looked like Bahamut.

“ _I am Tiamat, The King,_ ” he told them, his voice rumbling over the sound of his wings. He almost sounded like he was grinning at them.

“Are you the last one?” Squall asked, drawing his Lion Heart from his belt. “Do you hold the last of our power?”

“ _I do. Are you going to kill me to get it back?_ ”

“Tell me something first,” Squall started. “What was the point of all this? If she wanted to keep our power from us, why allow us to find you at all?”

Tiamat chuckled. “ _You're smart. I told her that you would see through us. She insisted that this was the best way._ ”

“Do any of you talk in anything but riddles?” Squall growled.

“ _You need not know anything but this: If you don't kill us, all of us, then you cannot kill her. And she will destroy everything if you do not kill her._ ”

“Good enough,” Squall raised his blade.

“Wait,” Rinoa held out her hand. She frowned at Tiamat. “The way you're phrasing it...It almost sounds like she wants us to kill her.”

Tiamat chuckled, raising in the air. “ _Face my wrath for seeking thy sealed power!_ ”

He dived for them. Rinoa raised her Star, letting out a quick shot. The metal of the feather blades sparked off of Tiamat's armor. Rinoa cried out, ducking down. Squall met the giant dragon without fear, striking his Heart up through Tiamat's chest.

The dragon roared as the adamantite pierced the metal-like scales. He quickly pumped his wings, gaining air again. Rinoa recalled her Star. Pushing her magic into it, she launched the Star again. It sparked against Tiamat's neck, the blade unable to cut through.

The blind spell bound to it sunk in easily though. Tiamat roared as his eyes darkened. Unable to see, the dragon twisted in the air.

“Rinoa, throw me!” Squall ordered, charging forward.

Rinoa cast her magic out quickly. The powerful aero spell caught him as he jumped from the ledge, trusting her implicitly. The gust of wind launched him up into the air. He landed neatly on Tiamat's back, his Heart practically glowing against the night sky.

Twisting it, he slammed it down. Tiamat screamed out of the sky. His heavy body slammed into the crumbling platform of the balcony. Stone cracked and dropped. Rinoa fell forward, crying out in surprise.

Both humans froze as the stone continued to rumble and shake. They didn't move until it settled down again and didn't fall out from under them.

Rinoa let out a short breath of relief. Squall slid down from Tiamat's back. His weight hitting the stone didn't make it crack again, but he wanted to kill Tiamat quickly and get off of this thing.

He turned to do exactly that. Tiamat had lifted his head, his blind darkened eyes didn't need to see them. From where he had crashed, drawing in a deep breath, he started drawing in power.

Look out!

Bahamut's scream of warning had him moving.

Mega Flare met Tiamat's Dark Flare at the same moment.

The explosion of opposite energies was far more powerful than each individual attack. Squall thought he heard something like a sigh of relief. But it was hard to tell over the cracking, crumbling of stone as the balcony shattered under the explosion.

And Rinoa's fear in his heart as her scream ripped through the air.

Gravity took hold of Squall as the balcony began falling. His stomach dropped as his body began falling with the balcony itself. He was falling alongside the stones and there was nothing he could do. He was too far from the doorway to attempt to return.

“Squall!”

Her voice cried out over the sound of crashing rock. Squall's eyes moved up to the star speckled sky and wondered if he was going to die like this. Not in battle, with honor as he had always assumed, but just a long fall.

The flash of light in his eyes didn't seem real at first. Rinoa's hand reached out and took hold of his. He blinked, unsure of what he was seeing.

Rinoa cried out as the full weight of Squall's body fell on her arm. Diablos reached out, taking the majority of the weight off of her. The stones crashed down to the castle below. The dust of the breaking building fell with it. And as the dust settled, the golden white wings on Rinoa's back shone bright as the sun over the land.

“Rinoa...” Squall whispered.

Face clenched in effort, Rinoa's golden wings beat at the air. She lifted him up, pulling him away from the death drop. She brought him to the broken archway of the tower. Squall's feet hit the stone, his eyes still locked on her.

The moment his weight was off of her, her golden wings winked out of existence. Her body fell, exhausted. Squall caught her neatly, cradling her to his chest.

“What was that?” He asked, baffled.

“Sorry...” Rinoa panted slightly, her head in the crook of his neck. “It was the first thing I thought about and then it just sort of...happened.”

Squall smiled gently and kissed her forehead. “You saved my life. Thank you.”

Rinoa smiled. “I can walk, you can put me down.”

“You're sure?”

“Yeah. I think I just surprised myself.”

Squall nodded and lowered her down to the ground. Rinoa took her weight easily and beamed back at him. She threw her arms around his neck, grateful he was okay.

“Was that it?” She asked hopefully. “The last GF?”

Squall nodded. “Yeah. I can feel it too.”

Their bond was back and Squall felt whole again. That left just the one thing.

“Let's go kill her,” Squall said, touching Rinoa's face gently.

“So we can go home?” Rinoa beamed.

Squall nodded. “I kind of feel...homesick.”

She laughed gently. “Yeah, me too. My tiny guest dorm back at garden sounds like paradise right now.”

“I was thinking actually that I might want to move up to the third floor. I am commander, after all. Seems only fitting.”

“I've always said so. But I thought you were okay in your dorm? What changed?”

“Well, I'm a little fed up with people walking in whenever they want,” Squall admitted, turning to the swinging pendulum. He smirked. “And the walls aren't soundproof.”

Rinoa gasped, her face flushing as he sprinted across the landing. He landed on the pendulum and rode it neatly back across to the stairs. He jumped and alighted neatly on the other side and turned, rising up to face her calmly. She knew that he didn't mean to strike a pose, but that's almost exactly what it looked like.

Laughing, she raced towards the edge. She didn't jump on the pendulum though. She threw herself into the air. The golden wings on her back burst back into life with a mere force of will. One flap carried her over the gap and she threw herself into Squall's arms.

She kissed him eagerly, smiling as she did so. Squall chuckled, holding her sweetly.

“I really want to go home now,” she finally said, leaning back.

“Then let's hurry up and kill this lady already,” he said calmly.

They continued running up the steps. Rinoa almost felt energized when she got to thinking about everything waiting for her when she got home. There would be trouble, she wasn't stupid. She was the last sorceress on Gaia. But she would be with Squall, and that's all that mattered.

The others were all waiting for them, debating going down the tower themselves, when they reached the top. Squall had to explain the last GF and what had exploded before they could continue on. He frowned at the double doors leading to Ultimecia's room.

“So I guess...we just go in...” Zell frowned, looking to the others.

“This is really it. Isn't it?” Rinoa let out a long breath.

“Remember your training everyone,” Quistis told them, the leather of her gloves creaking as she tightened her hands into fists. “Teamwork. Follow Squall's orders precisely.”

“Thanks, Squall,” Selphie beamed at him.

“For what?” He raised his eyebrow at her.

“For taking me along. For letting me get my revenge. It means a lot to me.”

Squall shrugged. “You're hardly the only one to want revenge.”

Irvine put a hand on Selphie shoulder, smiling at her. “Let's do this already. I want to go home and sleep for a week.”

Squall was inclined to agree. “Irvine, as SeeD commander, I've decided to make this your SeeD exam.”

“Say what?!” He looked surprised. “You can't spring it on me like that!”

“What's the problem? You've already taken the written exam.”

“Who told you?”

“I graded it, no one had to tell me anything. And your SeeD exam can occur anytime after that.”

“Good luck, Irvine,” Zell grinned at him. “You've only got four SeeDs grading you.”

“You'll do fine, Irvy,” Selphie laughed at him.

“Man,” Irvine adjusted his hat. “Whatever. If we lose everything is lost anyway.”

Rinoa laughed, putting her hand on Squall's arm. That was exactly why Squall was making this his exam. This was it. They may as well make it all it was worth.

Squall took the first step forward. One hand to his Lion Heart, icicles in his hair and holy fire in his eyes. Rinoa was half a step behind him, her hair swirling almost weightlessly around her head.

The others were right there along with them. Irvine adjusted his hat, the stone cracking under each of his steps. Selphie was right next to him, laughing melodically as light seemed to shine from within her eyes. Across from them, Zell's fists were smoking, his knuckles burning like embers. Quistis's hair sparked, a breeze rustling around her skirt.

Squall took the handle on one door. Rinoa grabbed the other one. They threw the doors open. The wood slammed against the marble walls. Golden columns, darkened by the pale blue light coming up from below, reached into the sky. The glass roof overhead gave a breathtaking view of the moon and stars. In the center of the room, a golden throne was held high off the ground on a pedestal. Wings of light came from the sides, highlighting the only occupant.

Seated confidently on the throne, her eyes closed and her chest moving gently as though she were sleeping, Ultimecia didn't even flinch at the sound of the doors being thrown open. They stepped forward. The gentle footsteps stirred her.

Golden eyes, somehow familiar, looked down on them from a beautiful face covered in pale white make up and decorated with black lines from the edge of her long, silver hair. Her legs were crossed, the skin there black, blue, and purple like an angry bruise. Her feet were totally bare. The red dress she was wrapped in opened at the front revealing a smooth, tight body.

The look on her face was tranquil for a moment. A very brief moment. Then her face drew together into an ugly sneer. She looked down on them, haughty and bitter.

“SeeD...” She whispered. “...SeeD....SeeD...SeeD. SeeD, SeeD! Kurse all SeeDs!”

Her fists, tipped in obsidian claws from her dress, slammed against the arms of her thrones. The strange accent she was using sounded...odd.

They stepped down below her, looking up at her without fear.

“Swarming like lokusts akross generations. You disgust me.”

“You're not exactly our favorite person either,” Squall said calmly. “You die tonight, Ultimecia.”

She didn't even hesitate, continuing with her rant. “The world is finally on the brink of that ever-elusive time kompression. I won't let you undo all my hard work.”

“And we won't let you destroy our world!” Rinoa growled, unfolding her Star from her blaster.

“Insolent fools!” Ultimecia growled, getting to her feet. “Your vain krusade ends here, SeeDs. The price for your meddling is death beyond death. I shall send you to a dimension beyond your imagining. There, I will reign, and you will be my slaves for eternity!” She laughed maniacally.

Rinoa frowned. Wait, was she going to kill them or enslave them? Her speech was confusing. Like she was just talking without really listening to what she said.

What was with this woman? Why did all of this feel so...hollow?

Ultimecia's claws glinted in the air. “Prepare to die!”

Black wings with sharp, wicked feathers erupted form her back. Laughing, she launched herself from her podium. One hand drew back, she struck for Squall's heart.

Lion Heart shined in the light as he drew it quickly from the sheath. He caught Ultimecia's claws against his sword.

And his boots scraped against the floor as the power of her strike pushed him back.

“Get off him!” Rinoa swung her arm up and around without shooting her Star. That didn't lesson the edge as she struck, club style with it.

Ultimecia pushed herself up and away. Quistis struck out, wrapping her whip around Ultimecia's ankles. She twisted her wrist sending lightning streaming down the body. Ultimecia laughed as the lightning absorbed into her body.

“Do better!” She laughed. She reached down and grabbed the whip.

Quistis gasped as Ultimecia used her own whip to fling her up and away. Irvine stepped forward, letting out a quick shot as Selphie and Zell charged at the same time. Ultimecia caught the bullet against a shield. Ducked Zell's fist. Grabbed his wrist, ignoring the fire of his gauntlets. She threw him bodily into the approaching Selphie.

The two cried out as they rolled away.

Rinoa lifted her Star, shooting out at her. Ultimecia caught the weapon in midair and used it to block the strike Squall aimed for her torso. She grinned as they found themselves staring face to face. Squall was surprised to find that she was just a bit shorter than him. He kind of felt like his mortal enemy shouldn't be short.

“You're so handsome,” Ultimecia cooed, her claws touching for his face.

Squall drew back quickly, anticipating her spearing him with them. He kicked out and Ultimecia dodged easily. He pulled Rinoa's Star with him though and Rinoa recalled the weapon. She quickly began placing her magic all along the different feathers, charging it.

Meanwhile, Squall was striking towards Ultimecia. She deflected each blow with her claws. Under the black of her gloves, Squall knew they must be adamantine like his blade. No other substance would be able to handle abuse from adamantine other than itself.

“Squall, get back!” Rinoa warned, taking aim.

Kicking out, knocking Ultimecia aside, he turned and sprinted out of the way. He turned with the others to see Ultimecia turn to face Rinoa nearly on her own.

Ultimecia grinned at her weapon. “Are you sure you can face me on your own?”

“I don't have to,” Rinoa grinned. “But yes.” She fired.

The combination of all the magic into one ultimate spell was no less powerful the second time. As the Star raced towards Ultimecia, expelling trails of light, Rinoa reached out with her magic to protect her friends again. Ultimecia caught the Star in her hands.

The magic, altogether, silently exploded in a breathtaking, sound canceling rush of energy. Squall knew that if Rinoa wasn't shielding them all from it, none of them would have survived the blast. The radius of power expanded outward, exploding some of the support columns, knocking Ultimecia's throne down completely, cracking the marble walls and floor.

Rinoa recalled the Star and it returned easily.

The magic faded and Ultimecia stood at ground zero. For just a moment.

Then, groaning, she collapsed forward. Clutching for her chest, breathing heavily, as blood from some unseen source splattered against the ground.

“Nice work,” Squall grinned at Rinoa.

She flushed in pleasure.

Ultimecia lifted her head, smirking. “Don't celebrate yet. You have not seen true power.”

Her eyes turned silvery gray, like clouds were bursting into her eyes.

“I will show you...the most powerful GF...”

“Ah!” Zell cried out as the ground began bucking. The others struggled to maintain their balance as the castle began crumbling around them.

No, as the very earth began crumbling around them. Falling apart, leaving nothing behind but a dead strip of land that the SeeDs stood upon in the middle of brown, swirling clouds that rushed all around them. The air sparked with energy. The hairs on the back of Squall's neck stood up as he feared that energy with a sort of primal instinct.

Off of the platform of land, holding onto her bleeding chest, Ultimecia swept out her hand. “You shall... _suffer_...”

Lowering her hand to them, Squall tensed, ready for the GF magic to hit them.

“Griever!” Ultimecia screamed, her hand glowing with magic power. “Come to me! Make them bleed!”

You couldn't see someone else's GF. They existed only in their own head. You could only see the manifestation of their power in the physical world.

So when the enormous beast descended from the air without any real flair at all, all the SeeDs stared in confusion. Because that just wasn't possible.

Except from a sorceress's hands.

The large monster before them, as tall as a building, looked almost like-

“A winged lion,” Rinoa breathed. “Squall, it's...Griever...”

Reaching up with numb fingers for his pendnat, Squall shoot his head. No. It was just a silly silver piece that he had named on a lark.

The impossibly large GF before him was no joke. Dark grayish-blue fur was covered in crossing red lines with a silvery blue mane extending from the distinctive muzzled face of what was undoubtedly a lion. Albeit a lion with enormous red horns, five of them, extending from its head and large wings with silvery blue feathers. Bright red, almost pulsing red claws tipped its hind and front paws, such as they were. The lion-like GF was bipedal, standing straight up even as it flew in front of them, staring down with calm, bright silver eyes.

As they watched, the GF reached out his large hand. Ultimecia, tired and injured sank down into his palm, her black wings resting.

“You know what to do, my pet,” Ultimecia told him.

Griever looked down at them. Squall frowned as he met the beast's eyes.

What was...

Why did Squall feel like he knew him?

Focus, master! Bahamut roared in his ear.

Squall struck first. Reaching into his head, his eyes blazed white as he summoned out Bahamut's power.

“Mega Flare!”

Griever's wings closed over himself, over Ultimecia, as the power burst out. The flare burst against the feathers, burning at the vanes. Griever snapped his wings open, brushing off the attack. The magic was swept away with the action, as though it meant nothing. The king of dragons, the king of GF, his attack couldn't touch this one.

“No fear, baby!” Zell yelled, charging forward.

“Zell, stop!” Squall yelled reaching out for him.

Too late. Zell punched down, launching himself into the air. Yelling out a jubilant battle cry, his flaming fist aimed for Griever's face.

Griever didn't flinch. As Zell approached, her lifted his free paw. His ruby claws glowed. Zell couldn't stop. He laughed, punching for Griever's fist. The blast lifted him up and over. His foot started burning as he came towards the GF's face.

At the last second, Griever's jaw opened and he took Zell into his fangs.

Zell screamed as teeth dug cruelly into his chest, his thighs. He beat at Griever's teeth from inside and out, but the GF didn't let up his hold.

Below Rinoa screamed. Without thinking, she threw out her magic. Her only thought was to get Zell _out of there_.

Her magic responded exactly.

Zell burst into light. Griever's jaw snapped closed as his body escaped. The light flowed up and away, taking Zell with it.

Rinoa started crying, hot guilt flooding her veins.

“What did you do?” Squall asked. Did he just watch Zell...die?

“I'm sorry!” She cried, shaking. “I-I just thought he had to get out. I think I...I pushed him back into time. I-I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. He's gone.”

“He's dead?” Selphie looked at her wide eyed.

Rinoa shook her head. “No, I can still...I _feel_ him. He's...He's not dead, he...”

Squall's jaw tightened as he nodded. “We'll meet up with him when we're done here. He's alive, that's all that's important. Be smart. Don't attack Griever directly.”

“Then what? Bahamut couldn't touch that thing!” Irvine growled, letting off two quick shots with his Exeter. Griever caught them on his arm, unconcerned.

“All of us. At the same time,” Squall looked to them. “Summon all your GF. Hit him at once!”

The others nodded, falling in line with him.

All but Zell.

It had to be enough that he was alive, Squall thought. Zell had helped them get this far. Rest then, my brother. Let us finish this.

All of their eyes began flashing as they summoned out their GF one at a time.

“Thunder Storm!” Qusist yelled. Blue lightning struck all over Griever's body. His wings caught most of it, a few errant bolts hitting his face and chest.

“Dark Messenger!” Rinoa yelled. The crushing force of gravity was stronger now when they weren't standing on the planet's surface. Griever roared, his wings unable to take that blow.

“Diamond Dust!” Squall yelled. The cavern of ice froze Greiver's wings. It shattered, breaking the delicate feathers, leaving Griever exposed.

“Brotherly Love!” Irvine yelled. A piece of their earth platform shattered off and aimed, not at Griever, but at Ultimecia still cradled in his hands. The GF folded around her, deliberately taking the blow so she wouldn't.

“Silent Voice!” Selphie yelled. The silencing power of Siren was unaffected, but the water still hit him, her voice leaving him disoriented.

“Tornado Zone!” Quistis yelled again. Razor sharp wind via Pandemona began ripping at what remained of Griever's wings. Slicing along his skin.

“10,000 Needles!” Irvine pointed. Cactuar's needles exploded from his hand. One individual needle was nothing. 10,000 of them shredded Griever's skin.

“Tsunami!” Selphia laughed. Unlike Siren's mild pool, Leviathan's tidal wave crashed down over Griever and Ultimecia alike. Beating him back like a hammer.

“Mega Flare!”

This time, Bahamut's attack landed true. The dragon king's breath rushed past the shredded and useless wings, burning along Griever's skin. The winged lion roared in agony. His beaten, abused body may have been stronger than each individual GF. But SeeDs never worked alone and the combined power could do what they couldn't individually.

“Griever!” Ultimecia grabbed for her precious GF.

The lion rumbled low in his throat.

Ultimecia's jaw tightened. “Then...I shall junction _myself_ onto Griever! Join with me! We will become one!”

Ultimecia reached up with her power. Griever, obliging, hugged her close. As her hands touched his chest, a bright light came from both of them. So bright that the SeeDs had to turn away or risk being blinded.

They couldn't see. But they could hear. The distinct wet crunch of bones and muscles echoed in their ears as Griever roared again and Ultimecia made a sound that was something like a woman reaching the peak of ecstasy.

The light faded and Squall turned quickly. His eyes widened to see Ultimecia. But she wasn't really Ultimecia any longer. Nor was Griever himself.

His fleshy wings still protruded from his back, all his feathers gone, but no longer was he bipedal. He sat crouched more like a proper lion. But, fused into his chest with a look of absolute pleasure on her face, Ultimecia had grafted herself onto him.

“Ew!” Rinoa drew back, disgusted.

Panting, like a woman in heat, Ultimecia's eyes opened on them again.

“Now, my pet...” she all but purred. “Fight with me.

Griever roared. It almost sounded like he was happy too. Or maybe Squall was just hearing things. It was only a roaring GF after all.

This form of Griever was enhanced with magic. Before any of them could do anything, he struck. His large body jumped forward, all the SeeDs jumped away. Rinoa turned, shooting her Star with a firaga spell attached.

The burning magic burned along the GF's skin, turning it black. If he noticed, he didn't at all seem to care.

On his chest, Ultimecia aimed at Irvine.

“Slow!”

Irvine gasped and turned to run. Selphie screamed for him, but it was too late. His body suddenly went into slow motion. Griever reared back, his jaw opening, ready to swallow him whole.

“Rinoa!” Squall yelled desperately.

She cried out, throwing her magic at him. Just like she had thrown it at Zell. Irvine burst into light and floated up and away into the tumultuous winds around them.

Gone.

Only four remained.

Ultimecia turned to them. A demented smile was on her face. Squall and Rinoa glared in return.

“I've waited so long for this...” she laughed a bit breathlessly.

“We're not done yet!” Quistis yelled. Queen struck out. Electricity burst along Griever's flank when she hit it from behind.

Griever roared, turning with an angry swipe of his claws. Quistis ducked under them just in time to avoid being skewered.

Behind her, Selphie jumped up onto Griever's hand in passing. Screaming out her rage at losing Irvine, she started sprinting up his arm.

“Selphie, no!” Squall roared at her.

Selphie wasn't listening. She also wasn't aiming for Griever.

Twisting back her Vision, she jumped from the GF's shoulder and speared the pronged end of her nunchaku into Ultimecia's still exposed shoulder. The sorceress and Griever both screamed in pain as her blood ran dark red down her chest.

“This! Is for! Irvine!” Selphie yelled, hanging from her vision as she repeatedly punched Ultimecia in the face. “And this! This is for Trabia!”

She planted her feet on either side of Ultimecia and twisted her embedded vision.

“And this is for the world you destroyed, you bitch!” Selphie slammed her hand over Ultimecia's mouth, forcing a water spell down her throat.

Ultimecia started choking and sputtering, water coming up from her lungs. Griever, all the while, hadn't been still. His claws scratched at her uselessly for just a moment. His body was shaped now that he couldn't reach Selphie with his hands.

But he could and did bend his neck back then down. He grabbed Selphie in the teeth. She screamed as his fangs pierced her shoulders. Griever reared back then threw her away.

Rinoa cried out her name, throwing her magic out again. The spell saved her just before Selphie fell into that strange tumultuous windstorm surrounding them. Selphie was grinning as she burst into light and followed Irvine and Zell back into time.

Only three.

But now Ultimecia was hurt and, it seemed, Griever was hurt with her.

“Okay,” Rinoa glared. “I'm sorry, sweetie. But it really looks like I need you now.”

Squall turned to her. He knew that she wasn't talking to him. Then...

The second GF that Rinoa had picked up from the monster in the underwater city wasn't like Diablos at all. She didn't speak. She was just kind of _there_. She was hurting, scared, and anxious even after being removed from the monster that she had been imprisoned within. She didn't trust humans, she didn't trust anything. And while Rinoa wanted to let her just continue resting and staying out of things, it didn't look like she would be able to.

“I need a second, guys,” Rinoa said to Squall and Quistis.

“You got it!” Quistis yelled.

The two of them ran forward as Rinoa closed her eyes.

Squall and Quistis were the best at garden. Squall didn't become commander just because of Edea's 'premonition'. He was what he was because he had earned the right the stand there. Quistis was strong, a prodigy, and had mastered more techniques than anyone else in all of garden. The two of them together were like a dream team.

Squall shot three blizzaga pulse ammo shots at Griever. As each one landed, a flower of burning ice erupting on his skin, Quistis struck out at each one. The tip of her whip only needed to brush the ice and the magic, the _water_ , conducted the electricity down into the GF's body.

Griever roared and thrashed. He struck for them. His claws found only earth as Squall dodged. Rolling up onto his feet, he plunged his Heart down onto Griever's hand. As the monster recoiled from the pain, Squall continued forcing it downward and opened up a long slash on Griever's paw. Shredding the tendons and the muscles.

Quistis yelled, throwing out the end of her whip. It wrapped around Griever's muzzle, tightened around it and forcing it closed. She jerked, sending more thundaga racing down the body. Ultimecia screamed alone this time as they rocked in pain. Squall shot twice more.

“Ready!” Rinoa yelled.

The two of them dropped back at the same time.

Rinoa's eyes were glowing with a strange light. A color that Squall didn't think he had ever seen before, that didn't feel like humans should be able to see at all.

Unspeakable power filled Rinoa's veins. Rocking her to very soul, so much so that Squall felt it. The power of a GF that went beyond power. Beyond ability. A power that had no right to exist. That only a sorceress could possibly control. The power of all. Of planets, of earth, of fire, of wind, of holy, of sound and silence and life itself.

“Eternal Breath...” Rinoa whispered, her own breath visible. Not like it was icing over or steaming up, but like the energy in her body was just too great to be contained even in the air she exhaled.

She held out her hands and all that energy escaped at the same moment.

Squall wasn't sure what he saw. It was so quick that he didn't think he would ever be able to describe what had happened. It was almost like space and time, for just a moment, simply _broke_ around Ultimecia and Griever. As quick as a flash, but an eternity when time simply didn't work any longer. If that could even be imagined by the limited human mind.

Rinoa collapsed down, the energy of the attack having sapped her of her strength. Squall ran forward, catching her before she hit the ground. He held her in his arms. Rinoa was breathing hard, sweating from exertion, but she was alright.

Quistis stepped in front of them, whip at the ready.

But Griever and Ultimecia were seizing up. Creatures of reality couldn't handle the breaking of space and time. Their body was literally disintegrating before their eyes. Griever roared one last time as his body locked up and blew away in the storm.

A storm that was blowing faster. Closing in on them. Quistis, too close to the edge, cried out as the rock holding them up crumbled under her feet.

“Quistis!” Rinoa yelled. She threw out her magic again.

Quistis had almost fallen into that strange space between space. Rinoa just knew that if she had there would have been no way of getting her back. But she burst safely into a ball of light and floated up and away. Escaping into time.

Squall and Rinoa were alone.

She turned and grabbed hold of him. He held onto her as everything started breaking. Reality was shattering. Rinoa looked around in fear.

Squall kept his eyes on Ultimecia. Griever was fading away. Dissolving. Ultimecia was not. Even as he watched, another light came from her body. Breaking against the storm. The last of the earth crumbled from under their feet but they didn't fall.

Squall and Rinoa remained floating in space as even light was lost. The winds died down to absolute nothingness. The clouds faded. Were those stars?

Rinoa let out a breath as she realized that they were floating around in the nothingness of space. Kept alive only by her magic.

Was it time to send them back?

“Look,” Squall told her, answering the silent question.

Rinoa turned back to where Ultimecia had been. And gasped.

“Is that...” Was all she could manage.

Ultimecia didn't look like Ultimecia anymore. She was bordering on outright not looking human any more. The creature in front of them, her skin so pale they could see her veins and arteries both beating under the surface, had no face. The hole that was left contained only a light. The light of her life. Her clawed hands were held out, almost leaving her vulnerable.

And in place of her legs...she had another torso. A second head, a body erupting from her body hanging downward. That looked more like Ultimecia. But her skin was gray, her eyes were gone, and it looked like she was bound in place by her own veins.

Her make up was gone. Her headpiece gone so her long gray hair swung free. Without her eyes, it was hard to tell, but she almost looked...familiar.

“We have to take her out,” Squall said. “Can you let me go? Will I die if I release you?”

Rinoa hesitated then shrugged. “I don't...know.”

Squall was about to tell her to risk it. He need only release her for a second to find out. But her hand grabbed his, her fingers entwining with his. And she gave him a look.

“But I don't want to find out. Don't let of me.”

He would have to fight one handed. In this weird space between space.

He nodded. “I'll never let go.”

They turned to Ultimecia at the same time. Floating out in the nothingness as though she were waiting for them.

Squall lifted his Lion Heart one handed as golden white wings erupted from Rinoa's back.

The second, frailer Ultimecia down below rocked in a non-existent wind.

“Reflect on your...childhood...” her voice whispered. That strange accent she had before was gone now.

“Your sensation...” She continued. “Your words...Your emotions...Time...It will not wait....

“I don't need advice from you,” Squall told her.

She continued as though talking to herself. “No matter...how hard you hold on...It escapes you...”

Rinoa frowned. Ultimecia sounded...sad. Heartbroken. Not like a woman that had just lost everything, but like a woman who had lost everything a long time ago and continued to be bereaved. Hopeless. If she had eyes, she might be crying.

“And...And...” She stuttered now, unable to go on.

“Die, Ultimecia,” Squall said mercilessly.

He drew back his arm. His Lion Heart continued to shine, even in the nothingness. Rinoa came around, her hand reaching out. As she stroked down the blade, she pushed her magic into it. One spell after another. Charging it with the ultimate magic.

With a roar of effort, Squall threw his gunblade forward. It landed, not in the upper torso, but in the lower one. The gleaming adamantine blade sunk deep into her heart. Blood burst forth but didn't flow downwards. It was absorbed into nothingness.

And the lower Ultimecia smiled.

“It is done...” She whispered sounding almost...relieved.

“Do it, Rinoa,” Squall told her as Ultimecia began breaking down. Still absorbing the nothingness, being absorbed into the nothingness.

Rinoa threw out her hand. Her own body burst into light, flowing upwards.

Squall's body burst into darkness. And dissipated into the nothingness.


	44. Connected hearts

They didn't know where they were. If this...place could even be called a 'where'. Or a 'place'. It didn't seem like it really existed. Or like they even really existed within it. They knew that, without Rinoa's power, they wouldn't have 'existed' in this 'place' at all.

But they could feel something warping around them. Some kind of energy building.

“Is it over?” Irvine asked, his voice echoing strangely in the nothing/not-nothingness of infinite light and sound that they probably couldn't even begin to comprehend. “Let's go then! Let's get back to our own time!”

Zell was laughing, having a lot of fun running in this place/not-place. It was a different sort of experience. There was nothing for him to push against, but he knew he was moving. He also knew that he wasn't moving at all. 

“Shut up!” Selphie laughed as well, running past him. Not past him. Around him. Upside down and across from him. In every direction but his and with him exactly. “Everybody just calm down and think of where we have to go.”

“Careful, guys,” Zell stopped for a minute to look around at them. At not them. They were in every direction he looked and also not. “Don't pick the wrong time!”

“And whatever you do, don't fall into a time warp,” Quistis said smartly. “I'm still hoping we all make it back in one piece.”

The others ran off ahead. Going back home. Rinoa was right behind them. Keeping pace. She smiled as she thought about the field of flowers. About kissing Squall for the first time. Planning a family in a stone house, even if it never came true. That place was hers too. He had made it hers. She could easily follow her friends there.

“That time...” she beamed to herself. “That place...Who I want to be with...”

“ _I'll be here...I promise._ ”

“I wanna go there! Where Squall and I promised!” She threw out her hands. She looked behind her, fully expecting him to be there. Just like the others.

He wasn't.

Rinoa turned around. “Squall!”

***

It was cold and dark here. Squall was running forward with all his might. Looking for the others. Chasing the bond that attached him to Rinoa. He could hear her voice calling out in his heart.

“Squall! Let's go home!...Where are you?!”

_Where am I?_

Squall ran harder. Faster. He had to catch up to her. He knew exactly where to go. That time. That place. Where she would be waiting for him.

“Squall? Where are you going?!”

A second set of footsteps, lighter than his own, had him turning. Almost hoping to see Rinoa even though he knew very well that wasn't the sound of her stride.

He blinked at the small, brown haired boy running towards him. Baggy, hand-me-down jeans only held on by a belt meant for a grown man. T-shirt flapping around his tiny chest as his hair bounced with each step.

Five year old Squall struck a confident, determined pose.

“I'm gonna find Sis!” He declared before running off.

“Squall!”

More footsteps. Squall realized his mistake when he saw Matron, young matron in her long black gown with her hair still unbound and free, running after little Squall.

She slowed to a walk, a sad, heartbroken look on her face as the world faded into existence around him. There was the old stone orphanage, exactly how it was in his memories. Whole and filled with warmth. Back when the flower beds hadn't grown out into a wide field. He could actually hear the other children playing and laughing inside.

Matron stopped in front of him, letting out a sigh of sadness. “Excuse me, have you seen a little boy run this way?”

Squall had gone too far back in time. Still, he grinned a bit at Matron. At his own past. It was strange seeing it again. Knowing what lay in that boy's future.

Don't worry, he told his younger self softly. It gets pretty rough from this point forward. But, trust me, it's all going to be worth it in the end.

“You don't have to worry about him,” Squall assured younger Matron. “That boy isn't going anywhere. He won't make it past the end of the field.”

Edea smiled sadly. “I know. I just...feel sorry for him. The poor thing...”

Squall frowned. “It can't be that bad.”

“I just wish I could tell him. I don't think he'll understand though. He just lost his elder sister. Well, his adopted elder sister. But I don't know how to tell him that she's going away for both of their safety.”

Squall was about to tell her that brute honesty would do it. Even as a child, Squall could take it. He might even appreciate it a bit.

A bright light fizzing and popping into existence near the front door stopped him. Reflex had him reaching for his gunblade that had somehow appeared back at his hip. Ultimecia, back in her red dress with tattered black wings, appeared through the ground. She walked forward, her footsteps echoing as though she were walking through that nowhere place.

“You're alive!?” Squall gasped. Dammit! How was he supposed to protect Matron and all the kids from this monster alone?!

“A sorceress?” Edea gasped in surprise.

“Yes, Matron,” Squall growled tightly, walking in front of her. “I thought we had defeated her. Matron, please stand back. Gather the children before she can get to them.”

Her gentle hand on his arm surprised him. Edea smiled as she walked forward.

“It's okay,” she told him gently. “There's no need to fight. That sorceress is already dead.”

Squall frowned. Then looked from her to the still moving Ultimecia. She didn't exactly look alive, he could agree, but nor did she look dead.

“That sorceress is just looking for someone to pass her powers onto,” Edea explained calmly. “In order to die in peace, a sorceress must be free of all her powers. Otherwise she'll continue to roam like that, unable to die but not actually alive. I know...for I am a sorceress as well.”

That rule still applied?! Ugh! Sorceresses...

“I shall take that sorceress's powers,” Edea said, stepping forward. “I don't want one of the children to become one.”

“I...can't...disappear...yet...” Ultimecia whispered hoarsely, as though she were in great pain.

Edea stopped in front of her. The process happened automatically and immediately. Noxious, familiar purple gas, purple magic, escaped from Ultimecia and sank into Edea.

Edea let out a strangled sound. As Ultimecia's lifeless body collapsed then blew away on the breeze, Edea fell to her knees, breathing hard.

“Matron!” Squall ran forward, sheathing his blade. He reached out for her, helping her to her feet. She was shaking, holding his arm tightly for support.

“Are you all right?” He asked, worried.

“I didn't realize...” Edea shook her head. “So much power...How is that possible...”

“Do you need to get inside to rest, Matron?”

She turned to him, a strange look on her face. “You called me Matron...Who are you?”

“A SeeD,” he replied immediately as she released him to stand on her own power. He didn't really know how else to describe himself. “I'm just a SeeD, from Balamb Garden.”

Edea looked confused. “SeeD? Garden? What are you talking about?”

Squall looked back, just as confused. “Both garden and SeeD were your ideas, Matron. Garden trains SeeDs. SeeDs are trained to defeat the sorceress.”

Edea looked back to the place where Ultimecia had already disappeared. “You mean...that sorceress?”

“Of course. She tried to destroy all of existence. We had to defeat her.”

“Who is she?”

“She's...a sorceress from the future,” Squall frowned, unsure how to explain it properly. “It's been a long fight. I've had to do a lot training since you started garden.”

“But I haven't...” Edea frowned. She hadn't started a 'garden'...yet. A sorceress from the future. So of course the one who fought her would have to be...

Edea's eyes focused more properly on this strange man. On the weird cut of his clothes, like he was wearing a style that hadn't yet come into popularity. He had a gunblade at his waist, made of adamantine of all possible things. But that brown hair...those stormy gray eyes...

She knew those eyes.

“You're...that boy from the future...” Edea breathed. Her little boy. All grown up. He didn't even look confused at the question. He knew exactly what she was talking about.

Squall grinned a bit, shrugging. “Hello, Matron. It's good to see you.”

It was wonderful to see him. To get a glimpse of the man her boy would become.

But...

Edea hardened her jaw. “Please return to your own place and time. You do not belong here.”

Fast footsteps on the stone path had Squall looking over to see his own childhood self running back form the end of the field. He had been too scared to go further than that. The world had always looked so big from the porch of this tiny house.

“I can't find Sis,” little Squall sniffed, manfully trying to hold back his tears. “Am I...all alone?”

“No,” Edea said immediately, taking hold of his shoulders.

Little Squall sniffed again and turned. Stormy gray eyes met stormy gray eyes. Little Squall frowned at the large, imposing man. He was kind of...scary.

“Who's he?” He asked, pressing back against Matron.

Squall grinned wryly. He scared his childhood self. How...fitting. This is your future kid, get a good look.

“He's nobody,” Edea laughed, ruffling the boy's hair. “You don't need to know or worry about it. The only Squall permitted here is you.”

She looked back up to the older Squall, worried for a moment. “Do you know where to go back to? Do you know how?”

“I'll probably need some help to get back into the time stream,” Squall admitted. “If you don't mind.”

“Of course,” she nodded, her magic already reaching out for him. “Will you be all right? By yourself?”

Squall smiled. His body straightened as he saluted her. Edea blinked at the unfamiliar movement. He smiled and turned to leave.

The world faded away and Squall was back in the darkness once again.

_I'll be all right, Matron. Because I'm not alone._

The certainty filled him as he ran from his past.

_I'm not alone. If I call out, they will answer._

“Where is everyone?” Squall frowned as he continued running forward. “Rinoa! Where are you!”

Nothing. The silence was deafening all around him.

“Rinoa! Zell! Irvine! Quistis! Selphie!”

Squall was breathing hard as he stopped. He looked around into the nothingness. He had to get back home. He needed the others.

_Am I...alone? Rinoa?_

Where was she? Why couldn't he feel her in their bond? Why?

_I want to hear your voice. Which way...do I go?_

Squall turned, continuing to run. He didn't know how long he did so. In this place, time meant absolutely nothing. It could have been a few seconds. It could have been a hundred years. This 'place' wasn't a 'place' and time didn't exist.

Slowly, the gnawing realization dawned on him.

_I can't make it back...I'm...alone. Rinoa?_

He called out for her desperately. She didn't answer.

_Am I...all alone again..._

_Where...am I?_

As that horrible, lonely certainty settled over his heart, something like a reality formed around him. At least, not the black nothingness any longer. Squall turned, looking around a the dry, cracked ground and the gray, swirling sky. It wasn't really clouds. Nor was it really a 'sky' per say. The broken, dead ground extended out around him for as far as he could see.

Squall turned again, but there really was nothing. A dusty breeze. The swirling not-sky. And the desiccated land stretching into the horizon.

All right then.

He took a fortifying breath.

With nothing else to do, Squall started walking.

The sound of his boots, the jingling of his belts, echoed strangely around him as the whistling of the breeze teased his ears. Squall turned back only once, but still saw nothing.

The land wasn't flat. It rolled slightly with hills and shallow valleys. There were no stars or anything to actually to navigate by. Squall was just left hoping that he was moving in a straight line. This had to end somewhere. He could only keep walking until he reached somewhere.

And he did.

He walked. And walked. And kept walking.

It wasn't hard. He could run for miles, walking was no issue.

But it just kept going. On and on. As the not-sky darkened and it got uncomfortably cold. For the second time in too short a period, Squall felt that cold. He could feel Shiva and Bahamut in his head, but it was like they were muted.

Just keep walking...

Keep going...

Keep...

His boots slipped against the ground and he almost didn't catch himself. Squall wasn't sure how far he had walked. It felt like it was going on into infinity. He was actually getting tired. Just from walking, from doing it for so long.

It was getting hard to lift his feet. To even lift his head. Squall had to focus his eyes on each step or he'd trip over himself or the ground and fall. And because he was doing so, he didn't notice until his boots were right on the line that he had finally reached the end of the desert.

And it literally ended. In a drop off. That fell into nothing. The darkened, gray not-sky was swirling all around down even below.

Squall let out a breath and turned, resigned to the return trip.

He stopped. He blinked. His head turned and looked around at the very tiny piece of land he was standing on. No wider than a few paces in either direction.

Squall's head started spinning. Dizzy from exhaustion, from exertion. He just managed to turn away from the edge of the cliff before his knees gave out and he dropped down. A puff of dust burst up when he hit the ground. His legs were jelly as Squall panted just a bit.

Then...

That was it?

***

Rinoa was panting, running desperately through the flower fields. Just like she had been doing all day. Ever since she had woken up in the flowers next to Edea's house. Alone. The others were there, of course, but not the one she really wanted to be with.

Squall wasn't here. The others were waiting for him. Rinoa couldn't.

So she had started looking. Started running.

Flower petals burst around her with each step. She had paused only once, earlier in the day. When the sun had still been up before all these clouds had moved in bringing thunder and the scent of rain with them.

Back then, when she had stopped, Rinoa had taken a flower petal in hand. And when she opened her palm again, a golden white feather had been resting in its place.

“Find him,” she had whispered to it desperately.

Her magic didn't need set spells. She was a sorceress. The normal rules of magic didn't apply. The feather had been picked up by the wind and had started tumbling away.

And Rinoa had been running since. Following it, almost hoping that Squall had just landed further away than the others had.

Even as she knew he hadn't.

Finally, panting, she couldn't run any longer. She had to stop to take a break. The thunder continued rumbling in the clouds.

Rinoa reached up and touched her necklace gently.

Squall...Where are you...?

***

Squall was having trouble focusing his eyes. He was just too tired. He felt like it would be a really bad idea to fall asleep here though. Like if he did, he might never wake up...

The tiny flash of white almost escaped his notice. Squall blinked, having trouble understanding what he was looking at.

He didn't recognize the golden white feather until it was floating down past his face.

Staring in wonder, he lifted his hand and caught it-

-and suddenly found himself in a field of flowers. Surrounded by a golden light. Right behind Rinoa. He could almost see the golden wings extending from her back.

It was her! She was here!

Squall opened his mouth to cry out for her.

No sound escaped his throat.

Squall frowned and tried again.

Nothing.

She was right there! He only needed to reach for her!

Rinoa started to turn.

But he couldn't see her face.

Squall's heart raced. They weren't in the flower field any longer. They were back in the ballroom at garden. The couples were dancing all around them and Rinoa was looking up at the stars. At the shooting start that had pointed him to her.

She turned. He couldn't see her face.

Squall was panting. Panicking now.

She turned again. Why couldn't he see her face?!

Again. No!

Again. No! NO!

Why couldn't he see her?! She was _right there_! He knew this moment better than any in his life. It was the best moment of his entire existence. Why couldn't he remember?!

There she was again. In the ballroom.

No. She wasn't. She was gone. Erased from his memories. Had she ever even been there?

But she had. He knew that she had!

She still had his ring. She still had his heart. He could still remember...

No. He couldn't.

The others. Right. He knew them. Their faces. Zell, Selphie, Quistis, Irvine. Even Seifer. They were all clear as bells.

Why couldn't he remember her face? Her voice? 

She had walked towards him on the dance floor. Right? She had reached for him even when all the others had run off. Hadn't she? He hadn't imagined that. He couldn't imagine that. There was no way his mind could create something as perfect as her.

The way she danced with him. The way she laughed with him. She drove him to do things he would never have done on his own. He hadn't imagined that. He couldn't...

But he could still see her walking away. Leaving him alone on the dance floor.

They all leave eventually.

Rinoa! Don't leave!

Gone. Another memory of her gone. Her eyes. Her laugh. Her voice. Why couldn't he hear her voice?

There she was. Out in space. Dead. Dead because he failed her. He always failed her. She was lost now and he was the only one to blame.

He had nothing without her.

He was nothing without her...

Her feather floated gently to the ground.

In this nowhere place.

In this nowhere.

…

…...

….......

It was a lonely, dark sort of place. Nothing around in any direction. Rinoa would never understand how Squall ended up here.

Her boots scuffed against the dry, dusty ground. Her ring, his ring, bounced against her chest as she walked determinedly forward. She wasn't afraid of this place. She knew that it wasn't real.

A small sound that wasn't quite relief escaped her throat when she finally, at long last, came upon Squall again.

Laid out on the cold ground. Still as death. He wasn't even breathing...

Lowering herself slowly down, Rinoa frowned as she reached for him.

Her hands were steady as she lifted his head, holding it in her arms. Her hand moved up and gently brushed aside one of his soft brown locks from his face.

He didn't stir.

“Squall...?” She called gently. Hopefully. With her words. With her heart.

He didn't move. He didn't breath.

No...

No!

“Squall!” She grabbed his face.

He didn't move. He didn't breath.

Was he...

Was she too late?

No...

Squall!

A sob tore through her throat. She cried out as she threw herself over him.

The burst of light, the burst of life was reflexive. Her magic acted on her emotions far more than her will.

Rinoa lifted her head as light expanded all around them. The dry, dead land was gone. The storm clouds that had gathered over their field were being pushed away, sunlight bursting forth. Rinoa watched in amazement at her own power as the lively breeze brushed at her hair.

It was warm. Full of life. In the distance, Rinoa could see Edea's orphanage. The others would be waiting there for them.

She did it. She had pulled him out.

But he...

Rinoa looked down quickly, her heart thumping in her chest.

Squall's eyes were opening back on reality.

And he could he see her face again.

She was smiling at him once more.

***

Okay, so fishing wasn't the most _exciting_ of tasks. But it was calming...and meditative...and Seifer was supposed to be seeking out both things. So double points.

Calming.

Very calming...

Very...

Seifer's teeth ground together as he stared at his bobbin. Completely still. Even the gentle lolling of the water was barely rocking it, much less an interested fish.

Don't lose your temper. Don't lose your temper...

A cry of victory had him turning. Seifer looked over to see Raijin celebrating his catch. The bright orange Balamb fish on the end of his life was still wiggling.

Raijin turned to Fujin, dancing a little at his haul. He was laughing loudly, proudly showing the silver haired girl without a care.

Seifer lost it.

Letting out a roar of anger and annoyance, Seifer slammed his fishing pole to the ground. Screw this stupid sport anyway! Who the hell wanted to sit and stare at water all damn day like some sort of chump?!

Fujin looked over to him calmly. She tilted her head.

“ALL RIGHT, SEIFER?” She asked in that special way of hers.

“Screw this shit!” Seifer yelled, kicking over the tackle box.

Fujin blinked calmly.

Then abruptly turned. Raijin's victory dance had put his back to her, so he didn't even see Fujin's boot coming for him. She kicked without mercy or care and watched with calm eyes as Raijin tumbled and flailed over the side of the dock.

Seifer couldn't help it, he bust out laughing.

Raijing broke the surface, spitting out water.

“What was that for, ya know?!” He yelled unhappily. “The fish got away, ya know!”

“ANNOYING,” Fujin said simply.

Beside her, Seifer was still laughing.

Fujin and Raijin both turned towards him and smiled at his laughter. It was good to hear it again. It was good just to have him back again.

It didn't matter that all three of them had their weapons confiscated and were considered under 'house arrest', such as it was, in Balamb for the next few years. Nothing else mattered but the fact that Seifer was himself again. Fujin and Raijin would have given up so much more.

The whirring of machinery and rushing of the wind had all three of them turning. Raijin paused in the middle of pulling himself up onto the dock. All three of them watched as Balamb Garden passed overhead, the wind from its rings sweeping at their hair.

Seifer turned and watched the garden settle into the ocean, continuing forward on its journey. Leaving him behind.

And he smiled just a bit, nodding his head towards them.

Because, honestly, he didn't feel at all bitter about it.

***

It had been a long time since Laguna had walked this path. He let out a long breath as he looked over towards where Winhill waited in the distance. He hadn't been here too long. Honestly, he had never really planned to go back. Though he spent his own personal money paying Esthar soldiers to guard this place, he himself hadn't wanted to walk this place again.

Until recently.

Lifting his hand, Laguna looked down at his palm. At the silver band that still glistened on his ring finger.

He could still remember so clearly...

It was night. The spring air was cool. And Laguna was looking at the ring in his palm wondering if he actually had the nerve to go through with it.

…

Nope. He didn't. He couldn't.

“Laguna? I was looking for you. What are you doing all the way out here?”

He jumped almost guiltily and turned. His hand quickly hid behind his back. He wasn't at all surprised to see Raine there. She smiled at him, her stormy gray eyes bright and curious.

“Hey,” he grinned at her sheepishly.

Come on, Laguna! Be a man!

“Kiros said he was watching Elle tonight because you wanted to talk to me. What's up?”

“Oh, um, well...” Laguna scratched his head nervously.

Raine tilted her head at him curiously. She was so pretty in the moonlight.

You can't do it! ABORT MISSION! ABORT MISSION!

“Oh, I um, just remembered something I have to-” Laguna turned quickly to walk away.

Laughing, Raine rushed after him. She reached out. “Come on, Laguna. What-”

Laguna didn't think about it. He turned, taking her hand, and slipped the gleaming silver ring onto her finger in one smooth motion. His heart was in his throat as Raine gasped.

He watched as she stared, her pretty eyes wide, at the ring. At his ring. At the unspoken question he couldn't manage to fight past his suddenly numb lips.

Say something, Raine. Please...

She looked up at him and a smile broke out over her face. She laughed in disbelief once, twice, cradling her hand to her chest.

Laguna smiled and held up his own hand, showing her the matching ring on his finger. “Just so you know, you and this town are enough for me.”

Raine was smiling, tears swimming in her eyes, as she held up her own ring. Their matching rings, as he finally spoke the words she had been dying to hear.

“Raine Leonhart, will you marry me?”

“Yes!” She rushed forward, wrapping her arms around him.

Laguna's arms closed in around her, embracing her in his wonderful scent and warmth. The tears were almost falling from her eyes as she held on tightly.

The nerves, the fear, the uncertainty all settled in his stomach at her enthusiastic answer. Laguna smiled, grateful to whatever force of fate had put her in his path.

And now, eighteen years later, Laguna could finally come back to this place. To the headstone that had been set in this lovely field that he had asked her to marry him in.

Raine Loire carved in stone for all of time.

“Sorry I'm late,” Laguna said, kneeling down in front of her. “But...I'm home.”

The wind blew gently at his face. And he almost felt like he could smell her perfume again.

“Uncle Laguna!”

He turned and looked over his shoulder. He smiled at his little pixie girl walking towards him down the hill. Kiros and Ward were standing back and watching the two of them. Ellone beamed, waving.

“Come on. We're going to miss the memorial if you don't hurry!”

“Yeah! I'll be right there!” Laguna waved back at her. “Our little Elle sure grew up nice, huh? I haven't seen a prettier girl since I first saw you.”

It was Ellone looking up and over his shoulder that had him turning, even before Laguna heard the engines of Balamb Garden. He smiled as it passed overhead, stirring up flower petals and leaves in its wake.

Laguna smiled gently as it floated on by. “Our boy grew up pretty well, too. Even if I had nothing to do with it. He's all you, Raine. You'd be so proud.”

***

“Like, I'm 74% sure this is how you turn it on,” Selphie said, fiddling with the camera. “Wait. Wait, okay. Yes!”

She laughed as the little red 'recording' light came on. Quickly, before he stopped, Selphie turned the camera over to Irvine and Quistis. Or more specifically how badly Irvine was dancing with Quistis who was just smiling at him awkwardly, drink in hand.

Selphie laughed at the sight. Irvine had no rhythm whatsoever. At least not in dancing. He did a quick spin, really getting into it. Then Selphie's laughter caught Quistis's attention. The blonde woman turned and smiled as the camera focused and zoomed in on her.

The party made a great backdrop.

“Looking good, assistant commander,” she beamed at her.

“Is that my camera?” Quistis asked, laughing.

“Yeah. I stole it from your room.”

Quistis rolled her eyes with a smile. “I'm pretty sure the battery is almost dead on that thing.”

Selphie shrugged. “As long as I have Irvine dancing for posterity, that's all that matters.”

“Say wha-a-at...” Irvine grinned, pushing his head into the shot. He beamed, totally unconcerned with his bad dancing being filmed.

“Smile big for the camera!” Selphie beamed brightly.

Laughing, Irvine scooped Quistis into his arm. He pulled her in close, playing it up for the camera.

“Ladies and gentleman, what an event you're witnessing. This here is the party of a lifetime! Not only are we celebrating Quistis's promotion to assistant commander – say 'hi' Quisty.”

“Get off me, you oaf!” Quistis laughed, trying to push him away.

“But we're also celebrating my passing of the SeeD exam!” Irvine continued delightedly. “You're looking at the best SeeD sharpshooter in all of Balamb. _Ladies_. And, if that weren't enough, we're also celebrating our saving the world. Not a big deal at all. Really more of a post note.”

With a laugh, Quistis finally pushed him away. Irvine fell back dramatically. He put his hands to his hips, giving the camera a 'what's with that?' kind of look.

Selphie laughed and turned to follow Quistis. Their new assistant commander walked over to where Headmaster Cid was looking out over his students and children. Everyone still called him Headmaster Cid though he wasn't commander over the entire force any longer. He had been happy to come back to work, but he wasn't commanding SeeDs any longer. He was now in charge of the primary school students and seeing them into either the SeeD program or transferring them into other lines of work. It was the simple kind of life he had always wanted.

He turned and smiled at Quistis as she came in closer.

“There's the new assistant commander,” he said, toasting her gently.

“Evening, sir,” Quistis nodded her head. “Are you enjoying yourself?”

“Of course. A marvelous party. You all deserve it.”

“It was our pleasure,” Quistis assured him.

Cid laughed and his eyes moved past Quistis. He spotted Selphie recording and he beamed. He toasted her as well. Quistis turned and smiled at her as well. Selphie waved at the pair of them.

“Looking good!” She told them both.

“Cid.”

The headmaster and Quistis both paused at the gentle voice. They turned at the same time with Selphie. The camera focused in first on black shoes, then up the long black skirt.

Edea looked like their Matron. Clothed all in black, hair falling freely down her back. She smiled at them just a bit nervously before stepping forward.

Cid was already reaching out for his wife as she came in closer.

“My dear,” he greeted happily, love shining bright in his eyes.

“Matron,” Quistis nodded a bit formally.

“Congratulations on your promotion,” Edea beamed at her.

“No one better for the job,” Cid agreed, still smiling at his wife. Honestly, after so long of being apart, it was the most wonderful thing in the world to have her there beside him again.

“Matron,” Irvine came in closer, pulling off his hat. “It's great to see you again.” Great to see her how he had always remembered her again.

“Thank you, Irvine,” Edea smiled. “Congratulations on making SeeD. I knew you could.”

“Aw, it was nothing. Just had to save all of existence. You know, as you do.”

The others laughed as Irvine turned back. He smiled at Selphie and walked towards her. She smiled up at him over the camera.

“Trade ya,” he grinned, placing his hat on her head.

Selphie laughed as he took the camera. His hat was just a bit big, but it was his. She rather liked wearing his clothes.

Irvine turned the camera on her as Selphie bounced over next to Quistis. Cid and Edea had walked off to talk to more of their children – a lot of them had ended up in Balamb.

Selphie turned then laughed, twisting her hands. “You're holding it sideways. Turn it-yeah. Like that.”

Selphie waved, a big smile on her face, as she held Quistis's arm. Quistis, for her part, looked calm and casual on camera. She looked actually made for film.

Pretty ladies. Everywhere...

Irvine's eyes had moved and, as they did, so did the camera. Focusing in on three student girls standing off to the side. They were giggling and talking, looking at him. Irvine waved.

“Hey, girls.”

“Hey, Irvine!” They sang back at him.

“Irvine!” Selphie jumped into the shot making him jump. “What are you doing?”

“Nothing,” he lied immediately.

Grumbling, Selphie started walking away. Irvine followed, keeping the camera on her.

“Um, Zell?”

The three of them turned at the soft voice. Zell, who was chilling at a table, looked over when the library girl came in close. In her hands a platter just _full_ of hot dogs. She looked nervous.

“I, um, know how it's hard for you to get up in the mornings since you work so late at night,” she said, shifting her weight between her feet. “So, I thought I should try to help you out. I got up early and put these on reserve for you.”

Zell blinked. “Wait...Those are... _mine_? All of 'em?”

The library girl nodded, setting them down in front of him on the table. “I got you a bunch of different styles since I didn't know what you liked. Is that okay?”

Zell stared, flabbergasted, at the offering for a moment.

Then-

“Woman! I am goin' to marry you one day!” He announced loudly.

The library girl squeaked, her face blazing red, as Zell started shoveling hot dogs into his mouth.

“That escalated quickly,” Quistis said as Selphie laughed.

“We have proof of that on camera now. Think she'll want a copy? Just in case he tries to back out later?” Irvine asked with a grin.

“Ah, leave him alone. It's cute,” Selphie smiled.

The library girl sat down at the table as well, watching Zell with a dreamy smile as he stuffed his already full cheeks with even more food. He looked like a pig in slop and had never appeared happier in all the time they had known him.

Laughing, the three of them started towards his table. Zell looked up, at the camera and at his friends, and greedily pulled his plate in closer. As though he wanted to make sure that absolutely no one got to have any of _his_ hot dogs.

Then he tried to swallow. And a strange look came over his face.

Irvine frowned over the camera. “Uh, Zell? You all right?”

Zell grabbed for his water glass. It was empty. His chest heaved as he struggled to breath, he dropped the hot dog in his hand back onto his plate.

“Oh, shi-!” Selphie rushed in, Quistis just behind her. The library girl, crying out in worry, jumped to her feet as all three girls tried to beat on his back.

Zell bent over the table, the girls making a fuss.

Then the sound of a hacking sort of cough. And Zell was drawing in air again. They paused as he did, looking at him in worry.

Zell blinked. His head whipped over, Quistis and Selphie jumped back. He stared for a moment.

Then-

“Don't touch my hot dogs!” He jumped out of his chair, making a move towards them.

Laughing, Quistis and Selphie started running. Zell turned, spotted Irvine, then threw one of the hot dog buns at him.

Irvine fell back, laughing as he escaped the onslaught of bread products.

He and Selphie were both were both breathless and beaming when they stopped a small distance away. The camera was still running, covering in bread crumbs though the lens may be.

Selphie stood up and smiled as Angelo padded past them. She turned and beamed.

“Irvine, look!” She pointed over quickly.

He turned the camera.

Rinoa was on the balcony outside, talking to someone. But there was a column blocking Irvine's line of sight. He tried zooming in, walking around.

Rinoa turned just as the 'dead battery' sign started flashing. She held up her finger, smiling at someone that Irvine couldn't see.

And the camera died.

***

Balamb had chosen to float over the water for tonight's party. Still as obsidian glass, reflecting the stars above with perfect clarity, it was a breathtaking sort of sight. Rinoa turned her eyes over all of it, trying to adsorb the beauty of the moment.

She gasped in delight when a shooting star flashed across the sky. She turned and beamed. Just like that first night, she held up her finger.

Squall, who had been watching her more than the stars, smiled at the familiar movement. A real, honest to goodness, smile.

“You know, I still don't know what that means,” he said, grinning.

Rinoa laughed. “Why must it mean anything?”

Squall laughed with her. He reached out and took her by that hand. Turning her around. Rinoa beamed as he slipped his hand around her waist.

They fell into the kiss easily. It was familiar now. Comfortable. It felt so good to have the warmth of her in his arms, the scent of flowers that clung to her skin in his nose. Squall no longer exuded the cold like he was a human icicle. He was just the right temperature as Rinoa pressed herself into him, losing herself to his kiss.

“No-o-o!”

Irvine's plaintive cry broke them apart. They both turned, looking into the ballroom as Irvine cried over a camera.

“Did it die?” Selphie asked in dismay.

“That would have been such a perfect shot...” Irvine cried.

Rinoa laughed, leaning into Squall's chest. He rolled his eyes, still holding her.

“Don't you have anything better to do?” He asked them with a small grin.

“No. I'm pretty much free all night,” Irvine smirked. “Come on, Selphie. Let's go see if we can find some batteries and catch them going at it again.”

Rinoa smiled up at Squall. “What do you say we really give them a show next time? Let Irvine learn a lesson or two?”

“Actually, I was just thinking that I'd enjoy a much smaller audience,” Squall said.

Rinoa leaned back, a bit surprised. “You mean...?”

“My room on the third floor is finally ready,” Squall grinned. “Want me to give you the tour?”

“No. But I would like you to take me up there and make love to me,” she said immediately, pulling on his hand.

Squall laughed. “Right to it, huh?”

“I thought you appreciated people being straightforward?” She grinned, her voice pitched just a bit lower. Like she was trying to seduce him.

As if she needed to even try.

Squall grinned as they walked, hand in hand, through the ballroom. Past all their friends and family. All of them, everyone, having a good time. His garden was safe. His world was safe. And, for the first time in far too long, Squall was happy right along with them.

Rinoa's hand was warm in his. Their heartbeats synced together. A small flush on her cheeks as she thought about what waited for her above in his room. 

Friends. Family. And each other's love.

Right where they belonged. Their hearts as one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is the end of the game. It is not, however, the end of this novelization. I continue from this point with a fifth 'disk' that's 100% fan fiction and based on what I believe will be the continuation of this story. You might notice that there are a few open ends left, but that's how the game left it so that's how I left it. You can stop reading right here and I'll be happy that you read any of it at all. This has been a serious labor of love and I'm happy that I did it. The additional chapters (there aren't many) are just a continuation of that love.
> 
> So thanks for reading. If you're leaving now, you're awesome for having read this far. If you continue, you're awesome for continuing to support by work. Whatever you choose, I'm happy you made it this far. I hope you've enjoyed my version of the game thus far and I appreciate all the support.
> 
> For those reading on, continue with my thanks.
> 
> For those leaving, do so with my thanks. I hope you enjoyed what you read.


	45. Contracts

The garden was alive. Squall couldn't remember the last time he had seen all of the students and staff and SeeDs so relaxed. So carefree. It was like they all knew that their mission in life had finally been fulfilled. Which they did. Squall had no secrets about Ultimecia from them. But with that threat gone, they were free in a way they hadn't been in too long. It was almost like seeing it through the eyes of a cadet again.

So even though it was already late, this party was going long into the night. Into the morning. Some of it had spilled into the nexus, the more antisocial seeking their own, more subdued parties. They all looked up and smiled as Rinoa and Squall passed by.

“I really love it here,” Rinoa said, her head on Squall's shoulder.

“Yeah. Me, too,” he admitted easily.

Rinoa smiled. It was a concession that would have been impossible from the man she first met. He might not even admit that to anyone else but her.

They paused in front of the elevator, summoning it downward.

“Think they'll miss us?” Rinoa asked, looking towards the bright cafeteria.

“I don't care.”

She laughed, turning her eyes to him instead. “They're going to talk in the morning.”

“They'll speculate.”

“When they're right, that's called talk.”

Squall shrugged. The door opened and he pulled her inside. “Does it bother you? You can always go back to your room instead.”

“No way.” Rinoa jabbed her thumb onto the third floor button. She smiled, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I've been waiting for this for a long time.”

“Oh?”

“I've been fantasizing about you since...well, actually I can't remember.” She frowned.

“GF,” Squall said simply.

She groaned. “Well, it's been as long as I can remember. Does that count for something?”

“I've wanted you since the first moment our eyes met,” Squall told her, pushing some of her hair behind her eyes. “I dreamed about it even as we danced. It hurt that much more when you walked away from me that night.”

Rinoa made a face. “I was coming back. After I talked to Cid. I was only gone a few minutes. He told me that he'd make the contract after the party, so I went to look for you and you were gone.”

Squall started in surprise. “You came back that night?”

“Of course. I told you I was going to. Or at least, I think I did. I did, right?” She was sure she had at least made some sort of gesture.

Squall shrugged. He didn't really remember either. “I was kind of nervous when I saw you again in Timber. I couldn't believe it was you.”

Rinoa smiled. “I remember that. I was dreaming about you. So when you walked in, I thought I was still dreaming.”

Squall ran his thumbs down her hips, her waist. “You hugged me then. Would you have hugged any SeeD that walked through that door?”

“I probably would have just pounced on them. But I really just wanted you to hold me again,” Rinoa admitted, laughing.

The elevator opened and Squall walked them into the third floor lobby. They turned right, to the doors that led to the private rooms. Rinoa's body was humming in anticipation as Squall used his necklace to unlock them and started down the elegant hallway.

He was in room 8. The last professor staying there had chosen to retire back to Balamb rather than stay on in the mobile garden after the Garden Battle. So now it was Squall's. The scanner read his necklace and opened silently, allowing them in.

The lights turned on automatically as Squall stepped across the threshold. It wasn't a large room. There just wasn't enough room on the ship to afford a great deal of opulence. But it was similar to Xu's room on the same floor. A private bathing room – with a door! – a separate bedroom, a little kitchen nook, and a two seater couch in front of a TV built into the wall. There was a desk shoved into the bedroom and a little fridge next to the stove.

Squall still didn't decorate. His gunblade case was on his little wall table and his clothing had been neatly put away into his bedroom. But there were no personal touches. Even Rinoa's guest room in the dorms had her presence in it.

“You're so spartan,” Rinoa said as the door shut behind them. Squall pressed the panel beside it, locking it closed.

No interruptions.

Rinoa felt suddenly incredibly nervous.

“I don't really have anything to decorate with,” Squall admitted, turning to his room. He tried to see it how she would. Blank and wanting. But it was just a room. He felt no real personal attachment to this place.

Rinoa walked forward, trying to stifle her nerves. She ran her finger down the black leather sofa, admiring the creamy texture. It was real leather.

“I can probably give you some of my stuff. If you want,” she said, a moment away from babbling. “I mean, I probably have too much clutter. I'm not even sure how I got it all.”

Squall shrugged, walking after her. “You can put anything you want in here.”

“Careful what you wish for,” she tried to say jokingly. Her thready voice didn't do it justice.

Squall reached out and ran his gloved fingers up her neck. Rinoa's breath quickened as she felt the warmth of his chest at her back.

“Anything you want,” Squall assured her. “Hyne, you can just move in. I don't care.”

Rinoa laughed. “You're such a romantic. How is that any way to ask a girl to move in with you?”

Squall's lips brushed at the curve of her neck and Rinoa's breath stuttered. Her head fell back onto his shoulder as he wrapped one arm around her, pulling her closer.

“Rinoa?”

“Hm?” She moaned as his tongue and lips worked on that delicate flesh.

“Just to clarify, I can do this again. Right? It's not a 'once in a while' thing. Is it?”

“Oh, Hyne, please no,” Rinoa begged. “I don't think I can live with this only happening occasionally.”

“Then, you'll come here tomorrow, too?” He asked. His fingers reached for the tie on her duster. The knot came undone easily under his gloves.

“Tomorrow. The next. The next. However often you want.” He didn't even have to wait for night. If he would just, please, not tease her. She reached down, pulling at his gloves. She wanted to feel his bare hands on her.

The leather smacked against the marble floor and Squall didn't care to pick it up. He could clean it later. He was much more focused on pulling Rinoa's duster off and letting it fall down. Leaving her only in the black tank top, shorts, and the little skirt thing between them.

“So then wouldn't it just make more sense for you to move in?” He asked calmly. His fingers trailed down her arms, hooking into her bracers. The cotton slipped off easily, leaving only the little silver bracelet and pendant that contained her microchip.

“Very logical,” Rinoa agreed, rocking her hips backward into his thighs. She could feel something hard there, pressed into her bottom.

Squall groaned at the movement. “Move in with me, Rinoa. Please,” his voice broke. “I need you. I always need you.”

“Yes...” she breathed, her body trembling. “Hyne, yes, Squall.”

His short, wordless cry was like a cross between victory and relief. He grabbed her by the neck and turned her, sealing his mouth over hers. Rinoa was moaning already, her hands pushing at his jacket. It hit the floor with a leathery 'spat'. 

Squall's fingers were already pulling at the buttons going down the front of her skirt. Rinoa grabbed the hem of his shirt at the same time. Her skirt hit the ground just a moment before his top. She purred in delight at his bare chest.

Her fingers moved down the long, hard planes of it. Occasionally caressing one of his scars. Admiring the taut muscles there as he grabbed for her in return.

Rinoa started walking backwards, pulling him with her. She was aiming for his bedroom, but she couldn't exactly see. So she just ended up pressed against the little wall between the bathroom and bedroom doors.

Squall wasn't deterred. With a hard surface at her back, he could lift her up and put her thighs around his waist. He pressed her into the wall, kissing her with a sort of hungry desperation. His calloused hands slid under her tank top, rubbing along the smooth plane of her belly, around her waist, and up her back.

Rinoa's hands lifted as he pulled it up and over her head. Her long hair fell down, ticking her skin and his as Squall threw the top over his shoulder. He pushed her up just a bit further so the juncture of her legs was pressed right against his tented pants.

Rinoa moaned loudly, thankful the walls were soundproof. Squall's fingers moved around and touched the delicate black lace of her bra. He pulled back then for just a second to look at it.

Black lace, blue silk cupping the pale orbs.

“Pretty,” he said, rubbing the pad of his thumb along the pointed tip of her nipple. “Is this for me?”

Rinoa grinned, her hand clutching at his hair. “All yours. All of me is all yours.”

Squall grinned as he reached down. He cupped her bottom in his, taking her weight off the wall. Rinoa laughed, leaning forward to kiss along his jaw and neck as he walked them into the bedroom. He groaned as she found a particularly sensitive spot behind his ear. In hearing his response, she started attacking it mercilessly.

Squall's knees nearly gave out when he dropped them onto the bed. Their bodies bounced together for just a moment as Squall pushed himself up on his arms. Rinoa grinned wickedly.

Squall came down off of the bed. Rinoa pushed herself up on her elbows and watched as he worked quickly on untying her boots. He pulled them off with her socks in one smooth motion. Then he stood up and Rinoa put one of her dainty bare feet against his thighs, stopping him from coming forward.

“The belts come off first,” she said, flicking at one with her toe.

More than willing to oblige, Squall reached down and undid the latches. The first belt, heavy with ammo pockets, was placed down gently. The second one, not carrying his gunblade at the moment, hit harder without a care.

Rinoa bit her lip, exciting herself to watch him undress.

“Shoes next,” she ordered.

Squall was nothing if not obedient. He put first one foot on the bed, then the other, removing his boots and dropping them beside hers.

Rinoa laughed, high on power. “Come here.”

Squall was over her in a second. His mouth working against hers again as he settled into the warm space between her legs. Rinoa held on tightly, one hand digging her nails into his back as the other one moved between their bodies to grab at the hem of his pants.

He lifted up only enough for her to free the button and pull down the zipper. Then he was grabbing her eager little fingers. He fit both her wrists into his one hand as he put them over her head. Rinoa's body rocked and arched into him as she made sweet, sexy little mewling noises of protest.

Squall reached between them, leaning up on his knees to do so, and unfastened her shorts. His hands were faster than hers had been. Rinoa lifted her hips as he took hold of the hem and pulled them down. He had to move back, coming off of the bed to free her feet.

Black lace undies, a stripe of blue hiding her most precious secret from him. Squall growled in approval at the sight she made in his bed. Hair spread out around his white sheets. Cheeks red. Chest heaving with anticipation.

Squall grabbed for his pants and forced them down, dropping them with her shorts. His boxers tented much more impressively than the confining leather had. Rinoa whimpered in eagerness as he came over her again.

“Please, Squall,” she begged, taking his bare shoulders. “We have our whole lives to go slow. I need you now. Please...”

He reached between her breasts and flicked the hook open. Rinoa made a stuttering sound as her breasts were freed to the cool air. Breasts that Squall had admired for a long time. He couldn't resist taking a taste of them.

“Squall!” Rinoa sounded so beautiful crying, moaning his name like that.

He reached down, hooking his fingers in the hem of her panties. Her own hands grabbed at the line of his boxers. They pulled down at the same time, needing the offending garments gone.

Squall moved his hand behind her back, lifting her up off of the sheets. As their bottoms fell to the floor, he yanked her dangling bra free of her arms and tossed it away.

Then they fell back onto the bed together. Heated flesh to heated flesh. Rinoa was crying for him to hurry, to please just do it. She needed him. She needed.

Squall had never heard anything sweeter than those cries. He could listen to the music of her voice begging him to take her for the rest of his life.

She was ready for him. More than ready. The slick heat of her body wrapped around him was so tight and hot that Squall groaned from the sensation. Rinoa was trembling, her legs locking against his hips as they were finally together in every way. Body, mind, and soul.

“Hyne...Yes...” Rinoa moaned, her breath erratic and fast.

Damn. Squall couldn't hold back. He knew he should give her a second to adjust herself to this unfamiliar intruder into her body. He couldn't. He had been holding back for far too long already. And now that he had her in his arms, every instinct he had was screaming at him to hold her tight and slam himself into her.

Every instinct, and her own feelings in his head.

So he grabbed her hips. And he did.

Rinoa nearly screamed. Not from pain. From absolute ecstasy.

Then she did scream. As his thrusts pushed her into the most mind numbing pleasure she had ever experienced. Her eyes rolled back into her head, her heels dug into the back of his thighs, as all her walls tightened around him at the same moment.

Squall stilled, his vision going white as his mind went totally and completely blank. All that remained was a mass of writhing pleasure and a sense of absolute _rightness_ as his seed flowed deep into her body.

Rinoa kissed him again, and his body moved mechanically from instinct more than instruction. They slowly rode down the waves of ecstasy together.

“Hyne, Squall...” Rinoa moaned, her voice hoarse from moaning and screaming. And that sounded like music to his ears too.

“I love you.” The words fell from his lips without his permission. He had only meant to say her name, to return that slightly exhausted, triumphant call.

That wasn't what came out at all. His mind wasn't yet returned to him and the words just slipped from him without really thinking about it.

Rinoa took hold of his face, looking into his stormy eyes. And she smiled. “Say it again.”

He obeyed. “I love you. I love...I love you.”

Rinoa laughed breathlessly, tears in her eyes. Their bodies still joined and their limbs still sealing each other together.

“Squall!” She kissed him. “I love you, too. I love you so much!”

“Never let me go,” Squall begged her, feeling suddenly very vulnerable. He wouldn't be able to live without her. He knew that with absolute certainty because he had come all too close once.

And now that he had this...Now that he had found absolute ecstasy in her arms he would never be able to let that go. He could only cling onto her and hope that he was enough. His sword, his heart, his life, all of it was hers.

Just please, don't let me go.

“Never,” Rinoa assured him, smiling through her happy tears. Squall was the type who would cling hard when he finally allowed himself to do so. She had known that when she had started this long romance of hers. She had been anticipating it.

Someone to love her. To listen to her. To want her and only her no matter what. Yeah, he was a military man, but he wasn't all work and no heart. She could feel his heart beating in time with hers. She could feel the love he had never been able to voice before this moment.

Rinoa kissed him again, more softly this time. Showing him without words, telling him through their bond, that this was only the beginning of their life. Nothing was ever going to take her from his side from now on. And they were powerful enough that nothing could ever even try.

Surrounded by each other. Filled with more love and happiness than either one of them could ever remember feeling.

_This_ was where they belonged.

***

Squall had never woken with someone in his bed. He had always been alone, in that area more than any other. So it surprised him when he woke the next morning and found he was not at all uncomfortable or unfamiliar with Rinoa tucked into his side.

It was like she had always been there.

No. Like he had always been waiting for her to be there.

Both of them were nude, sleep warmed skin pressed against each other. Rinoa had fallen asleep with her head on his chest, her hand resting on his shoulder. Her breathing was still deep and even because he had woken up early, as he usually did.

Which meant that he now got to watch her sleep. See that slight smile on her face even though she wasn't even conscious. Naked. In his bed. One leg thrown over his under the blankets. It was the best sight he had ever beheld. Except for maybe a few choice ones from last night.

Who was he kidding? Nearly every sight he had of Rinoa was the best he had ever seen. She was his entire world. She was his everything. And now she had his everything.

He ran his finger down her arm. Down her waist. Over the swell of her hip. Then back up again. So softly that she didn't stir, but he just needed to feel her smooth skin.

He laid there, just like that, for a while afterwards. He was perfectly content watching her sleep. He could have done it for hours more.

Then her pretty brown eyes fluttered open. Her limbs started moving against his as she focused on the sight of his face.

She smiled.

“Good morning,” she said, her voice breathy and soft.

“Good morning,” he returned. “Sleep well?”

She laughed at the small talk. “Wonderfully. And yourself?”

He grinned. “Best sleep I've ever had in my life. Same time tonight?”

“Why wait?” Rinoa threw her legs over his, sitting up in his lap. Squall groaned as she made herself comfortable right there. The curve of her bottom teasing him temptingly.

“You up, Squall?” She asked, running her fingers down his chest.

Boy, was he.

***

“Maybe I should go check on them,” Quistis said, nearly biting her nails in nervousness.

“Leave them be,” Xu said calmly, her eyes moving quickly over the data sheets in front of her. She found the endless stream of numbers to be relaxing in a way. Especially considering the numbers were the garden's profits and they was only rising.

“It's been three days,” Quistis frowned.

“So?”

“So?! How can you say that?”

“They've been eating the food we leave them, right?” Xu looked up calmly.

“Well...yes, but...”

“But nothing. There's nothing going on right now that requires Squall's direct attention. And what's the point of having an assistant commander if he can't rely on you to allow him a few days off?” Xu smiled, lowering her tablet. “Besides, I think he's earned a little vacation. Don't you?”

“Of course,” Quistis smiled sadly. “I think I'm just worried.”

“He'll come out when he's good and ready,” Xu shrugged. “Let the boy have some fun.”

***

Rinoa groaned as she lifted her head up from the bed. The sunlight streaming over her face wasn't what had woken her up. Despite the fact that, judging by the angle, it was past noon, she still felt tired. It wasn't like she was getting much sleep.

What woke her wasn't the sunlight. It was the feeling of Squall kissing his way along her back. Gently running his hands down her sides, over the swell of her bottom. The heat of his chest pressing down against her.

Arousing her.

“What time is it?” She asked, her voice a bit slurred.

“Does it matter?” Squall returned. He sounded much more awake, though he couldn't possibly have gotten more sleep than she had. In fact, he probably got less.

Rinoa turned over, the blanket slipping from her body as she did so. Not that she really needed it, for warmth or modesty. There wasn't an inch of skin that Squall hadn't already seen, caressed, and kissed and the heat of those actions generated more than enough warmth.

Smiling, she reached up for him, taking his kiss eagerly.

She was tired. She was sore. But she wasn't yet satisfied. She was starting to think that she would never be fully satisfied of this. Of him.

And she was just fine with that.

“Squall,” she murmured his name as he sank into her body. Familiar, wonderful.

He whispered her name into her ear, moving gently. Slowly. Savoring each stroke.

Rinoa moaned and the music of it vibrated through his chest.

He needed more. He had gone too long without. Without warmth. Without touch. He couldn't get enough now. Every time he thought he might finally have the strength to separate from her, for even just a few hours, her heart called him back. He was just too cold without her now. He couldn't surrender the sweet pleasure found in her arms.

***

“Seriously, has anyone checked to make sure they're still alive?” Selphie frowned at Zell and Quistis from her position on the large downed tree in the training room.

“They eat the food we bring,” Quistis shrugged. “Come on, the tracks lead this way.”

“Who knew Squall had it in him?” Zell said in awe. By day two, Zell and Irvine had been taking bets. By day four, the people of garden were wondering if they had just left altogether. Now on the eve of day six, everyone was just impressed.

Seriously, how long could they go for?

“Think of it like a honeymoon,” Quistis continued, walking through the dense underbrush. “They just got together. It's all new and exciting to them.”

“Gee, if this is how they act now, can you imagine them on a real honeymoon?” Selphie laughed. “I mean, I could guess Rinoa would be like this. But Squall? He seemed like a real in-and-out, missionary style kind of guy. Maybe she does know him better than us.”

Quistis shrugged. “Let's just not bring it up when they do finally come out. The last thing I want is for Squall to feel self conscious about this.”

“What are you talking about?” Zell laughed. “I'm thinking about givin' him a damn trophy.”

“Seriously,” Selphie laughed. “No one is going to stop talking about this one.”

***

The bed was an unrecognizable mess. The bathroom was dripping from all four walls and parts of the ceiling. There was a mess on the table from where Squall had swept the remnants of their food away to put her onto it instead. And the two of them were tangled up in limbs on the two person couch still breathing hard and sweating. Rinoa, on his lap, was resting her head on his shoulder as he continued to squeeze her hips as though trying to grind her in closer.

Not that there was any space left between them.

They stayed like that for a few minutes more, their hearts slowing and their minds coming back down from the heavens. Rinoa lifted her head first, her cheeks still flushed in the afterglow. She leaned back, touching Squall's cheeks. His hair was stuck to his sweaty face and his face was nearly as red as hers from the exertion. He had never looked so good.

“I think...we forgot to eat...again,” she said, her voice heavy with exhaustion. This wasn't even the first time since they had awoken.

Squall's eyes had trouble focusing on her. His mind had an even harder time trying to decipher the alien language she might as well have been speaking. The way she could move her hips just turned his brain to goo each time.

What time was it? What day was it? He wasn't even sure how many times the sun had risen and set and he could see both actions from his bedroom window. A bedroom that they spent at least 60% of their time in. It was just easier in there.

Squall was hungry though, lending credence to her words. Dimly, he thought that Quistis or Xu might have brought them food again, because he knew that the two of them had been doing so. But he couldn't remember when the last time it had happened was. Or even what they had eaten.

“I think...we should probably stop,” he finally said breathlessly.

“I don't wanna,” Rinoa pouted, kissing his neck. Not to arouse, not so soon after. She just couldn't keep herself off of him anymore. A dam had broken with their first time and every barrier between them was shattered, dust in the wind.

“Rinoa, what day of the week is it?”

“Mm...Does it matter?” She returned his words to him, grinning.

“It does since I'm pretty sure the month changed.”

Rinoa laughed and Squall groaned because of the way that moved her against his overly sensitive body. It was a bit painful, but still so damn good.

“We were near the end of the month anyway,” she leaned back slightly. “I don't want to come out yet.”

Squall thought for a moment. “Tomorrow?”

Rinoa bit her lip.

“We can still come back here,” he promised, running his hand up her back. She arched delicately, loving the feeling of his coarse fingers on her soft skin.

“Every night?”

“Every single night.” He leaned forward, kissing the peak of her breast, then nuzzling the soft orb of its twin. Every night. For the rest of their lives.

That sounds like almost enough, Rinoa replied silently, smiling.

“Well, if we're leaving tomorrow, then let's make the most of tonight.”

Squall grabbed for her eagerly. He had rested long enough. Too long. He needed her again with that desperate sort of desire that had trapped him in his room for over a week now. And he only regretted that he couldn't make it last longer.

***

“All hail the conquering hero!” Irvine yelled loudly as Squall stepped into the third floor office that had once been the headmaster's suit.

“What are you talking about?” Squall asked calmly, walking around the map table. Like everything was totally normal.

The map was in the middle of the room. Squall, Xu, Quistis, and Nida all had desks against the walls that they, admittedly, rarely used. It was more of a place to get paperwork done than anything. They were usually all too busy with duties to spend much time in here.

“Don't act like you don't know,” Irvine grinned, his feet on Squall's desk. “A week, Squall? Actually, longer than a week. Eight days. Be honest with me, how much of it was sex and how much of it was you two playing triple triad or something?

“Get off my desk,” Squall said quite calmly, not rising to the bait.

“You're good,” Irvine grinned at his resolve. “So how was it? Tell me. Do you need some tips and tricks? Do you want me to tell you how to know if she was faking or not? Because she might have been just to make you feel better for your first time.”

Squall knew very well she wasn't faking it. He could feel the force of her orgasm through their bond as strong as he felt his own. It had been what triggered his, in fact. Every time. Her body was very sensitive to his touch, and he was very sensitive to her emotions.

“Is there a reason you're here?” He asked instead, infinitely calm and evading.

“Other than to bug you? Yes, actually. I've been waiting for you. Quistis is busy since you've holed yourself up. She and Xu wanted me to catch you up when you came down.”

“And? What do you have to report?” Squall asked when he didn't continue.

“Wait. First: Was it strictly missionary? 'Cause you know there's different flavors, right?”

“You know that I'm your commander now and can order you to oversee the underclassmen's arms training for the next month, right?”

Irvine frowned. “You wouldn't.”

“Or maybe just send you on a long term assignment. Maybe on the other side of Gaia from Selphie.”

“You're cruel,” Irvine clutched at his heart. “I thought we were friends. And after you just discovered the beauty of a woman's body. I thought you would understand me now.”

“No, you're still a pervert.”

“I'm not taking that from a guy who just spent eight days straight having sex. Seriously, what was your average times per day? I want to know how I stack up.”

Squall gave him a cool look as he reached for the tablet on his desk. He would probably be able to get more information from it than Irvine.

Irvine took his boots from the desktop, planting them on the ground as he leaned forward. “Okay, okay. Just one more question...You did use protection, right?”

Squall's finger stalled over the power button.

“Ah!” Irvine reeled back, eyes wide. “Please tell me you did not just have sex for eight days without protection! Even if you only did it once a day-”

Squall shifted uncomfortably.

“AH!” Irvine clutched his head. “Oh, Hyne. Squall! Do they not have sex ed here?!”

“Of course we do.” He honestly just hadn't been thinking about it.

Irvine groaned, dropping his head into his hands. “Just great. All right, let me think. Okay, the morning after pill is most effective 72 hours later but can reduce it up to...120 hours later...Damn, that's only five days. Well, you're screwed.”

“I'll deal with it,” Squall said, trying not to think of the implications right now. He was going to have to talk to Rinoa soon...

Dammit.

“Where is our princess anyway?” Irvine looked around as though expecting her to walk out from behind a wall.

“Sleeping,” Squall said calmly, turning his tablet on.

Irvine nodded. “Yeah, she's not much of an early riser...Damn...”

“Drop it, Irvine,” Squall ordered.

“Drop what?”

They turned as Xu walked in. She grinned.

“Ah, if it isn't our illustrious commander finally come up for air. Irvine, did you catch him up?”

“I kind of got distracted,” Irvine leaned his head on his hand.

Xu rolled her eyes.

“Whatever,” Squall turned from him. “You're here now. Might as well tell me yourself.”

“Well, there's nothing really major for you to worry about,” Xu assured him, leaning against her desk next to his. “Quistis has been handling the majority of SeeD deployments. You can look over her work if you want.”

“I'm sure she made the right call.”

“Of course. The real news comes from my department. I've been in negotiations with Vice President Kiros of Esthar since the party. Working on a price for your services to them. It was a little difficult since services were already rendered, but I do like a challenge.”

“So, how are they going?” Squall asked, looking up as his tablet powered on.

“Finished as of yesterday,” Xu said smugly. “And you will never guess what I got.”

“Thrill me.”

Xu was nearly giddy, as close as she got anyway, when she reached into her uniform. She pulled out her own tablet and tapped on it for a second. She pulled up the specs for some machine that she brandished to him proudly.

Squall frowned, leaning closer. It was a little hard to identify since it was just lines on a page, but-

“Is that a vehicle?” He looked up to her.

Xu nodded, smirking. “We were going to exchange gil, but then I realized I was in trade talks with the greatest engineers in the world and I changed tactics. What you are looking at here is the BB-349 military class airship mini.”

Squall's eyes widened just slightly. “Really?”

“Oh, yeah. Top of the line. This little beauty can hold up to eight people, including pilot, and circle the globe in only six hours at max speed. Over here at the front you've got mini machine guns and down here under the front bumper there's a small canon. Recoil at your own risk, but effective. The cockpit has room for a pilot and gunner if one is required. The passenger compartment comes equipped with a flat screen we can use for mission debriefings, a mini-fridge here, and a cache of medical supplies here.”

“Impressive,” Squall nodded. “When is it getting here?”

“When are _they_ getting here,” Xu corrected, grinning. “We're getting a _whole fleet_! Including the more specially designed leader car, for your or my use, we're getting eight in total. With these babies, we can dispatch SeeDs all over the planet in hours without moving the garden at all. With a mobile garden, these things will solve all our problems about dispatching.”

“I'm glad to see you're so excited,” Squall grinned at her eagerness.

“Are you kidding me?! This is the best payment I've ever gotten. And it gets better! Guess!”

“And deny you the fun of telling me?”

“The entire garage is getting converted by Esthar technicians!” She announced, her cheeks bright red from joy. “They're coming with the first shipment of three ships in two days. They're going to make it the command center for our mobile unit. They're going to teach Nida everything he needs to know about these beauties. I've already got him started on recruiting and training pilots for the program. He's really stoked.”

“It's great news. Good work.”

“Oh, I know,” Xu smirked at her nails. “I'm the best. We're calling them the Bumble Bees.”

Squall raised an eyebrow. “Bumble Bees?”

“Yeah. From BB-349; Bumble Bees. We thought it fit with the garden theme. Oh! And here's the Queen herself. The fleet leader. It's a little more high end than the standard BB. It's smaller, but she also has bigger guns. A plasma cannon hidden here under each headlight. A mini-bar. That one is more for me than you. Bullet proofing, magic proofing, and extreme weather proofing. I've been promised it can handle the lower pressure of the upper atmosphere and a few hundred meters below the water before breaking. It's got the same tech that makes up the president's own car.”

“Impressive,” Squall agreed, admiring the specs. “You really made out like a bandit with that deal.”

“Yeah, I probably could have gotten more if I was negotiating with the president himself,” Xu grinned, hugging her tablet, and her new cars, tight. “He just kept saying 'whatever they want'. He's really lucky to have a capable VP, because I'm pretty sure he's a moron.”

Irvine snickered. Squall remained silent.

“Anyway, we're prepping the garage for their arrival now. We're getting them in shipments since it's taking a while to build each one. The Queen will probably be in the last shipment since she's being hand made. President Loire insisted.”

“Wonderful,” Squall nodded. It was a good trade. Great, in fact. Those little machines would make things a good deal easier for their mobile garden. “Anything else?”

“Yeah. You should check your messages,” Xu pointed to his tablet. “President Loire has been sending you near daily mail. When you didn't respond, he started asking me if you got them. I asked if it was important enough to disturb you, but he insisted that you could read it in your own time. Then just kept bugging me about whether you'd read them or not.”

Squall opened his messenger service and frowned. Xu had underestimated how many messages Laguna had sent. He had sent eighteen already, more than two a day. The last one he had received about thirty minutes ago.

Squall clicked on the box beside each one and mass deleted them from his inbox.

Xu raised an eyebrow at the action. “What if it was important?”

“It wasn't,” he assured her. “Anything else? Preferably more relevant?”

“Actually, yes. Come here.”

Xu walked him over to the map table and activated it. “So, Galbadia is in a total, massive economic and governmental collapse right now. Their entire power structure shattered and they're scrambling like ants to get things back in order.”

“That doesn't surprise me,” Squall said calmly. With the loss of first Edea, then Seifer, whom the possessed Edea had put in charge, they wouldn't have anyone to lead them. Deling was dead, most senior officials had been laid off. They had walked themselves into a corner.

“Point being,” Xu continued, “that they've stopped paying a lot of their SeeD contracts. Some of the private contracts are still good though, so I started going through them to see who needed to be recalled. As I was doing so, I ended up going to Timber. Galbadia has a SeeD spy there looking out for dissenters to squash. And look what I found.”

She pressed Timber's location on the map. It zoomed in, brought up a description, then listed all the past and current jobs. At the moment, there was only two active contracts. One had gone delinquent and showed in red text. The other, in green, was different from the completed black text.

It was labeled Forest Owls – 3. 

“Oh...” Squall blinked. That was right. He had a contract with the Forest Owls.

Xu clicked on the contract, bringing up a scanned version of the paper, the more official one and the translated version for Rinoa's benefit.

“A one time payment, long term contract. My least favorite kind,” Xu said distastefully. “It can't go delinquent because it's one time payment, and it's for an undefined amount of time so it can't expire. This is exactly why I never let Cid make contracts.”

“Oh, that was you?” Squall grinned.

“Rinoa thinks she's so slick, going behind my back,” Xu crossed her arms grumpily. “Well, too late to change it now. So we're just going to have to deal with the consequences. A contact is ironclad, no matter what. And, commander, since you've got nothing more important taking up your time anymore, I'm afraid this is your number one priority.”

Squall frowned. He really didn't want to deal with something like that. “Whatever. I'll just send some SeeDs down there to finish it up.”

Xu buzzed him with her mouth. “Sorry. The wording is specific. Cid painted you into a corner. Right there. 'No replacement of any SeeD members can be made'. He meant to keep her from requesting new ones, but he just made it so the three of you have to complete it.”

Squall groaned, his head falling into his hand. Why was everything so difficult?

“Galbadia is falling apart, but Timber is still its territory. I'm afraid that your contract has not yet been fulfilled. And SeeD never works outside of the bounds of the contract. You have to finish it.”

Squall let out a breath. “All right. Fine. Let's just get this over with. When did you say the first Bumble Bee shipment was coming in?”

“Three days.”

“I'll have Zell, Selphie, and Rinoa standing by. I need you to contact the White SeeD ship. They have something we'll need to pick up before we can head back.”

“There is good news,” Xu smiled at him. “With Galbadia in the state it's in, it shouldn't be hard to liberate Timber. So it shouldn't take you too long.”

Squall nodded, agreeing with her as his tablet dinged, alerting him to the fact that he had a new message. He rolled his eyes at Laguna's address.

He deleted the message without even reading the heading.


	46. Timber Wolves

The BBs were every bit the wonder Xu could have hoped them to be. The Esthar technicians worked fast and efficiently. The three ships that arrived were already operational and ready to see to the deployment or retrieval of SeeD members across the globe immediately upon landing in the renovated garage. One was quickly put to work reclaiming the SeeDs with delinquent contracts. The second was used to ferry newly hired SeeDs to a location near new their assignments without it being obvious that they were dropped off.

The third was set to assist them as needed, but first it was going to take Squall, Rinoa, Zell, and Selphie off to Timber to finish this up.

“I can't believe I'm going back,” Rinoa beamed around the new garage. “This is kind of exciting. I feel like I'm going home for the first time after moving out. And taller. Do I look taller?”

Selphie laughed at her. “Bet you can't wait to see everyone again.”

“I've missed them all a lot,” Rinoa nodded.

She and Selphie were standing together with their travel bags, waiting for the launch platform – what was completed of it – to be cleared so they could take off. Zell was helping with that, Squall was off giving Quistis some last minute instructions.

“Things are really different from last time,” Selphie remarked, smiling at the buzz of activity.

The BBs were newly arrived, so everything was still getting put in place. Nida was instructing the new pilots, who had received simulation programs from Esthar two days ago, on how they were to come in and leave a place without being seen. Everyone was running around. Sparks were shooting from various wires and metal plates as new pieces were welded and screwed into place. The garage looked very different.

“All right, everything is covered here,” Squall said, joining them. “We're clear for take off as soon as the pilot is ready. Nida! ETD?”

“Ten minutes! Fifteen max!” The pilot captain yelled back across the room.

Squall nodded and bent down to pick up Rinoa's bag. He stored it into his INVENTORY, then put Selphie's in beside it. His and Zell's were already put away.

“The White SeeD ship is passing by the southern end of the Esthar continent,” Squall continued, looking at the coordinate data on his tablet map. “We'll swing by, pick up the others, then head towards Timber. Rinoa, do you have a plan or do you want to consult Zone and Watts first?”

“Hm...I'd rather talk to them before doing anything. But I've got a general idea.”

He nodded, accepting that. “All right. Let's get to BB3 and prepare for take off.”

Rinoa grabbed Squall's arm, beaming at him as they walked towards the vehicle. He opened the door, lifting it up and revealing the creamy beige leather interior with soft carpeting and intricate detailing around the trim. There were six seats here spread out along the three walls with seat belts at the ready. Two more were facing away near the front. The pilot and gunner position.

The two of them sat down on the near chairs, Rinoa right beside Squall.

Selphie was busy admiring everything loudly and happily, not yet ready to sit. Though she kept throwing glances at the gunner's chair. There were tinted windows though and she eagerly dove to the seat immediately beside one to look out.

With her distracted, Squall leaned in close.

“Rinoa, we need to talk,” he said gently.

She looked at him, frowning with her hands pausing on the buckles of the seat belt. “Talk? Uh-oh. Is everything okay?”

“Yeah. No. Maybe.”

“That was helpful,” she snickered nervously. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No. _We_ did.” Squall sighed, leaning back into his seat. “I'd rather not discuss it here, but we do need to talk about it.”

He probably should have done so before now, but these last three days had busy ones for him. And by the time he was back in his room – _their_ room – at night, he was far more concerned with the pleasure in her arms to worry about the fact that they _still_ weren't using protection.

He should. He knew he should, but he knew if he brought up the topic that would open the discussion of her possibly being...

He couldn't even think the word.

Squall couldn't have kids. Especially not now when he was still so young. He knew that Rinoa didn't want kids so young either. Something had to be done, they needed to talk. Preferably not around everyone, but they would have to be on the lookout for a more private moment.

Squall's assurance that Rinoa hadn't done anything wrong calmed her down, as did the emotional reassurance he sent along to her. He was worried about something, but it wasn't causing him a great deal of panic.

So she didn't worry about it for now either and instead rested her head against his shoulder. She hadn't gotten much sleep last night, so she wanted a quick nap as they flew.

Actually, she hadn't gotten much sleep in a while. She was lucky to be up before noon simply because Squall kept her awake well into the wee hours of the morning. She wasn't complaining, she just wondered how he could still get up so early after so little sleep.

The man was a machine.

In only the best ways.

“What are you thinking about?” Squall asked, confused about her slightly aroused emotions.

“You. Of course,” she grinned, pressing in closer.

***

When Weiss told Zone that Squall was coming to pick them up, he expected a ship. At least he expected their garden to intercept them. He didn't expect the flying car that came zooming at them from over the water.

The White SeeDs around him marveled as the machine approached, slowing its speed as it did so. They didn't really expect it to be Squall until the ship began touching down on the open deck. It was just small enough to fit, and even then it was a bit of a squeeze.

The engine continued to rumble as the rear door was opened-

-and Rinoa was standing there, beaming.

“Rinoa!” Zone yelled.

“Zone! Watts!” She raced down the steps that extended from below the vehicle. Beaming and laughing, she threw herself into a hug with both men.

Calmer than her, Squall stepped into the doorway of the ship and looked down at them. Zone watched him from over Rinoa's shoulder for a moment before stepping back to get a look at her.

“You're okay!” He breathed, relieved.

“Of course,” she laughed, looking between them. “Why wouldn't I be?”

“Well, last time you were here...”

“Squall told us that you were unconscious, sir,” Watts frowned. “What happened to you, sir?”

Rinoa shrugged. “Just some stuff with a sorceress. You know, SeeD stuff. You wouldn't believe the lengths he went to in order to save me though.”

Rinoa smiled back towards Squall who watched her calmly. They had agreed, along with the others, that the fewer people who knew of her status as a sorceress, the better. Most of Esthar knew, of course, but the rest of the world was in the dark. And Squall would like to keep it that way.

First Adel, then Edea. Most people, aside from Balamb Garden, didn't know about Ultimecia but those two sorceresses were more than bad enough. And they were hardly the first bad sorceresses. There was a reason those women were feared and reviled. A reason Edea had chosen to sequester herself from the world. A reason that Odine had ordered Rinoa sealed immediately after hearing who she was.

Sorceresses were just mistrusted and hated. And those who didn't hate them either wanted to use them or kill them to gain their powers in turn. Squall would rather not have to fight the entire world. He would if he had to, of course, but he would rather not have the hassle. So they had agreed to try to keep what Rinoa was under wraps.

“Commander Leonhart,” Weiss nodded to him, coming forward.

“Commander?” Zone frowned.

“Weiss,” Squall nodded to him in turn. “Your men are doing well, I trust.”

“Of course. I see that you're doing well yourself.” Weiss looked at the BB interestedly.

“You know, you all are more than welcome at garden,” Squall said, looking at their ship. “The kids you care for as well. There's no longer a need to hide as you do. You can join   
with us.”

Weiss nodded. “Thank you. I'll take that under consideration.”

“Is that a polite 'no'?” Rinoa grinned.

“It's a polite 'I don't know',” Weiss grinned wryly at her. “We've been independent of our sister garden for a long time. It's hard to think about falling into the existing chain of command.”

“You don't have to be common SeeDs,” Squall told him, an eyebrow raising. “We've just added an air division to our ranks. I can't think of a single reason that we can't also add a sea division. Nautical needs aren't unheard of. White SeeD could be that for us. I would make you leader, of course.”

Weiss grinned. “How thoughtful of you.”

“We could make renovate the front gates,” Rinoa beamed. “Make them into a sort of dock like we're doing with the garage. Oh! I like it!”

“Don't get too excited. He hasn't agreed,” Squall told her calmly.

Weiss laughed. “I'll consider it thoroughly. I'll need to talk it over with the others first, of course.”

“Matron is aboard the garden again,” Squall informed him. “You can reach her by calling Cid, if you wish. Just in case you want to talk it over with her.”

“Thank you,” Weiss nodded to him.

Squall nodded back. “All right. Zone, Watts, are you ready to go?”

“Yep, got everything packed,” Zone pointed to their bags sitting behind them. “We leaving now?”

“No point wasting time,” Squall said, turning to walk back in.

Rinoa beamed as she followed after him. Zone and Watts said goodbye to Weiss and the others before rushing after them. Then stood in awe at the luxuriant surroundings. Squall ordered the pilot to take off as they found a pair of seats.

“Swanky,” Zone whistled. “Did Weiss call you 'commander', Squall?”

“He's been promoted since Timber,” Zell smiled at them. “Hiya, guys.”

“Hey, Zell. Selphie,” Zone looked at them. “So we're really doing this? We're really going back?”

“You bet!” Rinoa beamed, taking Squall's hand as he sat beside her.

Zone didn't miss the action.

***

The six of them were dropped off on the far side of one of Timber's forests. So that no one could see them coming, they had to walk the rest of the way. Which didn't bother anyone. The monsters in this region were easy to beat. Watts couldn't stop praising their skill though with each one downed. Zone, who hadn't ever seen them fight, thought it was the greatest thing he had ever beheld.

The gates of Timber used to be guarded by what remained of the Timber army. Closer now to the Timber town guard after the Galbadian disarmament of the country. No matter how bad it got though, they could at least say that they were protecting people from monsters.

As they approached, they were disturbed to see that the normal Timber soldiers stationed there had been replaced by Galbadian thugs. Soldiers that yelled and intimidated people as they walked through or even just nearby.

“What happened to the Timber guard?” Zone asked, frowning.

“Let's just focus on our plan,” Rinoa said, her jaw tightening in worry. “Watts?”

“Yes, sir! Gathering information is my specialty,” he beamed. “I'll have the low down on everything by nightfall, sir.”

“Watts,” Squall looked at him askance.

“Oh, right. Sorry, si- Sorry.” He swallowed nervously.

Squall was trying to get him to break the 'sir' habit. It was a tick that made him really easy to spot. It made him sound very polite, but it also identified him. Not a good quality in a spy.

“Zone?” Rinoa looked to him next.

“I'll gather the team. Meet at the train graveyard,” he nodded.

“Get going then,” Squall indicated with his chin.

“W-What? By ourselves?” Zone frowned.

“Those guards aren't there to protect the people from monsters,” Squall frowned at the G-soldiers. “I would wager they're to keep the people in line. It's probably best not to travel in a large, noticeable group until we figure out what's going on.”

“All right,” Zone nodded, grabbing for his stomach with the desire to bend over in pain.

But he and Watts were from here. They could at least make it in. They left the others and began walking towards the city on their own.

“Let's give it a few minutes,” Squall said.

“Zell, layout of the town,” Rinoa reminded him. “Selphie, you gather information too. It's better to get it from two sources than one, right? Squall and I will head for the train graveyard and get ready. And-”

“Rinoa, calm down,” Zell laughed. “We all remember what to do.”

“Sorry,” she rubbed her hands on her shorts. “I'm just so nervous. I didn't feel this agitated when I first came here. I don't know what's wrong with me.”

“It's because you're a trained fighter now,” Selphie grinned. “You know the risks and consequences and you're aware of yourself as a warrior. It's a good thing.”

Rinoa blinked, surprised by the assessment. Selphie beamed at her before jumping up and skipping towards town on her own.

“Did she really mean that?” Rinoa looked at Squall.

“You are a lot better than when you left,” Squall smiled gently. “You took out four thrusties on the way here and you didn't bat an eye.”

Rinoa grinned at the faded memory of her first thrustie attack. “Yeah...You're right.”

“Of course,” Zell grinned at her. “You're SeeD trained now, Rinoa. Partially by our own commander, no less. And a sorceress besides!”

“Zell!” Squall snapped.

Zell was already slapping his hands over his loud mouth.

“Damn. Did it again. I'll get better! I swear. You'll see! You'll be proud of me one day, Squall. With Hyne as my witness, I'll prove myself to you.”

Squall sighed as Zell started running towards the town entrance.

“He _does_ try hard,” Rinoa made a face. “That counts for something right?”

“Only something. If he wants to advance, he has to get better. He's a phenomenal fighter, if only he could control his mouth. I _want_ to promote him and I would at the first chance he gives me.”

Rinoa smiled as she leaned against him. “Thank you, Squall.”

He blinked, surprised. “For what?”

“Oh...for everything,” she let out a long breath with a smile. “For being you.”

“That doesn't seem like something to thank me for,” Squall said, confused.

“Trust me, I give thanks every day. Come on. Let's go not-suspiciously order something to eat before we go to the graveyard. There's this excellent restaurant that makes the best gysahl pickle soup.”

***

The train graveyard had always looked haunted and disturbed. Since the Forest Owls went into hiding, Galbadia had decided to trash the place further, probably in search of their base. A base that they could no longer find anywhere.

What they did find, however, was the destroyed shell of the replica presidential car that the Forest Owls had dumped here.

It was much changed.

“Woh...” Rinoa breathed as she stepped over the tracks, her eyes wide.

Just behind her, Squall was trying to grasp what he was seeing.

The train car was still attached to the tracks, unlike a lot of the cars around it. As they approached, a ray of sunlight came through the cloudy sky illuminating the majestic sight of the large tree that had burst out of the top. It's roots had broken through the walls and had anchored the car to the floor. Leaves fluttered down, dancing in the wind. The trunk seemed to twist up, reaching up for the sky in a beautiful display of nature overpowering man.

“What is this?” Rinoa breathed, looking around. “This tree looks years old.”

Squall frowned, trying to think back to the last time he had seen this car. Back when he had killed the undead body double of President Deling. Death by cure. Meaning life.

Had he and the others done this when they 'killed' the body double?”

“Squall, look at this!” Rinoa laughed breathlessly. “Have you ever seen anything so beautiful?”

“Every day,” he said immediately.

Rinoa beamed over her shoulder to find him looking at her. She beamed, her cheeks tinging pink at his words.

“I love you, Squall.”

“Yeah...” he nodded, letting her words wash over him.

Rinoa laughed. “You're supposed to tell me that you love me, too.”

“I _do_ love you, too,” he frowned, confused at the insistence.

Rinoa came back to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Don't ever change, Squall. Just stay so perfectly you.”

“Rinoa...We really need to talk,” he said, talking hold of her hips.

“About what?” She played with his shirt collar thoughtlessly.

“We've been rather...active lately, haven't we?”

She giggled. “I prefer to think of it as making love. But, yes, we are very 'active'. Very active. I don't know where you get all that stamina. Is that a various SeeD skill?”

“Judging by Zell and Irvine's reactions, I would say no.”

Rinoa burst out laughing. “Of course you would take that question seriously.”

“Was I not supposed to?” Why even ask him the question then?

Rinoa was smiling as she started kissing him. And Squall really needed to talk to her, but he wasn't going to deny her a kiss. Or the way her hips rocked against him even while clothed. Or the press of her breasts against his chest.

And, honestly, by then, he had completely forgotten that there was important things to discuss. He was actually thinking about which old train car would provide the most shelter and privacy. He could even feel Rinoa agreeing emphatically with that plan.

They only didn't seek out an abandoned train because Zone cried out as he ran through the graveyard towards them. They jumped apart. Squall growled over his shoulder at him. Rinoa kept running her hands through his hair, trying to calm him down.

Later, lover. As much as you want.

“I never get as much as I want. Life keeps insisting on interrupting us,” Squall grumbled.

Rinoa laughed as Zone stopped before them, panting. He pointed an angry finger at Squall.

“I know...you were not...just kissing her!”

“Are you seriously that out of breath?” Squall lifted an eyebrow. “How far did you run?”

“Shut...up.” Zone grabbed for his aching side. “Stop kissing our princess! She's not for you.”

The amusement that flashed over Squall's face made Rinoa want to giggle. Especially when it was followed immediately by a devious sort of playfulness, an emotion she was not used to experiencing from Squall.

One of his arms tightened around her waist. The other traveled down, under her duster, and cupped her bottom then traveled down her creamy thigh.

“She's never complained before,” he said as Rinoa trembled despite herself.

Maybe they could still seek out that train car.

“Stop it!” Zone grabbed Rinoa's shoulders and started pulling her away. Squall's arms tightened and Rinoa laughed as they tried to pull her apart. “I refuse to accept a guy like you as her boyfriend! She deserves way better than you!”

Squall was nuzzling Rinoa's neck, down her chest, to the top of her breasts. Rinoa got a little breathless, unable to help herself. She was just so susceptible to Squall's touch.

Zone was getting irritated. He didn't feel like Squall deserved the pure and perfect Rinoa. Honestly though, he would probably feel that way about anyone trying to go after her. Rinoa was like family to him, a little sister, and he was a very protective older brother.

“Stop it, you two,” Rinoa laughed. Her feet were off the ground now. Squall had his arms around her, one at the top of her back to keep her in place. Zone might as well have been pulling at a wall for all the progress he made against Squall's strength.

“Tell him to stop!” Zone growled, releasing her and falling back a few steps. “Get your face out of her boobs, SeeD!”

“No,” Squall said, resting his head against the globes from the height he held her up.

Rinoa laughed, running her fingers through his hair. “Come on, Squall. We have work to do.”

Her words had a much greater effect. He gently lowered her back down to the ground and she traced her fingertips down his cheeks as she went. She smiled at him once more before turning to Zone, leaning back against her knight's chest. Squall wrapped his arms around her from behind, holding her tight in defiance of Zone.

“Did you get the word out?” She asked.

“I sent word through the grapevine,” Zone said, straightening his clothes. “As many Owls that remain are going to meet us here tonight. I don't know how many are left though. The bar owner told me that things have gotten pretty bad since we left.”

“How bad?” Squall frowned.

Zone shrugged. “Didn't get a chance to ask. Some G-thugs came in and the owner had to push me out before they spotted me. He said no one was allowed to be there when the G-thugs are drinking.”

Rinoa looked thoughtful. “I wish Watts would hurry up. I'll feel better when I know what's going on.”

Zone nodded in agreement. “So, what's with the tree?”

Rinoa turned and smiled at it. “I like to think of it as a symbol of hope.”

Despite their desire to know more, Watts didn't show up until around sunset. Zell had already met back up with them. Selphie was MIA at the moment. Squall had built a small fire at the base of the tree and they crowded around it, planning and theorizing.

As bad as they thought it was, they weren't prepared for the news Watts brought.

“It's bad, sir!” He said, falling into his habit despite the very recent talk with Squall. He was so obviously agitated that Squall didn't even bother correcting him. “Real bad.”

“What's up, Watts?” Zone frowned.

“The old general that was stationed here? You know him, sir?”

“Yeah. He's a pretty nice guy. You know, for a G-goon.”

“He's gone, sir,” Watts shook his head.

“Where did he go?”

“No. Like _gone_. He's dead, sir. He was shot!”

“What?” Rinoa frowned. “You're kidding. But he was so nice. His entire company liked him. Even Timber knows that he was doing the best he could considering everything. At least he kept things peaceful.”

Watts nodded. “They're blaming it on the resistance movements. The officially say he was assassinated by one of us. But everyone knows it's not true. They say that it was actually his replacement that killed him then put the blame on the resistances so he could enact martial law.”

“You're kidding,” Rinoa paled. “But...martial law is so...”

Watts frowned. “It's worse than that. The entire Timber guard was disbanded. The running of the town is done by the G-army now and they're total bullies. Kids can't walk the streets anymore. And women are always in packs because if one's caught alone...”

Squall's hand tightened on Rinoa's wrist. “How? The Galbadian government is failing, how can they afford to keep up martial law here?”

“He's taken power. Like he's king or something. And he's got so many soldiers willing to bully for him that no one can stand up and fight. He's got the citizens starving and desperate. He's enacted all these stupid, petty laws and punishments because of martial law and people can be condemned for anything. There's little food, no peace, and the people are all scared. Timber's in a bad way, sir.”

“Damn,” Zone bit on his thumb, thinking. “What about the other resistance factions?”

Watts shook his head. “Sorry, sir. Most of my old contacts are either dead, in jail, or refuse to speak to me anymore. I'm lucky I got that much, sir.”

“What about Selphie? Wasn't she supposed to be gathering info too?” Zone looked around for her.

Squall frowned. “She's late. She should be here already.”

“Should we be worried?” Rinoa looked at him.

“Not yet. She could just be...caught up.” He knew that wasn't really true though. As spastic as Selphie was, she was still professional. She wouldn't miss a meet time.

Unless she couldn't.

“Women shouldn't travel alone, right?” Zell frowned at Squall. “You don't think she...”

“Honestly, I'd be more worried about the men in that situation,” Squall assured him. “I'm not going to worry yet. Not until we have a reason to. Trust Selphie.”

Zone nodded, getting to his feet. “Come on. The others should be arriving soon. We've got work to do.”

A lot of it, Squall agreed.

***

There hadn't been that many Owls to start with. There were less now. About the same amount of people showed up to the meet though. A couple members of the other resistance factions that still had hope or defiance left in them.

Still, it wasn't a great turnout. Nowhere near enough for a successful coup. And after being with the SeeDs for so long, Rinoa recognized that easily. She frowned at the group of desperate, hungry, and beaten people that had come at Zone's call.

“We can't do this with only these people,” she said, looking at Squall. “Especially since none of them are fighters.”

He nodded. “This is your show, Rinoa. What do you want to do?”

“You just don't want to be the leader right now.”

“Well, yes. But that's not all. I'm only a SeeD. As invested as I am in your success, it doesn't change the fact that I was hired to be here.”

“You probably make more in one paycheck now then I paid for the three of you back then,” Rinoa grumbled, nervous.

“Probably. But the fact remains that if I try to take control, this whole thing will fall apart. These people need a figurehead. A real leader.”

“What? Me?”

“Not unless you want to stay here to help clean up even after the revolution is over.”

Rinoa made a face. She loved Timber, she really did. But if she had to stay here, then that would mean Squall would have to give up garden to stay with her. She wouldn't ask that of him. Especially not since garden was as much her home as his now.

“Then who?”

Squall looked over her head to where Zone was talking to people encouragingly. He had a big smile on his face, pulling people into his enthusiasm and hope.

“Really?” Rinoa looked back at him. “Zone? But he's so...”

“Yeah, but he's a native. And he's trustworthy. I would say that, despite his lacking qualities, he's still got leadership material.”

“Based on what criterion?”

“Based on you.”

Rinoa started. “Me?”

“Yes. To an extent the other Owls, too. But most especially you. He knows how to gather talented people around them and set them tasks that they can complete to get things done. As crazy as your train hijacking plan was, you still succeeded in pulling it off. And he was the one overseeing all the pieces coming together.”

“I didn't really think of it like that.”

“He's emotionally invested in this. And he's a good, honest man. In a way, he's almost like Laguna. Without the bravery or fighting skills. He would be a good leader. But you're his adviser. So you can come up with plans. I'm just hired help. I can only do that. Help.”

Rinoa smiled. “Well, if it was up to me, I'd want more people. A more stable fighting base.”

“Good. And how would you go about getting that?”

Rinoa frowned, crossing her arms as she thought. “Well, it's not like Timber ever lacked for resistance members. There was always a lot of us. We were just all scattered and divided. So if we...”

“Yes?” He prompted encouragingly.

Rinoa bit her lip, trying not to be so excited. “What if we like...consolidated all the divided groups into one large resistance?”

“That takes care of numbers. But it doesn't fix their spirit. Look at those people. They're broken and hurt. They need hope. They need something to fight for. Something beyond the bleak day to day they're given by the soldiers.”

“What do you recommend?”

“Well, what's the one thing people all need? That brings people together and bonds them?”

“Food!” Rinoa beamed, excited. “We get them food!”

“More than that. We take food from the one abusing them,” Squall grinned. “We take from the general's table and give it to the people. Hope, food, and numbers all in one sweep.”

“Yes,” Rinoa grinned. “All right, then we'll need a plan for breaking into the general's residence and stealing his food.”

“Watts!” Squall called him over.

The eager young man was happy to run their way. “Yes, sir?”

“What have you learned about the general so far?”

“His name is General Fodder, sir. He likes to host big parties each week and allows his soldiers to do whatever they want in the meantime.”

“When's the next party?”

“In three days.”

The one who answered him wasn't Watts. Squall and Rinoa turned quickly as Selphie's voice and both were relieved to see her perched on one of the low branches of the tree.

“This is new,” she smiled, tapping the trunk.

“You're late,” Squall told her. “Why didn't you check in earlier?”

“Sorry!” Selphie jumped from the branches, flipping over in the air once before landing. “I snuck into the general's house and got trapped in a cupboard. I couldn't get out until the others left the room. They were talking about the party while I was there. Apparently he's always got too much food and drink and he likes to force girls from the town to attend so he can harass them.”

“He said that?” Rinoa frowned.

“It was heavily implied. Are we stealing the food?” Selphie grinned. “'Cause that sounds like fun.”

“We've only got three days. We need to work quickly,” Squall said. “Watts, you and Zone need to spread the word to the town without letting the G-army know. Rinoa and I will plan the break in. This will be our best chance to expand the Owls' ranks.”

“No.”

They turned back to see Zone walking towards them. Away from the hopeless, the smile on his face had faded into a more serious scowl.

“You don't like the plan?” Rinoa frowned at him.

“I love the plan. It's a good plan. But we're not the Owls. If we're gathering everyone, we can't expect them all to join under the Owl's banner.”

“Then what?” Squall asked, putting a hand to his hips.

Zone grinned. “We're going to adopt the name of our forefathers.”

***

The first target was the medical supply storage building.

The next day, around noon, the fire broke out. Black smoke began clouding up the sky in thick, billowing waves. The building was far from the general population and the recent rains meant the fire remained contained to the area. The Galbadian soldiers were scurrying around.

No one was sure who the first person to notice the watchers were. He alerted a second man who alerted two more and so on until almost all of the G-soldiers fighting turned.

The three people on the building, all dressed in black and wearing pale white masks over their eyes watched for a moment.

Then they were gone.

It wasn't over yet.

The next target was that very same afternoon, as night was beginning to fall. The prison was broken into and all the political prisoners were released. The true criminals were left behind, but the innocent jailed for protesting their treatment were freed.

Then quickly absorbed into the streets.

The five mask wearing, black robed watchers were spotted again before disappearing with those prisoners.

The next day tensions rose as G-soldiers were seemingly randomly attacked. Though the Timber citizens knew that those soldiers chosen were among the more cruel and abusive. They were found beaten, bloodied, tied in various streets. Not hidden away. One of them was strung up under a lamp post with a sign that said 'rapist' around his neck.

And more reports of the masked watchers spread through the city.

By the third day, the general had heard of these mysterious 'watchers' and he was furious. Though nothing happened that third day, he was yelling at everyone. Threatening to punish any citizen that walked the street. Anyone wearing black was detained.

Everyone kept asking who the watchers were? What were the masks? Why?

And even though the general was coming down harder on the populace, people were more curious and excited to see someone fighting back. It stirred up old, angry sentiments. The 'gifts' of the beaten and bloodied G-thugs probably helped ease hurt feelings.

General Fodder insisted his party go off as usual. And his staff worked round the clock to make it just as blown out as usual. If there were a few new faces, no one really noticed.

And as the Galbadian soldiers were heading towards the party, the Timberians were sneaking off deep into the far side of the city. Past the abandoned city hall buildings. Towards the dilapidated and once abandoned train graveyard.

It had changed since the last time anyone had seen it. A lot of the cars had been ransacked by searching Galbadian soldiers, most of the metal was covered in rust and dust. They kept moving forward, towards the large bonfire built at the base of a large, beautiful tree.

The people pointed, whispered, and wondered at the sight of it.

As more and more gathered, standing around the warmth of the bonfire, Zone watched them from where they couldn't see twisting his hands nervously.

“I don't think I can do this, Squall.”

“You'll be fine.”

“But-”

“Stop worrying so much,” Rinoa laughed gently, pushing against his shoulder. “You're perfect for this role. Squall said it himself, and he's never wrong.”

“Really? You said that, Squall?”

“...Sure.”

“Okay. I think everyone's here that's coming. Let's do this. Go, Zone! And make it count!”

The talking, the theorizing, was getting louder. Some paranoid soul had made the suggestion that maybe this was just a Galbadian trap. And as that thought took hold, people began shifting nervously, looking around as though for the G-thugs from the city.

From the upper branches of the large tree, out of the shadows, a black cloaked man with a black and white monster mask fell and landed on top of the train. Before the tree. The sound of his boots on the metal caught everyone's attention and he stood slowly.

Talking died down as everyone recognized the masked watcher.

He lifted his hands up, showing them from under the robe. “My brothers and sisters! We welcome you here tonight!”

“Yo, Zone! Why you wearing that doofy mask?” Some guy from the crowd yelled.

A few others started laughing, more squinted to see if it was him. On the 'stage', Zone laughed sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. 

“You recognized me that easily?”

“What are you doing, boy?” A woman yelled out, crossing her arms. “What's with the getup?”

“Yeah, I thought you were run out of town,” someone else called.

“Where's Watts?” Came a third voice.

“Calm down, calm down,” Zone gestured for the questions to stop. “Yeah, I was run out. But I'm back now. We're _all_ back now. And I can't believe what I've seen here.”

“Yeah, the G-army's taken over,” a woman up front, the former leader of the Forest Fox, spoke up, tossing her hair back. “Which makes this gathering stupid. We'll be lucky to just be imprisoned for a meeting like this.”

“I wasn't referring to the G-army,” Zone told her, hushing the agreements that had broken out at her statement. “I was talking about you all.”

Quiet fell over the crowd. Zone took his time looking out over them, making note of individual faces that he was very familiar with. These were all his people, had been his entire life.

“Have you all lost your pride?” He asked softly, sadly. “Have you lost your fighting spirit? How could you just allow the G-army to walk all over you like this?”

“It's not like we _let_ them,” A girl said, frowning at the ground. “We didn't really have a choice. They've got more power and resources than we do. And with martial law in place, they don't even have to pretend to give us fair trials anymore.”

A few others grumbled in dejected agreement.

“And?” Zone put his hands to his hips. “When has something like that ever stopped us before? We've always known it was a death sentence to face the G-army. We fought anyway.”

“Brave words from a guy who ran away the moment his head was the one on the chopping block!” More mutters of agreement.

“True,” Zone nodded. “I bailed. I don't deny it. I was picked up by a ship of SeeDs that took care of me and Watts both. I'll owe them for the rest of my life. Not just for that, but for teaching me. Seeing _real_ military maneuvers and strategy drove home just how weak what we were doing was. Starting with all of us. Us as a people! Do you know what the number one rule in SeeD is?”

“Anything for money?”

“The contract is ironclad?”

“Obey all orders?”

“No,” Zone frowned at them. “It's never fight alone. SeeD training is all about learning to fight in groups. In teams. They don't face any enemy solo. They come at it as one single, cohesive force. And they're all the stronger for it!”

As though it was a cue they had been waiting for, everyone dropped down from the tree.

Watts and Rinoa landed very near Zone. Squall, Selphie, and Zell were grouped behind them. The other former Owls took their place across from the SeeDs. All of them were wearing robes and masks and Zone didn't even blink, like it had been planned.

He looked back only once and Selphie nodded. Everything was ready.

He looked back and took a fortifying breath.

“And I want the same for Timber! We let Galbadia remain in power by fracturing ourselves into multiple, small groups that sometimes didn't even talk to one another. We never collaborated. We treated each other like distant cousins. We were family, but we didn't fight together. Is it any wonder that Galbadia was able to run over us like that?”

“So what is this?” The former Forest Fox chief asked him dryly. “A recruiting scheme? You want us all to become Owls now?”

“No,” Zone's hands tightened into fists.

He reached up and grabbed the mask over his face. He lifted it away from his face and held it up to the moonlight. Twin peeks that were clearly ears over something that looked like a muzzle shined in the light. Actually, away from his face and highlighted, it kind of looked like...

“Once, the mighty Timber army was filled with great men and women,” Zone said, looking up at his mask. “They called themselves the Timber Wolves and they fought for our sake. They protected us from monsters when the town was established and every day afterwards. Then they fought to the last man during the Timber War. And now, we've come to claim their name and their legacy. I don't want to be a 'forest' anything anymore. I refuse to hide in the trees, split away from my fellows. I am going to be a Timber Wolf from this day forward!”

A few people in the crowd shifted, speaking to each other in low tones. Zone lowered his mask as those behind him pushed theirs up onto their heads. Watts and Rinoa were familiar faces as were the other former owls.

It was Squall Zone summoned forward.

“Look here!” He said, pointing. “You three, step up.”

The SeeDs obeyed, walking more properly into the light of the bonfire. Only the former Forest Fox chief recognized them and her eyes narrowed.

“These are the SeeDs we hired,” Zone told them. “Three rookies when we first bought their services, that man there is now far more than your average SeeD. You are all looking at Commander Leonhart himself, leader of the _entire_ SeeD army!”

Loud murmurs broke out. Rinoa, frowning, touched Zone's shoulder.

“What are you doing?” She whispered.

Zone winked. “Improvising. Watch this.”

He turned back and lifted his hands, gaining silence rather fast. “Their contract says that they are under our command until Timber's independence. And you said yourself that a SeeD contract is ironclad. So he's going to do anything and everything in order to assure our victory. The same man that killed Sorceress Edea, that captured 'Sir' Seifer, and who single handedly caused the total collapse of the Galbadian government!”

“He's so dramatic,” Squall had to fight really hard not to roll his eyes.

What was with those lies anyway?

Oh, just let it be, Rinoa sent him a small smile. People eat up speeches like this.

“That's right, friends!” Zone yelled out over the talking that had broken out at his declaration. “The Galbadian government is crumbling, they're barely holding on. That's the only reason that worthless general sac of ochu fart is even 'ruling' Timber right now. There's no one to check him and take him to task for this.

“This is our moment! We're never going to get a better chance. Every day Galbadia gets their footing back under them. We need to claim our independence now! With Commander Leonhart and two of his top SeeDs, with Rinoa and Watts and...me. Join us. I may be leader now, but I swear on my father's blood that we're going to hold a free election as soon as we get this dictator out of our lives! What do you say? Will you join me?!”

The response wasn't as vigorous as they might have hoped. A few were nodding. A rare few actually looked inspired and fired up. Most continued to look uncertain.

“That's all well and good, Zone, but...” a guy started nervously.

“What's the problem?” Zone urged him to speak.

The guy shook his head. “It's just...kind of hard to think about overthrowing a government when you can't even put food on your table.”

Zone laughed. “What are you talking about? There's no _better_ time to think about overthrowing the government! If the 'rulers' can't take care of their people, then it's time for new rulers. But, you bring up a good point. An army is no good if they all die of starvation. So, as a sign of good will, I give you this!”

Zell lifted his finger at Zone's snap. Burning with a magical flame, he caught everyone's attention. He laughed as he 'shot' tiny bursts of fire-

-and hit the tiny explosives that Rinoa and Squall had placed earlier on the outer walls of the surrounding train cars. The blasts weren't big enough to hurt a grat, but they broke through the weak and rusty hulls of the trains.

And the outer walls fell and revealed the tables of food from the stolen general's feast.

Zone held out his hands as the scents washed over the people. “In three days we've already shaken up General Thrustie-Scat, and that's only with the handful of us. Imagine what we'll be able to do when all of us fight together!”

The cry that rang out was considerably more encouraging this time.

***

“You know, I don't think I've ever seen everyone this happy,” Rinoa said, smiling out at the impromptu party that had broken out around the bonfire.

Well, maybe not impromptu. They had the fire, the food, and, after a surprisingly short time, music to urge them along. And these downtrodden people were eager to have _something_ back in their lives that wasn't misery.

Squall and Rinoa had chosen an old, abandoned train car seat that had been dislodged from its place to make room for the food tables. Squall was sitting on one end, facing Rinoa on the other. She had drawn her legs under her and was smiling at him as they ate from the same plate. They hadn't taken much, but it was nice being drawn into the festivities even only slightly.

All the Timber Wolves had removed their masks and cloaks. For tonight at least, they wanted to just be Timberians enjoying a night with their brethren.

“They have something worth fighting for now,” Squall said simply, looking out at the talking, laughing, and even dancing people.

Selphie was among those turning around the bonfire. Her infectious laughter was catching and she was drawing even the more shy guests into a twirl. Zell was off to the side, doing fire tricks as a form of entertainment. Zone and Watts had been lost a long time ago amongst the other Timberians. It was good to have their hometown boys back and everyone wanted to hear their story.

Squall and Rinoa were content for the moment staying out of it. Rinoa was sure she could have convinced Squall to dance with her if she wished it, but she was happy right here.

“Thank you, Squall,” Rinoa said, surprising him.

“For what?” He looked back to her.

“For this,” she gestured towards everyone. “If you haven't broken into the med storage or freed those prisoners or hunted down those G-jerks, I don't think anyone would have listened even with the food. What you did really helped.”

Squall shrugged. “It wasn't a big deal. Honestly, it was kind of nice doing something easy again. I feel like things have only been getting more difficult lately.”

Rinoa nodded, leaning against the back of the seat, still smiling at him. The firelight danced in her eyes and Squall couldn't look away from the shimmer. Not that he wanted to.  
“Is Zone going to need you again?” She asked softly after a moment.

“Can't imagine why he would.”

“Then can we go back to our car? I'm kind of tired.”

“Sure.” Happy to oblige her, Squall stood and offered her his hand. She took it with a smile and laced her fingers with his as he led her away from the fire. No one noticed them go as they were swallowed by the shadows outside of the 'circle' of trains as it was.

Their feet crunched on the gravel as they walked deeper into the graveyard. Since none of them had a place to stay anymore, they had all claimed some of the old train cars as temporary 'homes'. Squall had chosen theirs from one of the old museum pieces that had been left to rot when Galbadia had this place converted into the graveyard it was now.

He helped her up onto the back as the front was sealed by the corpses of other trains. She opened the door and walked inside first. Squall followed and shut the door behind him. Then grinned.

“You were certainly busy today.”

“Well, I figured if I was hunting monster meat, I might as well use the other pieces too. What do you think?”

The old train seats had long ago been gutted and thrown away, leaving an empty shell of a car. Squall and Rinoa had been sleeping in his sleeping bag in the center for the last three days. She had her own of course, but she always wanted to share his and he didn't complain.

However, since Squall had left this morning, she had done some redecorating. The sleeping bag had been fully unzipped so the soft cushion could be spread out. Then over that she had thrown the pelt of what looked like the leathery hide of a buel then over that the fur of a torama. She had even completed the 'nest' with pillows stuffed with cockatrice feathers.

Squall grinned, crossing his arms. “You've made yourself at home.”

Rinoa laughed, untying her duster. She dropped it from her shoulders and tossed it over towards their bags. She started towards the bed she had created with a swagger in her hips that Squall couldn't help but watch.

He had always been partial to her breasts, but those hips...

Rinoa looked at him over her shoulder, grinning. “You didn't really think we were _just_ going to sleep, did you?”

“I had hopes,” he admitted, tossing his jacket over to join her duster.

Rinoa grinned as she sat on the edge of her pallet. Squall watched as she unlaced her boots then set them to the side. She wiggled out of her shorts next. Then turned and crawled, offering him a very pleasant view of her backside, to the center of the bed in just her underwear and tank top.

She turned then, sitting back against the pillows. She ran her fingers up her thighs.

“Well? Are you just going to just stand there or are you going to join me?”

Squall didn't need any further invitation.

Setting his boots, then his belts and gloves to the side, he followed after her in just his pants. Rinoa grinned as she opened her arms and Squall rose over her. He ran one hand down her bare thigh, enjoying the soft smoothness of her skin.

“Rinoa, we really need to talk,” he said, mesmerized by the sight of her skin. They were alone now, it was probably the best time they would likely get for a while.

“About what?” She asked, already kissing along his neck and chin.

It took him a moment to remember. Then he did and pulled back. Putting some deliberate distance between them, Squall sat on his haunches.

“What's wrong?” She frowned at his absence.

“Rinoa...We've been rather careless.”

She sat up a bit. “No, I think we've been doing okay. The G-army here is already freaked out. At this rate, Timber will be ours before the month is out.”

“I wasn't talking about the mission.”

“Oh?”

“I was talking about...us,” he pointed between their half nude bodies.

Rinoa cocked her head. “Meaning...?”

“We've been having sex without protection.”

It took a moment for the words to register. Then Rinoa's eyes widened as she realized the truth, and implications, of that fact.

“Oh, sh-” Grimacing, Rinoa bit her lip. “You're right. I-I didn't even think of...”

“Yeah, me either,” he ran his hand through his hair.

“And you've been...”

“Every time.”

Rinoa made a face as she thought back to just how many times he had spilled himself into her. And the number got so high that she actually blushed at herself. A blush that only worsened when she realized that she probably wasn't even remembering the number accurately.

“Exactly,” Squall nodded at her thoughts.

“Oh, Hyne,” she moaned, running her hands down her face. “I am _so_ not ready to have a kid right now.”

“Yeah, me either.”

“I mean, if I was going to have anyone's...”

“You better not be thinking about having someone else's,” Squall frowned.

Rinoa giggled. “No, of course not. But, Squall, we're still teenagers. There's no way we're ready to be parents. And we just got together! I don't want to share you with anyone right now. And I still want to be able to have sex whenever we want and go on more adventures and just...live...”

“Yeah,” he nodded, agreeing with her. “We need to start being more careful.”

“Right. Maybe it didn't happen,” Rinoa said hopefully. “I mean, some people have more trouble getting, uh, you know, than others.”

“Have you had you're...”

Rinoa blushed bright red. She so didn't want to have this conversation with him, but she couldn't deny him the right to ask the question at this moment.

“Well, no, but that doesn't mean anything! It's been really irregular for a while now because of all the stress and fighting and everything.”

Squall made a sound in the back of his throat as he leaned back against the pillows. Rinoa automatically turned and leaned against his bare chest, one of her legs curling up over his. He held her by the shoulders, looking up and thinking.

“I don't suppose you have any...” Rinoa looked to his INVENTORY.

“No,” he said regretfully. “I've never needed to keep any on me before.”

Rinoa made a face. Because it would be stupid now to try making love when they realized that they didn't have any protection. There was a chance, however small, that she wasn't, you know, yet so why tempt fate?

And yet, without protection, that would mean that they couldn't do it tonight. Which would be the first night since they had started. While it didn't seem like such an egregious punishment when she thought it over empirically...

He was half naked under her hands, her bare legs were trailing over his thighs. She could feel the slight humming of arousal turned on low after their serious conversation, which was only making her feel more aroused, which in turn fed back into his desire. They were never fully satisfied and the thought of missing even a single night together...

“Maybe you could just pull out,” Rinoa suggested almost desperately. “You can do that right?”

“Hyne, yes,” he declared gratefully, rolling over her and taking her lips eagerly. He could definitely keep himself in control enough to do at least that.

He couldn't.


	47. Interim President

Squall was going through his messages again this morning. He did it once at night before going to sleep and once in the morning after making love with Rinoa. Since he was on assignment, he couldn't give up any more time for it than that. He had a report from Quistis, from Xu, and from Cid. He also had two new messages from Laguna that he had received during the night.

He deleted both of those without hesitation as Rinoa ran her fingers through his hair to try to straighten the locks out from their night together.

“We have no self control,” she grumbled before leaning over and kissing his shoulder.

Squall was sitting between her legs, leaning back into her. He was dressed, she was not. But she wasn't getting up yet. It was barely past dawn and, while Squall had things to do this morning, she didn't. And she was still exhausted since they had only gone to sleep a few hours ago.

“I'm sorry,” Squall said looking at her over his shoulder. “I should have tried harder.”

“Locking my legs the way I did probably didn't help,” she made a face. “It's okay, we'll get it right tonight.”

“Absolutely.” Squall kissed her gently before getting up. Rinoa leaned back against the pillows, her eyes half closed again already.

“Squall.”

“Hm?”

“How come you always delete Laguna's messages?”

Squall didn't respond for a moment as he fixed his belts back in place. Rinoa just continued to watch him, well used to her boyfriend's need to gather his thoughts before he answered a question.

Sure enough-

“I have nothing to say to him.”

“So you don't want to talk about-”

“No.” He cut her off a little sharply. Rinoa frowned and he looked away. “Sorry. But, no. I don't want to talk about it. Just leave it where it is.”

Rinoa smiled at him sadly, but let it drop. It wasn't up to her to bring up the subject. When Squall was ready to talk about it, he would. Until then, it wasn't like they didn't have more immediate problems and worries.

Squall kissed her one more time, caressing her face as she fell back to sleep, before leaving. He was in charge of hunting down more dirty G-soldiers this morning and he was taking a few of the new recruits with him to teach them the ropes.

***

General Fodder no longer had the oversight of the Galbadian government. Which meant that he was pretty much free to do whatever he wanted to Timber. But it also meant that he no longer had the backing of said government.

As more and more soldiers went missing or were outright attacked, soldiers stopped wanting to bully the natives. Especially when, if a Timberian was being attacked, the Timber Wolves would descend in full masks on the soldiers.

General Fodder couldn't request backups so the gradually more traumatized and scared soldiers were all he could work with. Threats about pay cuts only meant so much when on the other side there was an actual threat to their lives.

Usually it was the SeeDs leading the raids. They would train the wolf recruits and direct them when they went out to beat back the G-thugs. It only took about a week before it was the recruits starting to lead themselves.

And as it became obvious that it only took a request to earn Squall's assistance with almost anything, people began spamming him for attention throughout the day. Mostly for training so they could fight for Timber on their own.

It took only a few days for Squall to have his own class where he taught people how to use sabers, blaster edges, and basic hand to hand combat.

Zone was exactly the leader Squall had promised Rinoa he would be. While he wasn't a fighter or a strategist or even really that brave, he had a knack for finding people to be those things for him. The Timberians were happy to follow him because he seemed so open and honest. His ability to laugh at himself won a great many hearts.

And as he did so, the ranks of the Wolves continued to expand. The freed political prisoners were happy to join them as were the members of the disbanded Timber Guard. The more common citizens were slower to come together, but the leaders of the old Forest resistance groups were happy to respond to Zone's call.

The group had grown so big that they had expanded beyond the train graveyard. They had taken over the abandoned government building that had once been the seat of power in Timber. And now it was again. People began cleaning, renovating, and repairing the building that had been decaying over these last twenty years.

Yet another of General Fodder's feasts went missing. And the man lost his mind. He started declaring insane laws that could end a person in jail immediately.

He found, however, after those laws came into affect that there was almost no one left in Timber to enforce them on. Everyone had started abandoning town in favor of moving into the graveyard or into the old municipal buildings.

The G-soldiers that dared travel in that direction soon found themselves either dead or beaten halfway there, depending on how hated that particular guard was. Soon none wanted to come there and General Fodder found that it was very hard to be dictator of a country with no countrymen.

Getting rather desperate, he finally did send a letter to Deling City. Heavily edited and continuing to blame the resistance for killing the previous general. He gave him all the information he could, even including some of the names of known members. Including the most famous of them.

“Sir, letter for you from General Fodder, current overseer of the territory of Timber.”

Former General Caraway lifted his head from the piles of paperwork in front of him. It took a moment for his tired eyes to focus on the messenger in front of him.

Though radio waves were working once more, Deling City had yet to start using communication devices again. There just wasn't money enough to make the switch since the government had collapsed. Caraway was just happy that they could still relay paper messages.

He held out his hand and took the letter from the young man. The messenger remained before him because he hadn't been dismissed as Caraway read the missive. He frowned as his eyes moved down the page.

“Marshal law? Why would he have enacted marshal law without permission?”

“General Fodder says that he enacted it after the resistance movements killed his predecessor,” the soldier explained.

Caraway frowned. “Not the Timber resistance.”

“Yes, sir.”

Caraway looked down at the letter. He knew all about the resistances. None of them were powerful or motivated enough to try to kill the general in charge of Timber. Especially not since Caraway had specially selected him because he was known as a pleasant guy and he hadn't wanted Timber to be a further issue after the war.

“And now the resistance is threatening to take Timber away from him?” Caraway growled as he read that line. He didn't have the luxury of dealing with this!

Honestly, he didn't care about Timber. Deling had been the one who wanted it. As far as Caraway was concerned, it was just another war in their history. If they really wanted it back so bad then-

His thoughts froze in his head as he read the name of one of the biggest troublemakers.

“Commander Leonhart of Balamb Garden?” He read, looking up slowly.

“Yes, sir. He's apparently a SeeD that the resistance bought. I don't know how they managed to afford the commander himself. They must be a great deal more powerful than we thought.”

Or they had trapped the commander in a contract before he was commander. Caraway leaned back at his new desk, thinking quickly.

Squall Leonhart was in contract with Rinoa. And now he was back in Timber and Caraway had no doubt what contract he was fulfilling. Then that meant Rinoa was also likely back in Timber...

Caraway hadn't been sure of his daughter's location since she had went missing after he had arranged to have her taken from D-District. He had a good idea where she had gone, but he hadn't been able to be sure. Especially after the reports of Balamb Garden becoming mobile.

But now he knew where she was.

And he knew where that damned SeeD she had been so attached to before was too.

“You, go tell my general that we're heading for Timber immediately,” Caraway told the messenger before him formally.

The soldier snapped to attention, saluting him. “Yes, President Caraway! Right away!”

***

Rinoa's thrashing against his side woke Squall from a deep, relaxing sleep. From the sunlight coming in through the high windows, he could tell that dawn had just barely broken. He probably had only been sleeping for a couple hours. And Rinoa, trapped in the throes of a nightmare, was whimpering and panting as she writhed.

“Rinoa,” Squall grabbed her shoulder. “Rinoa, wake up!”

She cried out, gritting her teeth as her eyes clenched shut tight.

“Rinoa!”

He shook her a little harshly and she gasped with terror as her eyes snapped open. For just a second, she didn't recognize where she was or what was going on.

Then Squall materialized in her eyes and a sob broke through her throat. Tears rolled down her face as she grabbed hold of him. She squeezed him tight as she cried. Squall laid them back against the pillows of their nest. He caressed her arms, her back, her head until her shaking stopped.

Only then did he ask, “Are you okay?”

“Sorry...” Rinoa buried her face into his shoulder. “It was just...just a nightmare.”

“What was it about?”

She didn't say anything for a second.

“Rinoa?”

“I dreamed you died...”

Squall frowned as he pushed her back to look her in the eyes. “What?”

Rinoa sniffed, rubbing the tears from her face. “I dreamed you were fighting Adel and she killed you. I had to watch you die...then melt through my fingers.”

“Hey.” Squall took her face in hand, wiping away her tears for her. “That's not going to happen. Adel is already dead. Right?”

“Yeah...”

“And with your healing magic, you could probably save me from anything. Right?”

She smiled. “Yeah.”

“It was just a nightmare. It won't happen.”

“Yeah!” She threw her arms around him, kissing him eagerly. Desperately. Like he might have really just died and she had just gotten him back.

Squall let her push him over onto his back so she could climb over him. She continued kissing him, rocking her hips gently against his, as he took her waist.

And they made love until his touch burned away even the last vestiges of the dream. And when he didn't pull out this time, she didn't say a word about it. She wanted it today and she didn't care what it might cost her later.

***

“All right, here's the battle plan,” Rinoa said loudly to the gathered group of rebels and SeeDs.

Zone stepped forward and nodded to them all. “General Fodder has pulled his soldiers back and barricaded himself inside his mansion. We've scared them that far. This is our chance to strike and get them out of Timber for good!”

A few cheered. Some banged on the table that had a paper map of the mansion. Zone held up his hands for quiet, nodding with a smile.

Rinoa took over as his strategist. “There are four main entrances into the mansion. One on the front, two on the back, and the service entrance here on the west side. Squall, Selphie, Zell, and I are each going to lead a group towards one of the doors. Selphie, you're taking the front. Don't hold back.”

Selphie laughed evilly and Rinoa frowned.

“And also don't kill any of our own men.”

Selphie nodded seriously, but she was still grinning maniacally.

Rinoa continued. “Zell, you will be heading for the service entrance. Meanwhile, Squall and I will split up between the two back doors. At Zone's signal, everyone moves in. Our goal here is to capture the general overseer of Timber. Kill or capture any G-thugs that get in your way. But we need General Fodder alive.”

Zone took over. “General Toe-Jam _has_ to be alive. I know, I know...” He nodded along with the others' boos and hisses. “But we need to get him to sign the papers declaring Timber as independent. Then we can ship him and any remaining G-lackeys back to Galbadia.”

“We strike tonight!” Rinoa declared, slamming her hand down onto the table. “At exactly 23:00 when most of the house will be asleep.”

“Uh,” someone raised their hand. “What's 23:00?”

“Oh, um, 11 o'clock,” Rinoa translated. She had been hanging around Squall too long and she had slipped into military time without thinking. “We have six hours left. Use that time wisely. Prepare your weapons, your items, and yourself. We've already designated groups and assignments have been posted on the board in the common area. We meet at 22:15 at the tree, we leave at 22:30. If you're late, you're left behind. _Don't_ be late.”

“Dismissed!” Zone ordered.

Excited, talking eagerly about their assignments, the other Wolves filed out of the room leaving only Zone, Rinoa, and Squall behind.

“Ugh, I think I'm going to puke,” Zone said, leaning over the table.

“You did fine,” Rinoa beamed, patting his back. “You barely flinched at all. Right, Squall?”

“...Sure.”

“See, even Squall barely noticed!”

Zone pushed himself back up, grabbing for his aching stomach. “I can't believe we're actually doing it. I mean, I've been dreaming about it so long that I can't believe it's really happening.”

“Don't worry about a thing, Zone. Just leave the rest to Squall and me. We've got everything else covered. You just get ready to hold that election. Someone's going to need to keep everything together until the ballots can be cast.”

“Paperwork. I can do paperwork,” Zone smiled wryly, still appearing nauseated. “Nice, safe paperwork...”

“That's it,” Rinoa beamed, pushing him along. “Don't worry about a thing. You'll get a call in about seven hours telling you that Timber is ours again. Then someone will have to plan the epic after party that we're going to be having.”

“Party planning. I can do that too,” he smiled.

“Exactly,” Rinoa beamed, pushing him out the door. “You get to it.”

She turned back to Squall after Zone had walked out. She smiled at him.

“Six hours until we leave. Got anything on your to do list?”

“I only need one hour. Probably less,” Squall said, walking towards her.

Rinoa beamed as she wrapped her arms around him. She leaned her chin against his chest, smiling up at his face. The expressions he allowed himself were subtle, but they were a far cry from the blank look she had used to receive. And the tenderness there as he put his arms around her was more telling than a hundred love confessions.

“Five hours, huh?” She smiled. “Think that's enough?”

“It never is,” he leaned down to rest his forehead against hers. “After we wrap this up, and we get back to garden, we're really going to have to do something about the protection issue.”

Rinoa laughed. “Especially considering neither of us can force you to pull out.”

Squall tightened his grip, pulling her up on her toes so she was face to face with him. Her arms lifted up and wrapped around his neck instead, holding herself there.

“Admittedly, my self control when it comes to you is rather lacking,” he nodded, gently stroking her side with his thumb. “We're also going to need to talk about what to do if it's too late and you're already...”

He still couldn't say it.

Rinoa said it for him. “Pregnant?”

“Yeah...” Squall had to force the word past the lump in his throat. Not because he was so worried about the thought of her being pregnant, but because in hearing the word it really drove home exactly what their carelessness might cost.

And he was suddenly quite aroused at the thought of Rinoa being pregnant. The mental image of her holding a little dark haired child made his heart race and his belly swoop in excitement.

“Wow...” Rinoa blinked at his emotions. “That's new. That really excited you, didn't it?”

Squall cleared his throat. “I don't know what...”

One baby. Two. Three. A family. A big one. A home filled with the laughter of children. Of their children. A warm, cozy place that was loud and just a bit chaotic. The thought of it filled him with such a strong, sudden longing that it left him floundering slightly.

“Wow,” Rinoa said again, pushing back to look better into his face. “I didn't know you wanted a family so badly.”

“I...didn't either,” he shook his head, trying to dislodge that picture. It wouldn't be banished. It continued to cling determinedly to his brain. Feeding into itself so each new image expanded into a bright, happy family scene.

“Hm...” Rinoa leaned back against him thoughtfully. “You really like thought.”

It didn't show on his face. He looked confused, almost flabbergasted. Like the mental images were hitting him like the flat side of a board to the back of the head. But she could feel his heart and it was crying out in delight at the idea of her giving him a baby.

Rinoa grinned.

“Squall?”

“Hm?” He had to work to focus on her face now.

“Do you want to come inside me?” She whispered salaciously.

Squall's back straightened as the bolt of desire nearly left him dizzy. That simple question immediately brought back that original fantasy of Rinoa round and beautiful with his child.

She grinned wickedly at his reaction. It was wrong, she knew, but she didn't often find something that left her boyfriend this speechless. If this was his thing, there was no way she wasn't exploiting that just a little bit. She stood up, leaning into his ear to keep whispering.

“You don't pull out because you _want_ to knock me up, don't you?”

“Rinoa...” Squall tried to warn her, but his own breathless voice was hardly threatening.

She couldn't stop. “You _want_ to get me pregnant. That's why you make sure you're as deep as you can be every time. You're excited by the idea of me carrying your baby.”

“Rinoa...You can't...” Squall's hands had tightened on her hips. She was beaming, happy to have found this thing that drove him crazy. It made her feel so powerful to see him reduced to nearly begging for mercy.

She wanted to see him lose control. She wanted that as badly right now as he wanted to impregnate her, no matter how stupid a thought it was. They weren't thinking of consequences or their age in this moment though. The world had narrowed to a far finer point and the only thing that mattered was the growing desire that had his hips gently, instinctively rocking into hers through their clothes.

“Do it, Squall,” she urged, pushing back into him, making him groan. “You know you want to. Come inside me again. Make sure I'm pregnant. Maybe...I already am.”

That was it. Squall reacted so quickly Rinoa didn't have time to do more than squeak in excitement before he was slamming her back into the wall. His lips were moving quickly against hers as he lifted her by the hips and wrapped her legs around his waist.

Rinoa was chuckling into the kiss, the thrill and excitement making her lightheaded. She didn't even notice Squall had been messing with her shorts until he was pulling them down. He didn't care about getting them off so they were left dangling from one leg as he quickly pulled himself from his own pants.

Then he was pushing into her. Fast and hard so Rinoa cried out. It was all she could do to hold onto him as he took her right there against the wall of the debriefing room.

Twice.

And filled her both times.

***

At exactly 23:15, Squall was stopping at the base of the large tree in the train graveyard. A few of the early birds were already waiting around, talking and forming groups based on the assignments that had been given out based on skill and experience.

Squall, as the person going directly for the general, had the most experienced, most skilled people. Rinoa was in charge of backing him up, taking over if he happened to fail, and securing the mansion and so had the second tier. Zell and Selphie, who would be securing the grounds and picking up any stragglers, had those who hadn't made the cut of the first two.

But everyone was necessary. All four exits out of the mansion had to be guarded to prevent Fodder from escaping. Squall wanted to hurry up and get back to garden already. And to do that, he needed General Fodder to sign the documents granting Timber independence.

As he was looking up at the tree, he felt something fall over his shoulders. He turned to see Rinoa smiling at him as she adjusted his black cloak. Hers was already on, her mask on top of her head. His mask was in her hands and she held it out with a smile.

After their...encounter in the debriefing room, she had needed to go clean up. She must have picked these up after she had finished.

Thanking her, Squall took his mask and placed it on his head as well. He would only need to pull it down for it to be in place. He might not be a Timber Wolf, but he would look like one when they took the general down today.

It was Rinoa that would force him to sign the documents, since she was more a Wolf than he was, but he was in charge of capturing the man himself.

“You're right on time,” Squall said, praising her simply.

“Thanks,” she beamed. “You're lucky I didn't pass out in the train car. You were so rough today.”

“Careful,” Squall warned. “We have a mission. We don't have time to do it again.”

“Later, lover,” Rinoa licked her lips, touching his arm through the cloak.

Squall had to work very hard to calm himself down. He actually had Shiva douse him in cold just to keep himself under control. Rinoa laughed when she felt the air around him plummet in temperature showing her just how far to the edge she was pushing him.

“We'll have our own after party,” she promised, winking at him before turning to walk over to her group of gathering Wolves.

Squall had to force himself back under control before he turned to his people.

22:30 came and Squall was leading everyone out. Once they reached the end of the graveyard, all four groups split up. They would all be coming from different directions in case one group was caught between the graveyard and the mansion.

Squall and his group, as the strongest and most fearless, walked confidently through town. The few people who weren't part of the resistance had locked themselves inside their houses for the night. The rest of the town was cleared out and moved into the graveyard. So the streets were empty, most of the houses were dark and cold after being abandoned. The G-soldiers that had once roamed the streets were gone and things were safer for their loss.

Wearing a dark cloak and a white and black stylized wolf mask, Squall was unrecognizable, completely indistinguishable from the rest of the resistance members behind him. They moved with perfect synchronicity, looking in every direction to make sure that no one was coming towards them. They knew that all G-soldiers had been recalled, but they were still careful and thorough because that was how Squall had trained them.

The general's home had been built after the Timber War in the Galbadian style. Because of that, it looked completely out of place. It also looked like the only building that hadn't become a ghost town with the revival of the Timber Wolves.

It was quiet now, dark because most of the inhabitants were asleep. General Fodder had still set a guard to walk the grounds though and Squall hung back with the others as he watched them. He quickly memorized the pattern of their movements and nodded to the people with him.

General Fodder had a fence around the property to keep people out and decorative bushes behind them so he wouldn't have to look at them. After running past the front gate, Squall led the others around towards the back gate. Selphie was going to be taking the front and he was pretty sure he would know when she began.

Zell had already arrived when Squall and his people joined him at the smaller back gate. Rinoa showed up after he did and her people crouched in a nearby alley, waiting for the other two to go ahead of her. They all exchanged a quick, silent nod from under their masks.

In the distance. Squall heard the unmistakable sound of an explosion followed a moment later by a metal gate crashing to the ground and grown men crying out in surprise and fear.

He moved first. Throwing out his hand, he said softly, “Blizzaga.”

The latch on the door froze over. Zell moved forward. He kissed his fist through the mask then reared back and slammed his knuckles down. The metal, made brittle by the extreme cold, shattered under the force of his blow. He kicked it open and stepped back.

Squall led his squad through first. Since they were going for the general, they were the most important to get inside. Rinoa would come in after, then Zell last.

Squall trusted them to follow their orders exactly. He ran towards the back door and drew his weapon from under his cloak. The bright, light blue adamantine glowed under the moonlight as he slashed quickly through the wooden door. It collapsed, useless, inside.

The interior of the home was elegant and refined, but still done in the Galbadian style. The halls were guarded by surprised G-soldiers that either Squall or members of his squad took down. Squall preferred to do it himself since he could do so much faster. However, he couldn't deny these people the right to fight for their own town. He only stepped in when it appeared that he was going to lose a member of his squad.

They cleared the first floor to the foyer. By then, Selphie's team had already broken inside and were working on cleaning up the G-soldiers on the first floor. Squall nodded to her as he ran for the large double staircase that led to the upper floors.

His people stayed right with him. The blueprints of the house were already embedded in his memory and he didn't have to search for the general. He already knew where the master bedroom was. Zell was going to be clearing this floor, he could focus on going after the man himself.

The master bedroom was protected by two on duty soldiers and a pair of double doors. Squall's adamantine gunblade cut through all three easily. The doors, what remained of them, collapsed inside and Squall stepped through the threshold.

General Fodder, having heard the commotion they were making, was cowering on the side of his bed in his nightclothes. He had a pistol in his hand that he pointed at Squall with a cry. The six quick shots he fired were stopped dead in the air and fell before hitting any part of Squall's body. The lead ammunition glittered from the ice that covered each one. With blizzaga's power, he didn't even need to summon a wall anymore. Shiva's mastery of ice had grown that much.

“General Fodder, we are taking you into custody,” Squall said as his people ran forward. The general attempted to reload his pistol but wasn't fast enough. He tried to strike against the wolves that grabbed for his arms, but they were working as a team and he had only himself.

Squall nodded, satisfied, as the Wolves bound him in rope. From within his jacket, he pulled out his communicator and sent out a quick call to the others.

“General Fodder has been captured. Tell all G-soldiers to stand down. We're coming out.”

Squall hung up after he head the cries of affirmative from Selphie, Zell, and Rinoa. As he was putting the phone away, he heard the distinct hollars of celebration from outside. Along with, he recognized a few moments later, the clear sound of Wolves howling into the night.

***

“You said seven hours, not six and a half,” Zone yelled loudly and excitedly as he joined up with Squall and Rinoa. He was wearing his mask like the other Timber Wolves.

“You complaining?” Rinoa asked, throwing her head back and laughing.

“Hell, no!” He howled to the sky, setting off the nearby group of Wolves to do the same.

General Fodder and his men were all tied up now in the middle of Timber's city square, not far from the train tracks. The city, so dark and cold just a short while ago, was now awash with light and activity as the Wolf howls awoke the citizens to the news of their overseer's capture.

There was an impromptu party being held in the streets of Timber right now. The Wolves were distinguishable because they hadn't yet removed their masks or cloaks. However, there were now other citizens joining with them in decrying the general and his men.

“Shall we start negotiations?” Rinoa grinned, hands to her hips.

“That's all you. I did my part,” Squall assured her.

“Zone?” She looked to him.

“Yeah, I'll come with,” he grinned. “At least I can stand there and look useful. Uh, Squall. He's not going to be able to like...attack, right?”

“He could try, I suppose,” Squall shrugged.

“Don't worry about a thing,” Rinoa beamed, touching Zone's arm. “Squall's faster than anything that guy can pull. Let's go. I want Timber independent already.”

The three of them, still masked and cloaked, walked up towards the general as a unit. Squall had to hand it to the man. At least his spine straightened as they came in close. He wasn't afraid to look them in the eyes, though it was clear by his body language that he wasn't going to try to escape. He knew better than that.

“Which one of you is the leader?” He asked immediately, attempting to take some control of the situation, verbally if not physically.

“You're going to be dealing with me, general,” Rinoa said, deliberately not answering the question. She was in the middle and that seemed enough for him.

He laughed. “You? You sound like a little girl!”

“And yet, look at the power I weild.” Rinoa reached out and stroked Squall's jaw under his mask with a grin on her face. “I'll make this very simple for you general. We're going to do all the work. All you have to do is sign a piece of paper.”

“Galbadia would never surrender to Timber!” He snapped at her. “I've already warned the interim president about your coup. Even now, he's sending troops to put you back in your place!”

“You lie poorly. I happen to know that Galbadia doesn't have the soldiers to spare to keep Galbadia from falling apart, much less to keep Timber.”

General Fodder started, surprised. “How did you...”

“So long as you sign peacefully, no more harm will come to you or your men,” Rinoa promised confidently.

“And what are you going to do, little girl?!”

“Whatever I want,” she grinned under her mask

Fodder tried to keep eye contact, but the sweetness of her voice in the threat of her voice was enough to still his voice and make him back away.

Zone chuckled. “Great. I'm glad we have an understanding. You wait right there, general. I'll have the papers to you in just a moment. Yo! Watts!”

Rinoa smiled at Squall as Zone went to find his right hand man.

“Ready to go home?” She asked softly.

“Absolutely.” Squall went to reach for her hand.

The screeching of tires was loud enough to cut off even the sound of the party. The Wolves and citizens all fell silent as multiple Galbadian military jeeps sped into view. They hit their breaks, sliding to a stop around the Timberians. Squall grabbed for his gunblade but he could hear the clicking of machine guns from the roofs of the jeeps and he didn't attack.

“Ha!” Fodder laughed at them as the Wolves huddled back together.

“Steady!” Squall roared over their murmuring. “Steady! Don't attack! Stay!”

He could see a few weapons lower slowly. Some more reluctantly than others. The SeeDs all moved around to the edges of the circle, fully prepared to fight before the Wolves. There were a lot of jeeps here, but Squall was sure they could take them.

The only question was how many civilians would die while they were doing so.

Squall heard jeep doors opening following by the clicking of more guns as soldiers from within the jeeps took aim on all of them. No one opened fire though.

“Squall?” Rinoa looked to him, her hand on her Star under her cloak.

“Steady,” he repeated softly.

The last jeep door opened. Then closed. Squall heard the sound of boots on stone and turned quickly towards them. He wasn't the only one.

Caraway walked into the light of the jeep headlights. His hands behind his back in parade rest position, he stepped into view quite calmly. He looked out over them, glancing at their dehumanizing masks and cloaks. Then to General Fodder who was already babbling.

Caraway came around towards Fodder. The other general was trying to rat out the resistance, though it couldn't be more clear what was going on.

“Shut up,” Caraway said coldly, silencing him. “General Fodder, you are relieved of duty.”

“What?!” Fodder gasped.

Caraway ignored him and looked to the wolves. His eyes moved over them but he couldn't recognize anyone among their number because of the masks and cloaks. He could see black and brown hair all over the place, telling him little.

He smiled without any real warmth. “Well, this has certainly been an exciting evening.”

No one responded. There was the slight shuffling of feet but no one tried to come forward. Squall could see, out of the corner of his eye, Zone being pulled into the crowd so they could hide their leader. They were protecting him over themselves.

Caraway didn't need them to talk back though.

“Sad business, this,” he shook his head, looking around. “First, I should apologize. The actions of Fodder were not approved by the government. However, we're here now and we're just going to have to work with what we've got.”

Squall, Rinoa called silently into his mind.

Stay calm. Don't let him know its you. I won't let him have you.

Caraway snapped his fingers. A G-soldier ran forward and placed a folded document in his hand. He held it calmly and continued walking before the captured G-soldiers.

“First, I should introduce myself. I'm former head general Fury Caraway. Current interim president of Galbadia.”

Squall!

It's okay. Just act natural. He has no power over you.

“And I'm going to be honest with you all,” he continued calmly. “The truth of it is, I don't have enough manpower to fight over Timber any longer. My army was decimated by the actions of President Dealing and that child Seifer whom the sorceress put in charge.”

He stopped and faced them all formally. “However, they're gone and now I'm in power. And I think you'll find that I'm a very different sort of ruler than either of them.”

He held up the folded document for their eyes.

“This is the official order and acknowledgment of Timber as an independent nation, with absolutely no ties whatsoever to Galbadia. It promises your complete sovereignty. The only thing missing is the signatures to put it into effect.”

The silence over the gathered Wolves was tense and harsh. Zone fought his way to the front, standing between Rinoa and Squall. Caraway looked at him because he was the only one moving. Zone met his gaze under the mask as calmly as he was able.

Damn, his stomach hurt...

“I am not unwilling to sign this,” Caraway said directly to him. “I have more than enough on my plate dealing with Galbadia. I don't need Timber's problems too. Especially not when you're so eager to deal with them yourself. You can have it all.”

“And what do you want in return?” Zone asked, hoping his voice didn't shake too much.

“I have only two demands. First is that former General Fodder and his men be turned over to me with no further harm to them. I'm sure you won't disagree since they're mine anyway.”

“And your second demand?”

“I want one other person.” Caraway lowered his hand back behind him in rest position. “They aren't even one of you. They aren't Timberians. It won't hurt you at all to surrender them.”

“Give me a name,” Zone snapped, the 'no' already on the tip of his tongue.

Squall...

I won't let him take you!

Caraway grinned. “Squall Leonhart.”

“What?” Rinoa called out in confusion. Zone frowned behind his mask. The others broke out into whispers behind them.

Rinoa had fully expected her name. Everyone else had expected Zone's. It would make since for Caraway to want to punish their leader and no one but Rinoa and Squall knew about her familial connected to Caraway.

Calmly, Squall reached up and pushed his mask from his face. Caraway's gaze turned to him and the two men met each other's eyes calmly across the distance between them.

“And what exactly is it you want with me, President Caraway?” Squall asked politely, as though they were talking over tea.

“Does it matter?” Caraway returned. “I've just given you the way to fulfill your contract. As a SeeD, you can't deny me this.”

“You just said yourself you have no need to keep Timber.”

“And I don't.” Caraway shrugged carelessly. “That doesn't mean I have to let it go either. I would say, judging by the numbers here, that this is every able bodied person in Timber. What's to stop me from ordering their slaughter right here?”

Squall's eyes tightened as the others pulled in closer.

Caraway appeared unbothered. “This isn't the full population. But I bet I can do enough damage here that the rest will soon be eaten by monsters from the forests. This place will be wiped from the map. Or you can surrender yourself.”

“What makes you think you'll get away with that?” Squall returned, crossing his arms. “I could kill you from here, Caraway. Your men might get a few of these people, but mine would have all of them downed before they could take out everyone.”

“And will you accept that number on your conscious? Oh, forgive me. I forgot. You're a death dealing mercenary. What are a dozen more lives to add to your list?”

“Exactly my point,” Squall returned.

He passed over his mask.

“Squall,” Zone hissed, taking it in hand. “What are you doing?”

“My job,” Squall returned. He unwrapped the cloak from around his shoulders and put that into Zone's hands.

“Squall,” Rinoa whispered under her breath.

I'll be fine, he assured her silently.

Confidently, he walked towards Caraway. His boots were loud in the silence, the jangling of his belt and gunblade echoing over them.

Caraway held up his hand, stopping him. “Your weapon, Leonhart.”

Squall nodded and reached down. He unlatched the belt carrying his gunblade and held it up. A soldier ran forward and took it in hand. He ran back to his jeep quickly. Squall was left with only his ammo belt and his empty Odine capsules.

“Thank you for your cooperation,” Caraway said as Squall drew even with him.

“The papers, Caraway,” Squall reminded him.

“Of course. Have your leader step forward. I'll need his signature as well.”

Zone lifted his mask from his head. He passed it and his cloak along with Squall's to Rinoa. Trying to remain upright against the nervous gnawing in his gut, he stepped forward. He was more than a little bitter that the older Caraway looked so much more slick and put together.

Caraway snapped his fingers and a soldier ran forward with a clipboard and a pen. Caraway placed the papers onto it, unfolding them. He flipped to the third page – because these things were always long winded, and to the lines for the signatures.

His sharp edged name, perfectly neat and legible, went down first. Then he passed them to Zone.

Hoping his hands weren't shaking like he knew they were, Zone took it. He hand to clench down hard on the pen to add his untidy scrawl next to Caraway's signature. His heart felt like it was in his throat as he passed it back.

Caraway nodded as he took them. Then turned and held them out to Squall.

“If you don't mind,” he smiled politely. “We need a witness signature to prove that neither party was coerced into signing.”

Squall took it from him calmly. He added his own, slightly looping signature to the bottom. Then folded the papers and passed them to Zone, directly over Caraway.

“Your independence, Zone,” Squall said.

“Thank you,” Zone whispered, taking it from him. He wasn't talking about the papers.

“Well then, that's done,” Caraway nodded. “Shall we, Leonhart?”

Squall nodded and looked to the Wolves. “SeeDs, you may return to garden. I'll join you shortly.”

No answer came but he didn't expect one. He followed after Caraway towards his jeep. The president indicated for him to climb into the back first and Squall did.

The president's jeep wasn't like the others. Indistinguishable from the outside, it was luxurious and open on the inside. Like the back of a limousine.

Squall took his seat in the far seat. Caraway climbed in after him and sat across from him, with his back to the driver. There was only a few feet of space between them, but the icy chill in the air made it feel vast as a canyon.

The door was shut behind them and Squall heard the jeep start up. It jerked as it began moving and he lounged back in the seat as though at his leisure.

“Shall we talk now, or would you like to wait?” He asked, supremely confident and calm.

Caraway glared at him darkly but just as calmly. Why was he sitting so close to the door? Like he was leaving room for someone else. “I suppose I should congratulate you on your promotion. Commander. At your age. How...impressive.”

“You're so kind,” Squall said dryly. “And to you as well. President. That's a big accomplishment. Well, it would be if the people had actually voted for you. Did you step in the second Seifer went missing, or did you begin to move when he left Galbadia?”

“SeeD must be truly desperate to choose a child as their leader. I didn't realize you were left so wanting for numbers after the missiles were launched at you.”

Squall shrugged. Caraway's insult had landed about as effectively as his own. Neither man was the type to rise to that type of bait.

“Shall we get down to business?” Caraway asked.

“Lets,” Squall nodded. “Why did you ask for me? Why not just ask for Rinoa directly?”

“Would you have given her to me?”

“No.”

“That's why.” Caraway reached down to the mini-bar set into the wall. He lifted two glasses up and began pouring golden scotch into them. “I'll admit, I'm surprised to see Rinoa is still with you. I figured she would have given up on you already. She's only with you to make me angry.”

“And does it?”

“Very much,” Caraway glowered, his voice icy.

Squall smirked.

“Drink?” Caraway held out the snifter.

“Thank you, but no.”

“Oh, of course. Are you even old enough to drink?”

“Yes, but not stupid enough to accept a drink from a known enemy.”

Caraway smirked as he sipped his own drink. “Well, I suppose they wouldn't have made you commander if you were a total dunce.”

“I thought we were going to get right to this, Caraway?” Squall lifted an eyebrow to him. “What is it that you want?”

“Then, I'll say it straight. What will it take for you to return Rinoa to me?”

“Nothing immediately comes to mind,” Squall said without missing a beat.

“I suppose I could just kill you.”

“You could try. Then she would kill you. I'll admit, I would be a bit proud.”

“Of course you would, blood bringer.” Caraway set down his snifter, leaning back into his chair with one leg crossed over the other and his hands on his lap. “Do you want money? That has always worked to move your kind in the past.”

“Not even for all the gil in the world. And how dare you try to buy her back like she's an object to put on your shelf. Which is all you ever wanted her for anyway.”

“Excuse me?” Caraway narrowed his eyes angrily.

“She told me everything,” Squall assured him, lifting one arm onto the back of the seat. “She told me how you pretty much ignored her after her mother died. How you didn't care about her so long as she was playing the good little princess up in her tower. You treated her like a responsibility, not like your daughter.”

“Everything I did, I did for her,” Caraway said softly, his voice low and dangerous. “I acted only for her best interest.”

“You cared for her, I won't deny you that. But you didn't love her.”

“What does a heartless mercenary like you know of love?”

Squall's eyes narrowed dangerously. “I know more than you.”

“She doesn't love you. She only wants you because she likes trying to punish me. She's only going to hurt herself and I will do anything to keep that from happening. So name your price, SeeD. What will it cost me to get my daughter back?”

Squall crossed his leg as well and coolly said, “Not for all the money, not for all the power, not for anything in this world will I give her up. If you try to take her from me, I will destroy everything in my path to get her back.”

“Are you threatening Galbadia, commander?” Caraway's eyes narrowed

“Absolutely,” Squall said without fear. “Do you think I won't order every single SeeD to take Deling City apart brick by brick? Do you think I won't have your precious country razed to ash to find her? There is nowhere you can take her that will keep her from me. And I am more than powerful enough to destroy it all for her.”

“What if I just kill you now?” Caraway pulled a pistol from his coat and leveled it at Squall's heart.

Squall didn't flinch. But the air in the car suddenly got a great deal colder. Caraway frowned as the windows fogged up, the scotch began to ice over, and his skin broke out in goose flesh. It was far below freezing in the compartment.

“You Galbadians. So obsessed with your weapons,” Squall murmured softly. “You always seem to forget that a SeeD is never unarmed. You took my gunblade, you didn't touch my GF. And both of them are more than powerful enough to kill you. To destroy this entire convoy. And I wouldn't lose a single night of sleep to do so.”

“Blood bringer,” Caraway spat, keeping his pistol aimed on him.

“I don't deny it. I'm the one who killed Sorceress Edea. I'm the one who killed Sorceress Adel.”

Caraway started.

“That's right. Both of them died by my hand. I didn't become commander because they were desperate. I'm commander because there isn't a single person in that garden who can match me for strength, speed, or skill. And every night, I go to sleep with your daughter in my arms after making her scream my name until her voice is hoarse. The next morning, I do it again before I go to work. Then I let her stay in bed until noon because she never gets to sleep until the early morning because of me.”

“You bastard!”

Caraway's pistol was loud in the back of the car. The lead fell gently to the ground, clicking against the hard floor covered in ice only halfway across the cabin. Caraway snarled.

“Your daughter is my woman now,” Squall said mercilessly. “And you, Caraway, are not a factor in our lives at all. Even if she became interested in me to make you mad, she still stays because she wants to make me happy.”

“Damn you!”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three more bullets hit the ground. Squall didn't even twitch.

Squall grinned at his pointless attack. “And if you don't believe me, you can ask her yourself.”

The roof of the car rippled like water. Caraway cried out, the gun falling from his hands. Squall quickly raised the temperature of the room back up again with Bahamut's power so when Rinoa lowered herself through the ceiling she wasn't uncomfortable.

She landed neatly on the seat beside Squall, her golden wings vanishing into nothingness. She smiled at him sweetly, crossing her legs like she did such things every day. She held up the gunblade in her lap and offered it to him.

“Picked this up for you, babe,” she beamed.

“Thank you,” Squall said, taking it from her. He couldn't put it on in the car, so he leaned it against the seat beside him.

Rinoa leaned against his chest, nearly pouring herself into his lap, as she put her arm up against his shoulder. Then, with her father watching, she pressed her lips to Squall. She enjoyed the kiss thoroughly. Not even just because she knew it angered Caraway, but because she always enjoyed kissing Squall.

They separated and Squall was grinning at her. Caraway was steaming across the cabin. Rinoa looked at him with distaste.

“What did you do?” He demanded, like this was Squall's fault.

“She did it,” Squall said, running his hand down Rinoa's arm, just wanting to touch her. “I told you. I killed both Sorceress Edea and Adel. Surely you know about the succession of sorceresses, Caraway.”

“No...” His eyes went wide.

“Oh, yeah,” Rinoa smirked.

“She is now the only known sorceress on all of Gaia,” Squall shrugged like it was nothing. “I trust you can appreciate that and know not to let the news leak. Though I figure you should know. Just so you can understand what you'll be getting into if you try to take her back by force.”

“How dare you?!” Caraway snarled at Squall. “You put her into such danger and you dare to disparage the way I treated her?”

“You treated her like a child! I made her a woman!” Squall snapped at him. “When I found her, she couldn't even defend herself! This is a dangerous world, Caraway, and you couldn't even see to it that she was able to fight for her own life!”

“It should never have been an issue!”

“No, it shouldn't have, but when it became one she would have been eaten by monsters if it hadn't been for me! I would never put her in danger on purpose, but I know if she's ever in that situation she'll be able to get herself out of it. Love isn't putting her on a pedestal and keeping her locked away from the world. It's showing her the world and how to survive in it!”

Caraway snarled at him, unable to think of anything to respond with. Squall wasn't looking for a response anyway.

“You can rest assured, Caraway, that nothing in this world can take her from me. Anything that tries will have to face our combined power and I promise you that will not end well. No matter who or what, from the most wild monster to the interim president of Galbadia, nothing will escape our wrath.”

Caraway's fists tightened as he turned his eyes to his daughter. She was deliberately not looking at him. Her gaze was down on Squall's lap, looking far into the distance.

“Rinoa,” he said softly.

She didn't move, but he knew she was listening.

“I did what I did to protect you. Because I loved you. I'm not...capable of expressing myself well. You know that.”

“Neither is Squall,” she said softly, still keeping her eyes down. “I might forgive you one day. For now...I'm not leaving him. We're going back home to garden. We have our own lives. I might...I might be pregnant.”

Caraway started. “What...?”

“I figured you would deserve to know.” She finally turned her eyes up, her hand moving back to cover her flat stomach. “If I am, I'm not going to prevent you from being in our child's life. For better or worse, you're still the grandfather. However, if you're as distant and cold as you were with me, I promise that our child will never love you. So think very carefully, General, about what is important to you. Because you're still my father.”

“Rinoa...”

“We're leaving,” she said firmly, taking Squall's hand. “If you have anything you want to say to us, you can message Squall through official channels.”

Golden wings burst from her back as she pushed up from the seat. Holding Squall's hand, she pulled him through the ceiling. It was a very strange sensation, like stepping through water without getting wet. Then they were flying in the air over the convey.

Rinoa hovered for a moment, waiting for the last car to pass. When it did, she lowered them both slowly back to the ground. Squall's feet hit the road then he turned as she followed after him. Her wings vanished again as she let out a long breath.

“Okay?” He asked, touching her arm gently.

“I feel...sad,” she admitted, reaching up to cover his hand with hers. “Right?”

“Like you said, he's still your father.”

“Squall...If I am pregnant...”

“You won't have to coerce me to be part of my child's life,” he promised. He reached out and pulled her into his arms. “You are the most important person in all of the world to me. And if we have a child, I would love it just as much. I don't know how good a father I'll be. You know how I am. But I would try. And I would never attempt to lock them from the world.”

“I know you wouldn't,” she nuzzled his neck gently.

The rumbling of an engine turned their heads as the BB3 from garden came flying towards them right on time. Rinoa smiled a bit at seeing it.

“Those things really are handy.”

“Let's go home,” Squall told her, smiling gently. “Where we belong.”

“I love you, Squall,” she whispered, holding him tighter for just a bit longer.

“Rinoa, there has never been anyone more important to me than you. I can't lose you. I wouldn't survive it. You're my entire life. I love you more than I can stand.”

Rinoa smiled, leaning back to look into his face. His calm, serious face. A face he had spent the better part of a decade perfecting to hide the turbulent emotions within.

“I know,” she kissed him gently as BB3 landed. “Just so you know, I would destroy a nation for you, too. The entire world if I had to.”

Squall grinned and they laughed at each other. At how hopelessly dependent they were on one another. And neither of them complained about it either.


	48. Visions of the Past

Rinoa hummed as she finished making Squall's bed – _their_ bed. She smiled, tingled at the thought of it being their bed. She had finally officially moved out of the guest dorm on the first floor and now this third floor room was _theirs_. She just loved thinking that word.

_Theirs._

That over there was _their_ bed. That was _their_ sofa. That was _their_ bathroom. Not hers, not his, but _theirs_. Together. And it set of a fun, swooping feeling in her belly every time she had that thought. Just in thinking it so many times, she felt like she was floating.

Crying out in excitement, she fell back on _their_ bed and kicked at the air while laughing.

Squall wasn't around to see her display. He was downstairs getting his official instructor's license from Xu. Though he wouldn't be given a class or students of his own, Xu felt like he should have the paperwork making if official since he was the only gunblade instructor on campus. Rinoa couldn't help but wonder how long until Squall did have his own class despite his current protests. He always seemed to get roped into things like that. And while he usually hated it at first, he always just grew to accept it and make it his.

Pushing herself back up again, Rinoa smiled around the room. She had spent the better part of this morning unpacking her things and, honestly, the room looked more hers than theirs now. Mostly because it wasn't a mixture of their things. Squall had almost nothing so everything was pretty much just hers.

She frowned at the unfair distribution of items. She hadn't tried to take over this room. She had just collected more knick-knacks than Squall so they spread out further. To decorate a bit, she had hung his trainer gunblade on the wall. The simple saber didn't even have a functional gun, but she liked the look of it up there.

The bathroom was now filled with her many potions and lotions for her hair and skin. There were pictures in his little living room of her and all her friends here at the garden. She had tried to make the one she took with him take center stage. Her clothes were taking half of the space of his closet and one of his two drawers.

_Their_ drawers, she grinned to herself.

It was a pretty productive morning, all things considered. She had finished their laundry instead of waiting for someone else to do it. She had cleaned out the mini refrigerator. She had taken the time to clean the blinds, the floor, and every flat surface.

She frowned at she set her elbow on her knee then her head on her hand. The nesting instincts were kicking in and they were kicking in hard.

Rinoa knew she should probably go see Dr. Kadowaki. Though sexual activity was banned in garden, there seemed to be an unspoken, unwritten rule that the third floor was exempt. And the good doctor wasn't a fool. She knew rules only made people hide what they were doing. So she kept a stock of pregnancy tests just in case.

Rinoa had been avoiding it specifically because she didn't think she was ready to know. She wasn't sure she could handle either result, positive or negative.

Of course she wanted it to be negative. She was still a teenager. She wasn't even 18 yet. There were still a lot of things she wanted to do before she settled down with a child. She hadn't even taken a day off at a Balamb beach to torment Squall in a bikini yet! No way was she ready to give up being young and selfish to be a mother right now.

At the same time...

Squall got so excited at the thought that she might already be pregnant.

Slowly, looking out the bright window, she reached up and placed her hand over her flat stomach. If there was a life growing there, _their_ life growing here...

It wasn't even just sexual excitement. He became incredibly happy every time he thought of having a family with her. Was it because he hadn't had a family? He had been raised an orphan his entire life then sent into a military school before he even hit puberty. He had no idea what it was like to have a real family. At least Rinoa had that, for however short a time it was.

Squall wanted a lot of kids. He wanted a big family. He didn't want to be a father before he turned 18 either, but she knew how happy he became whenever he thought of _their_ family.

She desperately wanted to give him that happiness. To make that dream a reality. She had the power to do it. And if she had already started...

Rinoa looked down and smiled at the belly she had been caressing thoughtlessly. She laughed at herself as she stilled her hand and just cupped her own stomach where their baby would grow.

If there wasn't a baby already in there, then definitely one day. She would give him the biggest, best, and most beautiful family that ever existed. She would let him get her pregnant as many times as it took to drive away the ghosts from his own childhood.

And if there was already one in there...Well, then they were going to be the best teenage parents that ever walked Gaia. And he would probably need to wait a little for number two, but the big family thing was still definitely going to happen.

Rinoa, I'm trying to work, Squall told her silently over the distance. You're making it very difficult when you're getting me excited every five seconds.

Rinoa laughed. I'm sorry, babe. You work, I'll get back to cleaning.

She felt a rush of love from him and it washed over her like a kiss. She sighed happily as she leaned back on the bed. She was almost finished anyway. All she had to do was clean off the leather sofa then she would be done up here.

Then maybe she would find Squall and see if she could convince him to have sex with her in the middle of the day

It won't take much convincing. And I'm still trying to work.

Rinoa laughed as she pushed herself back up. The sound of her phone ringing in her pocket made her stop and she pulled the little device from her shorts. She accepted the call and was surprised to see Laguna's face in a video feed.

“Ah! How did you do that?” She gasped, delighted.

“ _I told you this thing did video, didn't I?_ ” Laguna frowned at the immediate question.

“Yeah, but we haven't figured it out yet. We're still getting used to the fact that we can just call each other whenever. It's pretty cool. We'll look at it later.” She sat back down onto the bed, curling her legs under herself. “So, what can I do for you, Laguna?”

“ _Actually..._ ” He hesitated and Rinoa raised an eyebrow. “ _I was wondering if...Squall has been getting the messages I've been sending._ ”

“Uh...” Rinoa frowned, thinking back to the messages he had deleted this morning. He still wasn't looking beyond the sender of those emails. She didn't say that, but she didn't really have to. Laguna wasn't stupid and he understood easily enough.

Sighing, he hung his head on the other end of the video. “ _Yeah, I figured it was something like that._ ”

“Sorry, Laguna,” she made a face. “Squall's not exactly the...open and friendly type.”

“ _I want to talk to him,_ ” he said softly, his voice ringing with desperation. “ _I don't want to force him, but I really just want...I know I said it would be his choice...but I..._ ”

Rinoa frowned, feeling a rush of pity for this man. “Laguna, look...Squall is just hard to talk to. At first. He'll open up eventually. I'm sure.” She hoped.

“ _Rinoa, I know I shouldn't but...can I ask you to talk to him? Just convince him to come see me. Without imminent death hanging over our head. A relaxed, private dinner. Just the two of us. I really want to..._ ” He hesitated again, unsure of how to voice himself here.

“I understand,” Rinoa smiled at him sadly. “I can't promise anything, but I'll talk to him.”

Laguna smiled at her gratefully. “ _Thank you, Rinoa._ ”

She nodded and hung up the phone. Then sighed and wondered how she was going to break the news of this one to him. He honestly might get mad that Laguna had gone over his head and talked to her instead of him.

***

“Absolutely not!” Squall said firmly. He gave her a dark look as he walked over to his desk. He opened a drawer and dropped his new instructor's license inside. Then closed it. All without once slamming or yanking anything. That wasn't how he worked.

Rinoa sighed, figuring that would be what was coming. “Squall, come on. He just wants to talk.”

“I know that. I've been avoiding talking to him.” Squall sat down on his chair and leaned back, just as angry as Rinoa suspected he would be that Laguna had asked her.

She came around the desk, smiling sadly at Squall. He watched her with careful eyes as she lowered herself onto his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. He held her back, because he always would, but she could still feel his irritation.

“Why won't you just talk to the man?”

“Because I have nothing to say to him.”

Rinoa laughed, caressing his cheek. “You know, excluding my own personal feelings, not everything is about you, Squall. Maybe he has stuff he wants to say to you.”

“I don't care to hear them.”

“Yes, you do.”

Squall frowned. “No, I don't. It doesn't matter to me. There is nothing he could possibly tell me that I want to hear.”

“It does matter to you.”

“No, it doesn't.”

“Yes, it does. If it didn't, you would talk to him just to shut him up. You're avoiding it because it does matter to you. Also, are you trying to lie to me about how you feel?” She reached out and placed a hand over his heart. “I can feel your anxiety, Squall.”

He shook his head. “Rinoa...I just don't want to deal with it.”

“I know. But think of it from his point of view. He just found out he had a child with the woman he loved more than anything. Why wouldn't he want to get to know you? You're amazing. If I died and you found out we had a son you didn't know about, wouldn't you do anything to get to know them? Even if they were an adult by that point?”

“That would never happen,” Squall assured her. “I wouldn't go off on an assignment without you. Nor would I allow you to die so easily. And if you did die, there's no way I wouldn't return to see what had happened with my own eyes. And you could just tell me if you were having a baby, it wouldn't matter how far apart we were.”

Rinoa laughed. “Squall, hypotheticals are kind of pointless when you bring that much reality into them. Just suppose if we _did_. Wouldn't you be dying to meet our child?”

Squall clenched his teeth together. Because of course he would. If the most horrid of circumstances fell together in the absolute wrong way and she somehow got pregnant then had a child without his knowledge despite their bond...

Yes, of course. Even if the child was full grown, he would want to know it. Because it would be _her_ child.

“ _Our_ child,” she corrected, kissing his cheek gently. “You don't have to hug him and call him 'dad'. He just wants to meet you. And as someone who knows you, I can't blame him. You're the greatest person in the entire world. And yeah, I'm a little biased. But I'm not wrong.”

Squall's arms tightened on her. He didn't want to have this meeting with Laguna. He didn't want to break open that past.

At the same time, if it were _their_ son...

He sighed.

“So?” Rinoa smiled at him. “Are we planning a trip to Esthar?”

“One night only,” he said firmly. “That's all he gets.”

***

It had taken a while for Laguna to get Esthar back under control after the Lunar Cry. Monsters just swarmed the area in such high numbers that they overwhelmed the troops trying to defend the city. The last time Squall had seen this place, people had been scared to leave their homes and monsters had roamed the streets almost freely.

After a few weeks though, things had returned to normal. There were more soldiers on the borders of the city than before to keep out the excess monsters from the wild, but citizens no longer had to fear walking the streets. As BB3 flew over the city, Rinoa and Squall could see the peaceful, incredibly advanced city laid out right below them.

“I didn't get to see it like this before,” Rinoa said, smiling gently. “It's really pretty.”

“A bit artificial for my tastes,” Squall said, thinking back to the seaside town that he had grown up beside. Even the garden had more nature than this place.

“Yeah,” Rinoa laughed. “I prefer a little more greenery myself. But it has its own charm.”

BB3 flew straight and true on towards the presidential palace. They had been given permission to land right in front of the residence. The BB3 was dropping them off then returning to garden. Squall would call it when he was ready to go.

Below, standing in front of the palace, Laguna was trying his hardest not to fidget or to let the cramp in his leg bend him over.

“Calm down,” Kiros told him firmly. “You being nervous isn't going to change anything.”

“I only get one night though,” Laguna moaned unhappily. “How am I supposed to explain everything in one night?”

“I'm sure you'll just talk incessantly like usual.”

Laguna gave him a look.

Kiros held up his hands innocently. “Ward said it, not me.”

Laguna turned his look to the larger man and Ward smiled brightly.

“Maybe it was a bad idea, forcing him to come,” Laguna rubbed his head. “How do I look? Do I look all right? I want to make a good impression.”

“Trust me, Laguna. The boy has seen enough of our lives to already have an impression. Just act natural and try not to say anything stupid. Wait, those are contradictory. Just try not to say anything stupid.”

Ward nodded in agreement. Laguna let out a long breath as BB3 landed on the road at the entrance of the palace. A soldier ran forward to open the door, but Squall was already opening it from the inside before he could make it.

It hit him hard every time just how much Squall looked like Raine. He had her hair, her eyes, her face. He was definitely her child. Laguna couldn't really see anything of himself in him. Especially not in that serious set of his eyes, the hard lines of his jaw, or the way he moved like he was aware of where everyone was in relation to him.

And though he hadn't seen it until she had told him her name, now that he knew what to look for, Laguna could definitely see Julia in Rinoa. She must have gotten her coloring from her father, but the lines of her face were definitely Julia. Distantly, Laguna wondered if she had inherited her voice as well.

Laguna stepped forward as Squall and Rinoa walked towards him. He did his best to square his shoulders and he tried to think of this as a business meeting. That was how he had survived it the last time. They weren't estranged relatives. He was the president of Esthar extending a friendly hand to the commander of SeeD. It didn't have to be more complicated than that. At least, not right now.

“Squall,” he smiled at him. “Thank you for coming.”

Squall nodded. “One night. We're returning to garden tomorrow.”

“Of course,” Laguna said, trying not to let it bother him. He smiled at Rinoa. “Thank you for coming as well. I can't tell you what this means to me.”

Rinoa smiled. “It's all right. So are we staying in the palace or are we renting a hotel? We won't mind either way.”

“Oh, no. Of course you're staying here,” Laguna gestured them forward. “I have a guest room made up for you on my floor. We'll have dinner there. Uh...Oh, Elle is here as well. She's excited to see you both again.”

Rinoa smiled politely. Honestly, she hadn't actually met Ellone before. Aside from a few glimpses on the Lunatic Pandora, she couldn't say she knew the girl at all. She was, however, very interested in meeting the one Squall still called Sis.

“I can't wait to finally meet her,” Rinoa smiled. “When is dinner?”

“Soon,” Laguna assured them both, stealing a glance at Squall.

The SeeD commander was looking determinedly forward, a blank look on his face that was far from encouraging.

“I have a few things to finish up, but I'll be up as soon as I can,” Laguna promised them as they stepped inside and stopped before the lift. “Feel free to make yourselves at home. Squall...it will be a private affair, I promise. Just the two of us. No one else need know anything.”

Squall spared him a glance out of the side of his eye. Then nodded and stepped onto the lift with Rinoa without looking back. She waved at Laguna as the barrier expanded over their head. Then they blasted off into the palace.

Squall let out a breath.

“See, that wasn't so bad,” Rinoa beamed, leaning on his shoulder. “And we have some time for you to calm down before dinner.”

“Yeah,” Squall nodded.

He so didn't want to be here. But he was here. It was one night. It would be over before he knew it then he could move on with his life without having to empty his email box multiple times a day. This was just like any other distasteful duty. He was just going to get it done.

“I'm proud of you, Squall,” Rinoa told him, snuggling in closer.

“Why can't we just ignore him like your father?”

“Because Laguna is at least making an effort. Caraway is...well, he's too little, too late. Besides, wouldn't you rather get to know him before you decide to just hate him outright?”

“I already know him,” Squall grumbled.

He had seen Laguna's life. He understood the circumstances. He didn't feel any particular anger at Laguna for what had happened in the past. It wasn't like things could be different. If Laguna hadn't gone, who knew what state the world would be in now? Adel might still be in power. Ellone might very well be dead or brainwashed into being her successor. Squall wouldn't be here now, beside Rinoa, if things hadn't taken the turn that they did.

So he wasn't complaining about anything. He just didn't want to open this chapter of their lives. He didn't want anything to do with it.

But it was happening. And Rinoa wasn't letting him back out. Not that he would. Squall had never run from a challenge in his life, he wasn't starting now. He would meet it face on like he did everything else. And when it was over, he would never look back.

He meant it. Laguna was getting this one night. Nothing else.

The guest room made up on the presidential floor was a palace compared to Squall's dorm, which would have fit into the enormous bathroom with room to spare. Rinoa cried out in excitement as she threw herself down onto the bed.

“Way better than a hotel,” she laughed, rolling over the blanket.

Squall shrugged off his jacket and threw it over the bed as he walked over to the large windows that looked out over the city. He tapped against them and felt reassured that they were at least bullet proof and he wouldn't have to worry about that.

“You are so paranoid,” Rinoa laughed. “Who would want to kill us out here? Especially sniper style?”

“I don't want to find out,” Squall assured her, turning from the window. He pulled his gloves from his fingers, looking at her. “So we have time before dinner. What do you want to do?”

Rinoa grinned as she rolled over, presenting her chest to him on the bed. She ran her hands down over her body and smiled salaciously. “Well, I can think of at least one thing.”

Squall rose his eyebrow. “Really? Here?”

“He did say we should make ourselves at home. And look at all this space we have to make it in. You wouldn't want to let this big bed go to waste, would you?”

Squall grinned at her. “Well, far be it from me to deny his hospitality.”

Rinoa laughed as she turned over and sat up on her knees as Squall came forward and leaned onto their bed, reaching for her already.

“We forgot to bring protection again,” she made a face.

“Honestly, at this point, do you think it really matters?”

Rinoa laughed, pulling him close. “You just want me pregnant already. You get excited just thinking about it, so it's no fun for you to wrap up.”

Squall kissed his way along her neck and around her ear. Rinoa trembled at the feeling of his lips on the delicate cartilage. She pulled him backwards, her back bouncing on the mattress. Squall covered her body with his, already rocking his pelvis into hers.

“You're probably going to have to be the responsible one in that department,” Squall told her shamelessly. “I have no control when it comes to you.”

Rinoa laughed, running her hands through his hair. “I'll see about getting something before we leave tomorrow. They probably have really good birth control here.”

Squall nodded, pulling at the strings of her duster.

“Provided I'm not already knocked up,” Rinoa grinned.

“You do that just to torment me,” Squall nipped at her neck, making her giggle.

“Absolutely,” she purred, lifting her knees and trapping him between her legs.

***

When the aide came to tell him that President Loire was ready for dinner, Squall took his time putting his gloves and jacket back on. His inventory, holding his gunblade, was stored safely away. He felt strangely like he was preparing for battle though.

Beside him, brushing her hair with her fingers , Rinoa was much more calm than he was. The aide had looked at her askance when she followed Squall from the room, but Squall hadn't allowed the question. Rinoa was coming and that was final.

The dining room Laguna had chosen was formal. Probably to give the dinner a less personal, more professional air. Not that the subject at hand could possibly be more personal. Squall still appreciated the attempt at creating distance.

There was only seating for two at the large table. Laguna, already waiting before his empty plates, jumped up when the door opened. Then frowned when Rinoa stepped in ahead of Squall. He quickly fixed a smile back in place as they came forward together.

“Evening, Laguna,” Rinoa waved at him pleasantly. “Finish all your work?”

“Uh, yes. Yes, I did,” he nodded. “Squall, I thought it would just be...I mean, not that you're unwelcome here Rinoa, but...”

“Don't lie to me, President Loire,” Squall said, outwardly the vision of calm and distant. “If you try to tell me that Kiros and Ward aren't hiding behind one of those doors, then you think I'm stupid.”

Laguna laughed sheepishly. “How did you know?”

“You're predictable,” Squall said shortly. He helped Rinoa into her seat before taking his own. “You may as well call them in here. If they're going to be listening in, they might as well do it from the comfort of a chair.”

Laguna scratched the back of his head, still laughing sheepishly. The door on the far side of the room opened without Laguna needing to say anything. In stepped Kiros, Ward, and-

“Sis?” Squall blinked in surprise.

“Hey, Squall,” she waved. Then she looked at Rinoa and beamed. “It's you. I really hoped that we would finally meet face to face.”

Rinoa beamed and stood up again to face her. The two girls reached for each other and sort of held hands as they smiled at one another. The women that loved Squall more than anything. For some reason, it warmed Squall's heart to see them being friendly.

Ellone sat across from Kiros, who sat next to Laguna, across from Squall, beside Rinoa, across from Ward. The six of them formed a block at the table as some quick servants brought out more placements for the extra guests.

Squall said nothing. Laguna was nervous. That left Rinoa and Ellone to fill the silence.

“I feel like I know you already,” Ellone beamed at her.

“Oh? How?”

“Well, I had to take a look into your past when you were possessed. I got to know you pretty well, actually. I really hope we can become friends.”

“Me too,” Rinoa beamed at her. “I'm glad I finally get to meet you. I heard a lot about you from the others. I felt kind of left out that I never got to meet you myself.”

The two of them exchanged inane pleasantries as the servants finished serving them. One last servant came in and set a small bouquet of flowers in the middle of the table to liven it up. Then they all vanished behind the doors leaving the president and his guests alone.

Rinoa and Ellone stopped talking then. Rinoa smiled at Squall, Ellone looked pointedly at Laguna. The two men stared back at the girls for a moment before turning to face each other.

Laguna let out a breath as he looked into Raine's eyes again. Only this time in a face that wasn't nearly so warm or inviting. Squall was closed off to him. He could see that easily without having to know him at all.

“Laguna?” Kiros prompted calmly.

“Right...” He cleared his throat. “I suppose...I should apologize first.”

“It's fine,” Squall said simply. “I understand what happened.”

“Of course.”

More tense silence. Rinoa bit her lip and shared a nervous look with Ward. She nudged Squall gently under the table, trying to prompt him to say something.

He had never been able to say no to her. But for the life of him, no matter how he cast his mind around, he couldn't think of anything to say. There was just nothing he wanted to know. No question, no confusion. It all made sense to him.

Laguna tried again before he could think of anything.

“It's not fine though,” he scratched his temple nervously, grateful he was sitting down so his leg could cramp up under the table and he could still look relatively normal. “I knew those people didn't like me. I shouldn't have taken their word on anything. I should have known they would have lied to me. If I had just gone back or...”

“It's fine,” Squall said again.

More silence...

They were saved at having to think of something else to say by the doors opening again. More servants came forward bearing the appetizer for the evening. Rich food that was placed down on their plates with flair before the people disappeared back beyond the doors. The silence they left was somehow louder than the silence they interrupted. No one touched the food.

“Squall, I would have never...” Laguna's mouth continued to work, but no sound came out. “I understand if you hate me.”

“I don't hate you,” Squall assured him, looking away from the president.

Laguna continued to try to speak without success. He felt like the space between the two of them was only growing wider.

“Maybe,” Ellone said quickly, putting her hand on Squall's arm, “we should just tell you what happened.”

“I know what happened,” Squall looked at her. “I told you I understand. I'm not angry.”

Ellone frowned. “I feel so guilty about all this. Like it's my fault.”

“That's ridiculous.”

“This is _not_ your fault, Elle.”

Squall and Laguna assured her at the same time. She smiled gratefully, sadly at both of them.

“Thank you. But it's not untrue that if it wasn't for me, things wouldn't have turned out this way.”

“Exactly,” Squall nodded. “I'm content with my life. I don't need the 'what if...' of another life.”

“Thank you, Squall,” Ellone smiled at him. “But...”

Laguna blew out a long breath, running a hand through his messy hair. “I gotta admit, I'm not sure what to say here.”

“You're the one that wanted to talk,” Squall frowned at him.

“I know. But...”

“Let me, Uncle Laguna,” Ellone smiled at him. “I'm the one who started all of this. I should be the one to get it all out there.”

Laguna nodded at her gratefully. Ellone looked at Squall. She opened her mouth, then hesitated. She bit her lip and looked at him carefully.

“Squall, it might actually just be easier...to show you.”

Squall frowned at her. “What do you mean?”

“Let me take you back to the moment I told Uncle Laguna the truth,” she said gently. “Witness it with your own eyes. Uncle Laguna didn't know about you before that moment. Only I knew the truth. That's why I...I started everything.”

“Sis...” Squall frowned at her. Under the table, Rinoa reached out and grabbed his hand.

“You know that I was on that White SeeD ship,” Ellone said softly, looking into her lap. “Edea and Cid woke me up one night and told me that I had to go into hiding. Adel was still out there, as far as they knew, and they wanted to keep me safe. I begged for you to come with me, Squall. I did. I cried and pleaded, but they said you would be safer...safer away from me.”

Squall said nothing, but he was listening very intently.

“I knew what you were then, but I didn't know the full meaning of it. All I knew was that you were Raine's...baby and that made you my family. And family had to stick together. They kept promising me you'd be safer though, and I was only a child. So I let them put me on the ship. I never really forgot about you, but...My life was so busy caring for the other children we picked up. Before I knew what had happened, over ten years had passed.”

She drew in a staggered breath, trying to hold back tears. “One night, while I was sleeping, I accidentally connected with Weiss. You've met Weiss, right? He's really nice. It wasn't the first time I had accidentally connected him while I was unconscious. Usually, I would dream about my parents or my time in the orphanage. For whatever reason though, that night, I dreamed about Raine. About the night she gave birth.”

Ellone hesitated then, looking up at Laguna. “I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.”

“It's okay, Elle,” he smiled at her, trying to hold back his own tears. “He deserves to know everything. Just keep going.”

She nodded, sniffing gently. “It was storming that night. I remember the lightning waking me up and I was scared. I had just gotten back from Esthar and I was still having nightmares. I knew I wasn't supposed to, but I ran across the square to the bar. To find Raine.

“I remember wondering why the bar was still open. Why there were still so many people there. No one noticed me when I ran upstairs. I remember Raine...screaming. Someone was yelling about blood. She kept asking about the baby. I knew she had a baby in her stomach then, but I didn't know how it was supposed to come out. I thought they were killing her.

“I started screaming. Begging them to stop hurting her. Someone tried to take me away, but Raine called me back. She held me. She told me it was going to be okay. She was just bringing her new baby into the world a little earlier than predicted. Winhill was such a small town. They didn't have a great many healing supplies. The people...They at least tried. They loved Raine, so they tried to save her life. But...”

Squall reached out when she trailed off. Tears falling down her face at the memory. He touched her hand gently and she smiled at him gratefully.

“You didn't cry at first,” she whispered softly. “They said something was wrong with your lungs. You were born too early, they said. They even told Raine that you weren't going to live. She started crying. She started begging. She wanted Laguna there. She wanted the baby to live. She said she would give up anything if you would just draw a breath. She reached for you. You weren't moving. They didn't want to give you to her, but they did.

“It was like you were waiting for her touch. She took hold of you, she ran her hand over your head, and you hiccuped. Then cried. You were so loud. Like the storm. Raine...she...She went still. I reached out to touch you, and Raine's hand fell away. They said she bled out right there in the bed. She died before she even get to name you. So the villagers...Those horrible people named you...”

Laguna let out a slow breath, his eyes closed. He couldn't turn from the past. Squall said nothing, his eyes remained on Ellone as she looked back up to him.

“I woke up then. I remember telling Weiss that I had to find you. I remembered who you were and as an adult I finally understood what everything meant. I had to see you again. I had to tell Uncle Laguna. I had to...I told Weiss to take me Balamb Garden. Edea had just left and he didn't want to. He said it wouldn't be wise, but I wouldn't let him tell me no.”

“Do you remember the first time I saw you? You were in the infirmary. You had a bandage around your head.”

Squall reached up without thinking and touched his scar. “That was the day I got this.”

“Yes,” Ellone smiled through her tears. “You looked at me, but you didn't know me. I wanted to tell you everything then, but I had already heard about the SeeD exam. I didn't want to tell you if you were going to take such an important test. So I told myself 'afterwards'. I think I was just stalling for myself. Then you left for Timber. So I just decided to take you to the past. I thought maybe if I could connect you and Uncle Laguna, then maybe I could reach out and change what had happened. It's silly, of course. But I had to try.”

“I understand,” Squall assured her. He knew that obsessive desire to change what was even as you knew that it couldn't be possible.

“When I saw that Esthar ship, I thought maybe I could find Uncle Laguna if I went back to Esthar. I knew he was the hero of the revolution, I figured someone had to know what had happened to him. So I jumped ship. Then they told me that they had been sent to find me by order of President Loire himself. It turned out, I didn't need to look that far.”

“I ordered her up onto the Lunar Base where I was waiting for her,” Laguna said gently. “I was so excited to see her again. That's all I could think about.”

“Let me show you, Squall,” Ellone said gently.

He looked at her for a long moment. Then slowly nodded once, giving her permission. Ellone smiled at him and Squall closed his eyes. The loud ringing in his ears was still uncomfortable, but it was easier to bear when he accepted it without fighting.

***

Laguna twitched nervously as he waited outside the pod docking station. Ellone's pod had just been picked up by the retrieval team. Which meant that she was probably about to be going through the quick thaw process. Which meant that his sweet Elle was just behind this door.

Just a few more seconds, he told himself, his eyes focusing so hard on the airlock that everything else was a blur around it. He just needed to wait for that light to turn green telling him it was safe to go inside.

Then Elle would be...

It was taking too long. Why was it taking so long? Had something gone wrong? Had she not awoken from cold sleep? Was the gravity generator malfunctioning? Was the pod dock broken? Was-

The light turned green and relief flooded his body. He rushed the door. It slid open far too slowly for his liking.

“Uncle Laguna!”

Seventeen years was a long time. He stood frozen in the doors of the pod bay, just staring at the woman his sweet little Elle had grown into. She still had that pixie face, she still looked like a perfect cross between her parents, but...

“You're so big...” he moaned softly.

Ellone laughed as she ran forward. Tears were running down her face as Laguna scooped her up into his arms. He squeezed her tight. She was so tiny. Even as a full grown woman, she was thin and willowy and just so much like a pixie.

“Oh, Hyne, Elle!” Laguna laughed and cried loudly, lifting her clear off her feet to spin her around. “It's you! It's my little Elle!”

She laughed as he set her back down. He touched her face, tears gathering in his own eyes as he looked into a face that was at once painfully familiar and heartbreakingly different.

“You're alive,” he whispered, his breath ragged and his voice uneven.

She laughed once. “Of course I'm alive.”

Laguna made a face. Then smiled again. “Oh, who cares? It doesn't matter. You're here now and that's all that's important. Come on. You're staying in my suite. We don't really have a personal room ready for you, but I can have one prepared soon. But you'll love my suite! It's got the best view of Gaia and the moon, depending on when you're looking.”

“Sounds great,” Ellone smiled neutrally.

Laguna frowned at her lackluster reaction. “What's wrong?”

Ellone opened her mouth, hesitated, then closed it again. “I'll tell you later. So what have you been doing all this time?”

“Oh, working mostly.”

“So you're president now?”

“Yeah, I keep telling them that they can elect someone else, but these people are determined to keep me in office. Not that I mind. It keeps me busy and entertained. There's always something that needs doing. And I wouldn't have found you again without my presidential power! What about you? Where have you been?”

“On a ship.”

“A ship?” He frowned. “Like, on the ocean?”

She nodded with a smile.

“For how long?”

“About ten years.”

“Ten years?! Goodness. That must have been so boring.”

“No, I really liked it,” she assured him with a bright smile. “I had a lot of fun.”

The two of them started up a staircase towards the next level. Laguna had his arm over her shoulder, unable to release his precious Elle. He had cleared the whole afternoon – such that it was in space – so he could spend all of his time with her.

“We have so much to talk about,” he beamed at her as they stepped into his suite. “Just make yourself at home. We won't be bothered here.”

“Uncle Laguna...” she hesitated.

“Are you hungry? Thirsty? I can get you anything. Well, anything freeze dried. The ice cream isn't bad, I'm not going to lie. I've been living off of this stuff for a while now and I think I'm actually starting to prefer it.”

“Uncle Laguna...”

“Oh, who am I kidding? I am going to have a fantastic feast when I get back to Gaia. Until then, I've got a bunch of different meals over here.”

“Uncle Laguna.” Ellone reached out and took hold of his hand.

He turned and gave her a bright smile as his chest puffed out with pride. “Look at you. You're so beautiful. I'm not letting you go ever again. How do you feel about living in Esthar? It's a really great place. It's got to be better than a ship.”

“Uncle Laguna, we really need to talk,” she said firmly, looking him in the eyes, deadly serious.

Laguna frowned. “What's with that face? Did something happen? Don't worry, I already know about Sorceress Edea. That's how I found out you were alive. I couldn't believe it. Those people would lie to me about something like this.”

“What people?”

“The ones from Winhill. They told me you and Raine had died in an attack. The second I heard the truth, I sent men to check Winhill. They told me Raine really did die, but at least you're still alive. That's better than nothing. This is the best day of my life!”

Crying out in excitement, he turned to his little box full of food packages. Ellone watched him, holding her elbows over her stomach as he happily looked through the offerings. He was humming as he discarded the more common choices. He wanted to have a feast right now. At least, as much of one as he was able.

“What did those people tell you, Uncle Laguna?” She asked softly.

“Just that,” Laguna shrugged. “I should have known they would have lied.”

His fingers stilled on the packages. He turned with a frown. “I'm so sorry, Elle. I didn't mean to abandon you. You know I never would.”

“Of course not,” Elle smiled, wiping away a quick tear. “You always come right when I need you, Uncle Laguna. I missed you.”

“I missed you, too, sweetie.” Walking forward, Laguna pulled her into another hug. He squeezed her tight, just enjoying the warmth of her little body.

His Elle was alive. There had been something good from his past that had survived. Laguna felt like he was on top of the world.

Then, in his arms, he heard Ellone sobbing. Frowning, he pushed her back.

“Hey, why are you crying?” He wiped at her tears. They didn't look like happy tears “Don't cry, Elle. It's okay. You and I are together again.”

“I'm so sorry, Uncle Laguna.”

“You don't have to be sorry. You didn't do anything.”

“I knew...I knew...and I didn't tell anyone...”

Laguna frowned. “What are you talking about, sweetie?”

“I didn't think about it. People thought I had adopted him when I told them he was my brother. And I guess it's true, but it wasn't!”

“Elle, what are you talking about?” Laguna frowned.

“Those horrible, _horrible_ people...” Ellone sobbed, grabbing her middle. “They lied. They lied about everything!”

“I know. But you're alive. That's all that matters.”

“No, because _he's_ alive, too!”

“Who's alive?”

“Your son!” She gasped, breaking down.

The weight of all her secrets, all of her past, crashed down on her and Ellone sank down on the floor, sobbing with great, heaving breaths. Laguna continued to stare into the air after she had fallen, his hands still reaching as though holding her.

He blinked then looked down at her. His heart started racing at the words that he knew she couldn't have just said. She hadn't just said them. He had heard her wrong.

“Elle, what are you talking about?” He dropped to his knees, grabbing her shoulders. “Ellone, what did you just say?!”

“Raine didn't die in an attack,” Ellone bawled, bending forward and letting her tears fall onto the floor as she finally unburdened herself. “She fell! She was walking in the rain and she fell. There was blood everywhere and people just kept saying that she was going to lose the baby.”

Laguna's blood turned to ice as he shook his head. “Baby? What baby? Ellone, what are you talking about?”

“She was pregnant! When you left she was pregnant. They hated you and they refused to tell you. They hated him. They blamed him for killing her. He didn't do anything! He was just a baby!”

“Ellone! Calm down!” Laguna lifted her up, forcing her to face him. Her heartbroken face made his heart stutter in his chest. “You just said...Raine was pregnant? She had a baby.”

Ellone nodded, trying to choke back her sobs. “I forgot him, Uncle Laguna. I forgot about your son! I let them take him from me!”

“Who? Winhill?”

“No. Edea. And Cid. They said we would be safer apart. They said he would be fine. But he's not fine at all! He's all alone. He didn't even recognize me!”

Laguna fell onto his butt, his breathing erratic. “Y-You said...a son...Raine had a son...?”

Ellone sniffed. Then nodded.

Laguna started hyperventilating. “A son...She had a son...”

“ _You have_ a son,” Ellone corrected. “He's still alive. He's down on Gaia.”

Laguna looked at her, his eyes wide with disbelief and refusal. He didn't want to accept that. He didn't want to acknowledge that as truth. Because if he did, then that would mean he had abandoned not just Ellone for seventeen years, but Raine's son.

“W-What's...What's his name?” He whispered, his voice raw like he had been screaming.

“Squall...” she breathed.

“Squall?” He frowned.

She nodded, more tears coming. “Those people, those terrible, awful, horrible people blamed you and him for everything. They would do anything to keep him from you. So they lied. They told you we died and they sent me and Squall to an orphanage. They named him after a storm, Uncle Laguna! It was raining and they blamed him for Raine's death. So they named him after the storm that killed her! Who puts that on an innocent baby!?”

Laguna dropped his head into his hands.

“A son...”

Ellone tried to pull herself together. She really did. She owed Uncle Laguna an explanation. At the very least, he deserved to hear about the son he had lost.

“He was put into Balamb Garden,” she whispered. “He became a SeeD. You know what a SeeD is?”

Laguna lifted his head, horrified. “He's a mercenary?”

Ellone nodded, trying to smile. “He's the best, Uncle Laguna. Everyone admires him. They all respect him. But...he doesn't have any friends. He pushes everyone away. He's alone, Uncle Laguna. He's all alone down there.”

“No, no, no...” Laguna shook his head, denying all of those words. “That can't be. No...”

“I'm so sorry,” Ellone sobbed. “I knew. I knew all this time and I never once thought about it. I just remembered him. I just went looking for him. Uncle Laguna...He looks just like her.”

Laguna stared at her, tears falling down his face. “I have a son...”

Ellone nodded.

“Squall...” His body shook. “Squall Loire...”

“No, Uncle Laguna. They didn't give him your name,” Ellone said softly. “They gave him Raine's name.”

Laguna frowned. “Squall...Leonhart?”

She nodded. “Squall Leonhart.”

( _Laguna..._ )

“Ugh...” Laguna brought his hand to his scalp.

“What's wrong?” Ellone reached for him.

He shook his head. “Just this weird buzzing. I can't believe the faeries have an effect all the way up here. And now of all times...”

Ellone's face closed off. “Is your head buzzing right now, Uncle Laguna?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“...There's something else I should tell you...”

***

Squall's eyes opened as the vision faded from his mind. Beside him, Ellone barely caught herself before falling into the plate set in front of her. Squall shook his head just a bit, clearing the last fog of the dream from his head. Rinoa, having been holding him up, released him slowly. He nodded to her once in silent thanks and she smiled at him.

Panting just a bit from effort, Ellone pushed herself up. There were tears on her face.

Laguna was staring at Squall. Waiting for some sign of a reaction. He was completely closed off and neutral though. Laguna was pretty sure that wasn't a good thing.

“Thank you, Squall,” Ellone breathed softly. “For letting me show you that.”

He shook his head, dismissing her gratitude as unnecessary. “...Thank you for showing me.”

She reached over and touched his arm. She frowned when she saw he was still locked away behind the barriers in his eyes. She hadn't reached him as she hoped she would.

“Squall, he really didn't know.”

“I believe you.”

“Then why won't you say something?”

“What would you have me say?” He returned, his sharp voice cold and distant. Only Rinoa recognized that as the tone he got when something was hitting him harder than he wanted to show.

“Don't you feel anything at all!?”

“Ellone,” Laguna said softly. “That's enough. I didn't expect anything. I just...wanted him to hear me out.”

Squall turned those stormy gray eyes on him and Laguna let out a breath to try to calm himself down.

“You probably don't care to hear it,” he said softly, “but that doesn't make it any less true. Despite the time and distance, Squall...you're still my son.”

He paused, waiting for Squall to deny it. He wasn't sure if it was a good thing or not that he remained stoic and unmoved.

“I don't want you to call me father or anything like that. I don't even care if you want to deny our family connection altogether. The only thing I want from you, Squall, is the chance to get to know you. I want to know the man you've become. I want to learn your past. I want to hear about your dreams. If I can have anything, I wouldn't ask for anything more than to just...be considered your friend.”

Under the table, Rinoa squeezed Squall's hand encouragingly. He gave her a look before swallowing convulsively. He still wasn't sure what anyone wanted him to say.

“...President Loire-”

Laguna flinched at the formal address.

“Thank you for talking with me,” Squall continued calmly. “I appreciate what you're going through. Please understand that my...circle of friends, such that it is, is small. I am not the type of person who is very skilled in making new ones.”

Laguna smiled without humor. “What a very diplomatic and polite way to say 'no'.”

Squall stood, his food untouched. After a moment, Rinoa followed him up. He nodded to Laguna, Kiros, Ward, and Ellone.

“I hold no animosity towards you, President Loire. Nor do I feel any sort of connection to you. For better or worse, the past is what it is and it cannot be changed...I will make a trip to Raine's grave on my own. I owe her the same time I have given you. We'll be leaving in the morning, President Loire. Thank you for the meal.”

Rinoa made a face, looking between Squall's retreating back and Laguna's face. After a moment, she ran after her boyfriend. She caught up with him in the hall. As the door shut behind them, she looked at his face.

“Are you sure?” She asked softly, touching his chest.

His face was calm, but she could feel the storm brewing just underneath.

“It's for the best,” was all he said. Taking her hand, he began walking back to their room.

What did he need Laguna in his life for? They shared blood, that was all. They were absolutely nothing to each other beyond that.

It should stay that way. It would just be easier.


	49. Heir

Rinoa tended to sleep in late. Which was partially Squall's fault and also partially her own habit. She just wasn't an early riser like he was. Usually he had training or work or something else to pull him from his bed when he awoke.

Today, he had no such responsibility. Until the BB3 came back to pick them up, he didn't have to do anything. So he chose to stroke the swell of Rinoa's nude hip and watch her sleeping face from where it was tucked in against his chest.

They had fallen asleep facing each other and Squall had awoken to find her trapped in a cage made of his own arms. Now he was leaning up on his hand, stroking her naked body, and letting himself be hypnotized by the subtle rise and fall of her chest. Not to stare at her breasts – though it was a sight he would never get tired of – but just to watch her breath.

It wasn't yet dawn in this part of the world. Squall could barely see it beginning to climb up over the far canyons that surrounded Esthar, but it was far away at this point. Which left him plenty of time to just watch Rinoa.

Inhale. Exhale. Inhale.

They still weren't using protection. Despite both of them knowing better and understanding the risks involved. They felt a little guilty afterwards each time, but they couldn't say they regretted it. They were being foolish and irresponsible and neither of them cared.

Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.

Maybe she already was pregnant. She had assured him that she hadn't had her period in a while, since before she got her sorceress powers. The stress of unconsciousness, of outer space, of Ultimecia all piling up on top of each other had stopped her biological clock.

Inhale. Exhale. Inhale.

Which wasn't unheard of. Squall had heard stories before in garden of SeeDs and cadets losing their period for a while because of the stress that they put their bodies and minds under. Given time, and a chance to acclimate to greater physical activity, it would return.

Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.

That was all perfectly logical and reasonable. Squall just couldn't help but continue to think of that 'what if she was pregnant...' question. It tumbled about in his head, not quite positive but not really all that negative. Though the longer it remained, the more he came to like it. To treasure it. And each time she fed into that fantasy, that longing grew stronger.

Inhale. Exhale. Inhale.

His stroking hand moved lower so he was brushing across her stomach. What if his child had already taken hold there? What if, even now, it was growing under her skin? They were so young, but if he could have his own family...

“Squall...” Rinoa's soft whisper moved his eyes up to hers. Her hand came up and took hold of his, her fingers entwining with his. “You're thinking about it again...”

“Sorry. Did I wake you up?”

She smiled gently at him. “Yeah, but it's okay.” She brought his hand to her lips and kissed his fingers, running her lips along the callouses there. “I like how happy it makes you.”

“We're too young for this,” he said without any real conviction.

“Yeah, but if it already happened, well...”

“We could always...terminate it,” he suggested.

“No way,” Rinoa frowned. She didn't need to feel his distaste to know how he felt about it. “I can't do that to your baby. Our baby...”

“Yeah,” he nuzzled her hair. “I didn't like the idea either. Just thought we should consider it.”

“Considered. Denied. I'd rather be a young mom. Besides, we'd be, like, the best parents,” she laughed, clinging onto him. “I can do magic tricks for the baby's entertainment. And you...Well, you're just amazing overall.”

Squall's eyebrow. “I'd make a decent father at best.”

“Are you kidding? You're terrific.”

“Well, I hardly have anything like a good example of fatherhood. I can't remember how Cid raised me, I only know him as the headmaster.”

“Hey, even as a headmaster to the whole garden, Cid was a better father than mine. Trust me, Squall, you're going to be a wonderful parent.”

He grinned at her. “And you'll be a great mom.”

“Yeah?” She smiled.

“Absolutely. You can be the emotional support, and I'll teach it how to fight.”

Rinoa laughed, throwing her arms around his neck. She kissed him once, twice. “We're going to be the greatest parents off all time. Do you want the baby to enroll in the garden?”

“Of course. They can choose SeeD or not, but the garden is the best educational institution by far.”

“I hope it looks like you,” Rinoa smiled, touching his face. Her thumb stroked the end of his scar.

Squall looked at her for a long moment. “I hope it has your personality.”

Rinoa chuckled. She let out a small breath. “We're talking about it like it's a sure thing now...”

“Yeah, I guess we are.”

“I don't even think I'm anxious anymore. I think I'm just excited.”

Squall said nothing for a second. Then, “Rinoa, how did your mother die?”

She frowned. “A car accident. I was only five. I barely remember her now. Sometimes though, I can still hear her singing. At least in my dreams.”

“I heard her playing piano in Laguna's past,” Squall said softly. “She was very beautiful. She looked a lot like you.”

Rinoa smiled softly. “Yeah. People tell me that a lot. Her music producer tried to get me to sing after she died. I think he wanted to market me as her replacement and it made me angry so I refused to sing for him.”

“Did you inherit her talent?”

“A little. I never practiced like she did though, so I don't sound as good.”

“I never got to meet Raine,” he said softly. “I only know her through what I saw from Laguna.”

“What was she like?”

“I don't really know. I only got to see her for a little while...She was nice. I don' understand what she saw in Laguna. She seemed very no-nonsense and strong.”

Rinoa smiled sadly. “I wish I could meet her.”

Squall rolled over onto his back. Rinoa rolled with him so she was laying on his chest, tucking herself into his side.

“Do you notice that both of our parents were absent for most of our lives?”

Rinoa laughed. “Yeah, that's why we'll be great parents. We know what not to do.”

“Our mothers are gone. Your father separated himself from you. And Laguna was never there in the first place.”

“That's the first time you've ever admitted that he was your father,” Rinoa smiled.

“Well, he is. For better or worse.”

Rinoa laughed. She snuggled in close to him. “I don't regret telling Caraway that he was allowed to be our child's grandfather.”

“Mm...”

“If you want to make that same offer to Laguna, I'm not going to complain. I think that Laguna would be a far better grandpa than Caraway anyway.”

“Yeah,” Squall nodded, agreeing with her. He was certain that if Laguna hadn't been lied to about Squall and Ellone's existence, he would have retrieved them immediately. Laguna wasn't the type to abandon his family like that. Which meant that, in different circumstances, Squall could have been raised here in Esthar.

“Would you have preferred that?” Rinoa asked.

“Being raised here?”

“Yeah. At least you'd have a father.”

“True. But I wouldn't have met you.” Squall ran his hand down her arm. “I'm not saying the journey here was a good one, but it was well worth it if I get to have you.”

Rinoa smiled. “I love you, Squall.”

“I love you,” he responded softly. He turned and looked out of the window. “It's morning already. You can go back to sleep if you want.”

“Are you going to get up?”

“I don't have to.”

“Then don't.” She wrapped her arms around him. “I don't usually get to snuggle with you all morning. Let's just stay here until it's time for the BB to come get us.”

“Alright then,” Squall said, running his fingers through her hair.

He continued to watch her as she fell back to sleep. It was enough for him to lay there and watch her breath.

Inhale. Exhale. Inhale...

***

When Squall and Rinoa stepped out of the guest room later, a small cry of happy surprise alerted them that Laguna was coming down the hall. They turned to look at him and he waved with what he dearly hoped was a natural smile in place.

“Morning. Sleep well?” He asked as he came towards them.

“Very well, thank you,” Rinoa beamed.

“You're leaving?”

“Yes. BB3 is en route. It'll be here within the hour. We're going to make our way down. Maybe walk around the city a bit if we have time.”

He nodded as he caught up with them. He looked at Squall then quickly looked away. Rinoa turned and smiled at her boyfriend encouragingly. Squall let out a short breath.

“President Loire.”

“Ah, yes?” He jumped to attention.

“I understand that Esthar is a very...private nation.”

“You were going to say xenophobic, weren't you?”

“I also know that you cut off trade with Galbadia years ago because of that desire for privacy and distance from other countries.”

“Yeah, that whole Edea thing didn't help matters at all. My people kind of have a thing about sorceresses. I mean, I released an official explanation telling them everything that happened, but they're still really cautious.”

“So I would understand if you would prefer to deny the request,” Squall continued, “but I was thinking last night that, maybe, your country and my garden could come to a sort of trade agreement of our own.”

“Huh?” Laguna blinked.

“We're not a nation, but we do have the funds of one. You won't find us lacking for gil. I'm thinking about doing an upgrade on the garden systems. They're very old, you see. Even with the repairs done at FH, the technology is nothing compared to your people's.”

“Wait, so you're saying...” Laguna trailed off, not daring to hope.

“Of course, as a trade partner of garden, it would be required that you, Xu, and I met with some regularity. If you decide not to, I would understand, but I think you would find that trading with us would be beneficial to both-”

“Y-Yes!” Laguna said quickly, his eyes wide. “Absolutely yes!”

Squall nodded to his open mouthed floundering of excitement. “Good. I'll speak with Xu about it when I get back. She's in charge of such things. There will be a lot of planning involved, so we'll probably have to stay in contact a great deal at first.”

“Perfect!” Laguna beamed widely. “T-That's wonderful. The trade thing, I mean. Of course.”

“Of course,” Squall nodded. He held out his hand. “We'll be looking forward to working with you.”

“You won't regret this, Squall!” Laguna took his hand and shook it eagerly. “The trade thing, I mean.”

Squall nodded again and took Rinoa's arm. “Then we'll bid you a farewell for-”

“Laguna!”

The three of them turned as Kiros rushed down the hallway. The look on his face was harried and anxious. It only deepened when he caught sight of Squall.

“We have a problem.”

“What kind of problem?” Laguna frowned.

Instead of answering him, Kiros pulled a tablet from his robes. The news feed had already been pulled up, he only needed to unmute it. Laguna took the device in hand, turning up the volume. Curious, Squall looked at it from upside down.

“ _...video has been leaked from the presidential palace this morning depicting Commander Squall Leonhart of Balamb Garden in a private meeting with President Loire. The topic of discussion is hard to determine at first, but it soon becomes clear._ ”

“ _Squall...you're still my son..._ ”

“ _An illicit love child from the past? Or an abandoned child from the president's deceased wife? Has our illustrious president finally fallen from grace? And, furthermore, is a mercenary the kind of heir we want for our president? The palace has not yet released an official statement regarding the video, nor has Commander Leonhart-_ ”

“What the hell is this?!” Squall growled angrily, glaring at Laguna. “What did you do?”

“I didn't do anything!” Laguna held up his hands innocently.

“Squall, calm down,” Rinoa grabbed his arm to hold him back.

“The video was taken illegally,” Kiros told them. From within his robes he pulled out a small, black camera. “We found this hidden in the flower vase in the center of the table. We believe one of the staff might have been bribed to place it there. We're looking through everyone's bank statements now to determine who might have received a large payment recently.”

Laguna frowned. “Come on, you can't just invade their privacy like that.”

“They invaded your privacy like that,” Kiros returned with a raised eyebrow.

“Still...”

“No, he's right,” Squall growled, his fists tightening in annoyance. “If someone can be bribed to spy on you that easily, then they're not someone you need to have on your staff.”

“Exactly,” Kiros nodded. “Every staff member is getting screened, starting with those who worked last night. We'll find who did this.”

Laguna let out a breath, running his hand through his hair. “Okay, but that doesn't solve the problem. It's out now.”

“Were you ever going to release it to the public?” Squall asked, his voice maybe a little too sharp.

“No way! At least, not without consulting you first,” Laguna said quickly. “But, it's done. We can't change that. We just have to...roll with the kicks.”

“Punches,” Kiros said immediately.

“Those too,” Laguna nodded. “Squall, you can leave. It's okay. I'll deal with the clean up on my own.”

Squall let out a long sigh as Rinoa touched his arm gently. “No, you're right. It's out now. I'd rather deal with it then let it fester. So, what do you want to do?”

“Press conference?” Laguna looked to Kiros for confirmation.

Kiros nodded. “That would probably be best. I'll have it arranged. How are you going to play it?”

“What do you mean?”

“Are you going full in with the father-son angle, or are you keeping this strictly business? I need to know the tone I have to set here.”

“Uh...” Laguna looked uncertainly at Squall.

Why was everything always up to him?

Rinoa laughed at the exasperated thought. Laguna frowned in confusion.

“Make it mostly formal,” Squall said. “But...we'll have to at least acknowledge that you're my father.”

Laguna made a soft sound.

“What?” Squall frowned at him.

Laguna bit his lip, trying really hard not be over excited. “That's the first time you called me your father.”

Squall looked at him dully. “I never denied you were my father.”

“Yeah, but that's the first time you owned up to it.”

“Please don't get emotional on me.”

“I'm not,” Laguna promised, his voice going high as he struggled to hold himself in.

“I won't be able to organize the conference before tonight,” Kiros said calmly. “You'll have to postpone your return to garden, Squall.”

“Of course. I'll send the message along. Rinoa?”

“I'll call her now.” Play nice, she added as she walked away to place the call to Xu.

Laguna shifted eagerly beside him. Squall frowned at him. It almost looked like Laguna was restraining himself from hugging Squall. He was unspeakably grateful for that. He didn't think he would be able to handle Laguna trying to touch him.

“Are you going to admit you're my son at the conference?” Laguna asked as Kiros started sending off messages from his tablet.

“If I must,” Squall said calmly.

Laguna beamed.

“Please stop,” Squall looked at him wearily.

“I didn't say anything,” he twitched.

Squall turned to look away from him. Watching Rinoa was much safer – and enjoyable – than trying to look Laguna in the eye.

He wasn't angry at Laguna. He wasn't even happy to see Laguna. Or excited to learn his roots.

But there was something there...

Rinoa looked up from the phone and smiled at him.

She felt it too. Of course she did. Squall waited for her to finish the call and return to him. His arms opened without thinking and she happily wrapped herself in them. Laguna blinked at the sight, tilting his head curiously as Squall rested his head on hers.

“What do you think?” He asked her softly.

“You're not a machine, Squall,” she returned, turning her eyes onto his. “Of course there's something there.”

Laguna frowned. “Why do I constantly feel like I'm only ever hearing half of you two's conversations?”

Rinoa laughed, Squall stroked his hand down her back.

“It's not anger,” Squall pondered, ignoring Laguna.

“No,” she agreed.

“It's not happiness.”

“No.” She straightened his shirt.

“It's not sadness.”

“That covers the big three,” she laughed. “There's more emotions than that though.”

“I just don't understand,” he blew out a breath in annoyance. Everything was so much easier when he hadn't been close to anyone.

“Maybe,” Rinoa tapped his nose gently. “But you're happier now.”

“See!” Laguna pointed to them. “I just don't get you two. How do you talk in riddles like that?”

“Squall isn't good with words,” Rinoa laughed, smiling at Laguna as she rested her head against his chest. “You have to be able to hear his heart if you want to communicate with him.”

Laguna crossed his arms as Kiros joined them again.

“I've got our people setting up the conference,” he said. “For now, Squall, I would recommend that you don't leave the palace. Laguna, we should probably go over topics for the conference. We want to maintain control over this one.”

“Ah, it'll be okay,” Laguna assured him with a bright smile. “It's just a man and his son, how bad could it be?”

“Can you not be that familiar with it?” Squall asked, shifting uncomfortably. That strange emotion he had constricted strangely in his chest and he didn't like it.

Rinoa laughed at him.

“Oh, sorry,” Laguna said quickly, his face falling and filling Squall with guilt. “I didn't mean it like that. I was just saying...I just, uh...”

Damn. Squall let out a breath.

“It's fine. Whatever.”

“No, no. It's not fine.” Laguna ran his hand over his hair again. “I'm sorry, Squall. I really don't want to make this uncomfortable or stressful for you.”

A little late for that.

Rinoa laughed again. “It's okay, Laguna. Squall's just not used to being so familiar with people. Give it some time. He'll get comfortable with you.”

Laguna still looked sad but he nodded. “Well, have you two have breakfast yet?”

“Not yet,” Rinoa smiled.

“Then, would you care to join me? We can talk some more. Nothing really serious. Maybe you could just tell me...how you two met, or something.”

Laguna was trying hard – and failing – to show how desperate he was for any scrap of information on Squall's life. He could probably just investigate him and find out, but he wanted to hear it from his own lips. He wanted to know everything about Squall. What made him tick. How he thought. How he felt. It was all of great importance to Laguna.

Squall was his son. He felt an all consuming need to get to know him.

Rinoa smiled up at Squall encouragingly. Though it was making that emotion in his chest constrict again, Squall nodded once.

“Sure. Why not?”

Laguna smiled. Squall was at least allowing him to get closer. That meant more to Laguna than anything.

***

The press conference was being held in the official press room of the presidential palace. Squall and Laguna would be standing together on stage, shown as equals. Though Squall wanted Rinoa to be next to him – more for his comfort than anything else – Kiros insisted it would be better for only the two of them to be presented.

It was a cluttered situation, he had said. Best to present it in an uncluttered, direct light.

So, after all the news crews were ready and filming, Kiros gave the sign and Laguna and Squall walked out of the side room together. Immediately, lights began flashing. Squall felt the eyes of all the cameras, and all the eyes on the other side of those cameras, following him.

Without thinking about it, he automatically fell into his most comfortable position. He walked with rigid, military precision and stood next to Laguna at the large podium in parade rest formation. It was in stark contrast to Laguna who was still wearing sandals, casual clothes, and waved and greeted some of the press like old friends.

Standing next to such a carefree, open guy, Squall only felt an enormous gap between them. He couldn't bring himself to really look these people in the eye. He didn't even realize how intimidating he looked in that moment. The reporter closest to him actually pulled back slightly as though scared he might strike out at her.

They were eating out of Laguna's hand after barely a minute. Despite his casual appearance, his careless attitude, and his incredibly friendly smile, these people actually liked him. This was their president. He wasn't a stiff politician or stead old man leading their country. These people followed him because he was a goofball and comfortable in whatever situation he found himself in.

Relax, Rinoa told him from the other room. It's like you've got a metal rod in your back. Try not to scowl so heavily either. You look like you're about to start killing people.

Wasn't even on my mind.

Sarcasm, my love. I know you weren't. But you look like it.

Squall wasn't actually sure how to 'relax'. He felt like he was giving a report, so naturally he would fall into position. She was lucky he wasn't at attention.

“Shall we get this started?” Laguna asked, beaming around. “I mean, it's out now. So let's just go ahead and say it outright. Everyone, all my people of Esthar, I am proud to introduce you to the son I never knew I had, Squall Loire Leonhart.”

Squall's eye twitched as all the cameras pointed to him. What was with that name? He didn't approve of that.

It makes you sound more related, Rinoa assured him. Gives some credence. I think you got stiffer.

Yeah, he probably had. 

Laguna launched into a quick explanation. One Squall had already heard because Laguna had been practicing it in the back room. He reminded everyone of his deceased wife. He told them of Winhill's lie to him while he was fighting in the revolution. Then of Ellone's return and confession. He reminded them of Squall's part in defeating both Adel and Ultimecia. Then he explained that the dinner they had captured was the first night they had gotten to speak of their relation.

The press was dead silent. Eating up his words. Laguna told a great story. He put his hands into it, using colorful words that created stunning imagery in the mind. Squall, who had lived through all of that, found it a little difficult to compare it to the reality he remembered.

It's called punching up a story, love, Rinoa laughed at him. Besides, that all sounds exactly how it happened to me.

Well, it wasn't how Squall would have worded it. If he had been telling the story, it would have sounded a great deal more like a military report. Which, in his mind, was what it was.

He and Laguna really couldn't have been more different.

That emotion in his chest twisted painfully.

“We will now open the floor for questions,” Laguna said when he finished his speech. “We'll start with you there.”

“Yes, sir,” the lucky reporter got quickly to his feet. “Is Commander Leonhart going to be your official heir?”

Laguna hummed thoughtfully, scratching his head. “Haven't really thought that far ahead. I don't think I'm that close to the grave yet. I suppose I'll end up splitting it between Ellone and Squall both. Would that be okay with you?” Laguna looked at Squall as though asking for permission.

Squall frowned. “What you choose to do with your possessions after your death is up to you.”

“Yeah, I'll probably split it. All right, next question. Let's hear from...you.”

The next reporter was up in a second. “Is Commander Leonhart going to be made an official citizen of Esthar?”

“Oh, well, I don't really...Squall?”

He took over obligingly. “I am, and have been, a citizen of Balamb for a great many years. I have no desire to change locations or professions.”

“Is it true that you're a mercenary?” Someone asked out of turn.

Laguna opened his mouth to chastise the man, but Squall answered without hesitation.

“Yes, I am.”

“Is it true that you're currently keeping Sorceress Rinoa in custody?”

“That is not true,” Squall glowered at the man who asked it. “Rinoa Heartilly is free to come and go as she pleases. She's not under any sort of restraints.”

“So it's safe to say that the sorceress has allied herself with SeeD?”

“Um, hey-” Laguna started, frowning at the reporters.

Squall still answered. “Yes, I suppose it is.”

“So would you consider SeeD to be a world superpower?”

“We're well off, I don't know that I'd call us a superpower.”

“Okay, I think that's enough-” Laguna tried again.

The reporters wouldn't let him. Another man spoke over him. “But you are a group of mercenaries that will fight anyone for the right price, correct?”

“We strive to remain neutral between the countries, yes.”

“So for the right price, would the sorceress begin attacking countries again? Even, say, Esthar?”

“Highly unlikely,” Squall raised an eyebrow at the question. “Though Rinoa is our ally, she's not a SeeD. Her services are not for sale.”

“Would you say that your connection to President Loire grants Esthar some protection from SeeD?”

“Not at all. If someone hires my SeeDs to fight against Esthar, I would draft the contract the same way I would any other.”

“So you would allow your SeeDs to fight against Esthar?”

“That's enough,” Laguna said quickly.

“Would you fight against Esthar if paid to do so?”

“Would you assassinate President Loire?”

“Enough!” Laguna snapped, shutting off the questions firmly. “No more questions. Squall and I still have a lot to discuss. This news is still very new to both of us. Thank you. Goodnight.”

Laguna pushed against Squall, directing him back towards the side room. Squall walked away without a concern. He had a feeling that hadn't gone well, but there was nothing he could do about it now. So he walked off with Laguna back to where Rinoa, Kiros, Ward, and Ellone were waiting.

Ellone was making a face as she muted the TV that they had been watching the conference on. “So that went...well.”

Laguna blew out a breath, running his hand through his hair. “Squall, do you have any setting other than brutally honest?”

“No,” he said simply as Rinoa returned to his side.

“You did fine,” she promised, taking his cheek in hand. “You looked so strong and confident.”

“He just said he'd sign off on a contract attacking Esthar,” Kiros frowned.

“Yeah, well, he's a SeeD,” Rinoa shrugged, straightening Squall's jacket. “I wish you could have had your uniform. It would have made you look more official.”

“It's fine,” Squall shrugged.

Kiros and Ward shared a look. Laguna was smiling at Squall like he hadn't just heard him say that he would agree to launch an attack on Esthar if paid to do so. He hadn't answered the question about whether or not he would assassinate Laguna, but Kiros very dearly wanted to know.

“So, do you two think you'll want to join us for dinner?” Laguna asked brightly.

Squall and Rinoa shared a look. Laguna looked between them and he had the distinct feeling that they were holding another conversation. It wasn't even just with facial expressions either. There was just something about the way they stared at each other.

Squall sighed like Rinoa had just talked him into something and he turned and nodded. “Thank you, we'll take you up on that offer.”

“Great!” Laguna looked around at everyone. “We'll eat in my rooms tonight. No flower bouquets allowed. It will all be very friendly and casual.”

Squall nodded, accepting the invite and Laguna felt like he had scored a victory. Even if it was just a small one. Squall hadn't insisted it remain formal.

Since it was already getting dark, they decided to just go up to his suite from there. While the rest of Esthar was going to talk about their president's unknown son, they were going to have what Laguna was going to consider their first real family dinner.

He showed them around his suite. His bedroom, his sitting room, and the large balcony that was wide enough to be another room. It had its own pool that offered an unparalleled view of the sky. Rinoa and Ellone took two of the loungers from beside the pool and started talking. Laguna offered everyone a round of drinks and when Squall took his, Laguna stood back with him while Kiros and Ward held a mostly one sided conversation apart from them.

Laguna's suit was the highest point in all of Esthar. The balcony wasn't in sniper sight from anywhere in Esthar. Squall approved of it as a place for their leader.

“What are you thinking about?” Laguna asked as he sipped at a beer.

“Just that your balcony isn't a good sniper target.”

Laguna frowned. “Seriously? Why would you think about that?”

“Why wouldn't you?” Squall returned.

They stared at each other. Two men that were incredibly different personalities.

Laguna scratched his head. “Well, I guess it's...useful information.”

“It's basic safety measures.”

“Safety? Squall, are you concerned with my safety?

Squall frowned at the question. “I don't want you dead.”

He might as well have declared that Laguna's safety was his biggest concern. The smile that broke out over Laguna's face made him draw back slightly.

Laughing, Laguna reached out and took Squall by the neck. He pulled him in for something like a friendly hug with a great big grin.

“You're something else, Squall!”

“Let me go.” Squall jabbed Laguna in the side. Not enough to hurt him, just enough to get him to release his hold.

Laguna grunted, rubbing his side painfully as he continued to grin at Squall. “You're stronger than you look.”

Squall wasn't sure how he was supposed to take that, so he took a drink instead. Laguna was beaming at him moronically as Kiros and Ward returned to them.

“If we can interrupt?” Kiros started, looking between them.

“What's with the formality?” Laguna asked, grinning. “Relax, it's a casual dinner.”

“I actually have something to discuss with Squall that's a little more important than dinner,” Kiros said firmly.

“What is it?” Squall raised an eyebrow at him.

“Just to clarify, you said that you would authorize an attack on Esthar if someone paid your SeeDs to do it?”

“Of course.”

“Why?”

“Why?” Squall frowned at the question. “What do you mean why?”

“You said that you wished to enter into trade negotiations with us,” Kiros pressed. “And you would also allow an attack on Estharian soil if paid by another country?”

“I wouldn't worry about it if I were you. Trabia is mostly a serious of unconnected towns, Balamb is a peaceful nation, Timber is trying to rebuild their government, and Galbadia's government is falling apart. There's no one who would pay us to attack you.”

“I think you're missing the point,” Kiros said dully. “You would authorize an attack on your ally?”

“SeeD is a neutral program,” Squall said evenly. “We have the power and respect of every nation because we don't take sides in conflicts between them. If someone petitioned Xu to send SeeDs into Esthar on a mission, I wouldn't veto the contract.”

“Would you sign off on an assassination order on Laguna?”

“Kiros!” Laguna snapped at his friend.

Ward gave Laguna a long look. Kiros didn't take his eyes from Squall. Over by the pool, Rinoa and Ellone were looking their way with frowns on their face.

“Answer the question, Squall,” Kiros demanded coldly.

Squall stared back at him evenly. “If Xu accepted an assassination order, I wouldn't veto it because of any personal connections I have here.”

“So you would agree to kill Laguna?”

“I would agree to send my SeeDs on assignment.”

“Then I don't think we can be trade partners.”

“Kiros,” Laguna stepped between them. “It's fine. Squall just said that no one was likely to do it.”

“That is not the point, Laguna! You are letting your feelings cloud your good sense. I don't care if he is your son, he just said us he would kill you if he was paid to do so.”

“I didn't say that.”

Kiros glared at Squall's calm face.

“You just told me that you would send your SeeDs on the mission if paid to do so.”

“Yes, and I would. I didn't, however, say I would kill Laguna.”

“You just did.”

“No, I didn't.”

“If you give the order for your subordinate to kill him, then you as good as pulled the trigger yourself.”

“First of all, if I would have Laguna killed, it wouldn't be by gunfire. He's rarely ever in target range. I would have a stealth trained SeeD slip him poison. Clearly, it would be easy if your staff is already willing to record him illegally.”

Kiros's teeth clenched at the dig. “I assure you, such a mistake won't be made twice.”

“Secondly, I would sign off on the order because it's our policy to remain neutral and I can't allow any nation to gain favoritism for the good of my garden. If I start showing favoritism by refusing contracts, then I won't be able to gain any further contracts. For the good of my SeeDs, I won't set that precedent.”

“Is your job that important to you that you'd kill your family to avoid a 'precedent'?”

“I never said I'd kill Laguna.”

“You just-”

“Will you shut up and listen to him?” Rinoa cut Kiros off angrily. “He's trying to explain himself.”

Kiros looked at her for a long moment before turning back to Squall. He was silent, still glaring at him accusingly.

“I wouldn't deny the contract because I can't. However, I also wouldn't allow my SeeDs to kill him. If I signed off on that contract, you would find me here the next morning alerting you to the danger and putting myself on guard duty to stop my own SeeD. As a gesture of friendship. I assure you, my SeeD wouldn't be able to get past me. It's the same policy we had with leaders in Balamb. We can't deny the contract, but that doesn't mean we can't draw up a second contract to oppose it. Like I said, we're neutral.”

Kiros stared for a long moment. “You'd come yourself?”

“As an important trade partner, you'd earn the protection of our most powerful SeeDs. If not me, then it would be Xu. In either case, Laguna would be completely safe.”

That appeared to appease Kiros somewhat. It also made Laguna smile brightly at Squall.

Squall frowned at him. “Will you stop that?”

“Sorry,” he said, his smile still in place. “It's hard not to be happy. You're still my son.”

Squall shifted uncomfortably.

Laguna's smile turned sad. “Does it bother you to hear it that much?”

“To be perfectly honest, Laguna, I don't know,” Squall told him calmly. “I can't say that I've ever given a thought about who my parents were. For me, it was just a given that I didn't have a family. To suddenly have one is...strange.”

Laguna was beaming again.

“What?” Squall asked dully.

“You called me your family.”

Squall let out a long breath. “Yes, Laguna. You are my family. As irrelevant as it is, you are, technically, my father.”

“Technically?” Kiros asked, his eyebrow raising as Ellone giggled behind her hand.

“Hush,” Laguna told him, still beaming. “I'll take that.”

Squall looked over at Rinoa and, again, Laguna had that feeling that they were talking to each other without words. Though Squall's face didn't change, Rinoa's smile widened. He nodded to her just slightly before looking back to Laguna.

“I don't mind you being part of my life, Laguna,” he said calmly. “And, as we are family, it's your right to be grandfather to my kids one day.”

Laguna's sparkling eyes looked like he might be about to cry. “Do you mean it?”

“Yeah,” Squall nodded, looking back to Rinoa. “Maybe sooner than you think. We haven't really done any tests, but we're pretty sure that Rinoa's already pregnant. If not, she will be soon.” He just had no self control.

She beamed back at him.

Laguna frowned. “Pregnant?”

Squall shrugged. “We're young, I know. But some things just happen. We've talked about it, and we're both okay with it at this point. We might actually want it this way.”

“Uh...” Laguna looked to Kiros, his face strange.

Squall frowned at the expression. “What?”

“You...You know that she's pregnant?” He asked. He didn't sound happy. Squall figured that he was judging them for wanting to be teenage parents.

“I already said we haven't taken any tests, but we don't use protection. At all. And, at this point, we're really beginning to think that we might not ever use it.”

Rinoa was frowning, looking between Kiros, Laguna, Ward, and Ellone. All four of them were deliberately looking away from both Squall and Rinoa and it was making her uncomfortable. Why were they acting like that?”

“I see...” Laguna cleared his throat.

“Laguna, what is it?” Squall's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

“Well, it's just...Rinoa's a sorceress.”

“Yes, and?”

Laguna shifted uncomfortably. “I thought you would know...Squall...Sorceresses can't have children.”

“What?” Squall's fingers tightened around his drink glass. “What did you just say?”

Laguna looked like he would dearly like to sink into the ground and away from here. “Sorceresses can't...can't have children. Rinoa can't be pregnant.”

Laguna looked up cautiously, uncertain of how Squall would react to that. The completely blank face he received was hardly reassuring.

“You're sure?” He asked calmly.

Feeling unexpectedly guilty, Laguna nodded.

Squall didn't say anything.

Rinoa's sobs turned them all in time to see her running through Laguna's rooms.

“Rinoa!” Squall chased after her.


	50. Infertility

“Rinoa!” Squall cried after her.

His voice was rushing in her ears. His thoughts begging her to stop and talk to him was lost against her own grief.

“ _Rinoa can't be pregnant._ ”

Disbelief warred with loss and self disgust. Squall's calls, nonverbal and verbal both, couldn't reach her through the haze of emotions gripping her heart.

“ _Sorceresses can't have children._ ”

No.

No, that wasn't true!

Rinoa hadn't had her period since she had received her powers. She had attributed it to stress, but what if it wasn't? What if she didn't have her period any longer because she couldn't?

Unaware of where she was running to, Rinoa's body slammed against the door of the guest room she and Squall shared. Her hands struggled against the door lock. She couldn't see through teary eyes, her hands slipped, unable to find the button to unseal the door.

She found it by chance and the doors slid open. She only made it a few steps inside before her tears and lack of control had her tripping on her own feet. She slammed into the ground hard enough to jar her bones, but she didn't feel the pain. The physical hurt was nothing compared to the blow that had just landed on her heart.

“Rinoa.”

Then Squall was there. Rinoa felt so guilty that she almost became sick as he lifted her up into his arms. The door shut behind him as he carried her across the room. For all that she felt unbearably guilty, she couldn't let him go. She clung tight to his arms as he walked her across the room and gently sat back with her on their bed.

She tried to open her mouth to speak, nothing came out but unintelligible sobs. Just having Squall holding her made it that much worse.

Laguna's words echoed endlessly in her head, cutting her deep with each resounding statement of absolute assurance.

She was a sorceress. She couldn't have children.

“Rinoa, please...” Squall said, feeling incredibly helpless to the sound of her tears.

“I-I'm sorry!” She gasped loudly, clutching onto him tightly. Genuinely afraid that he was going to demand she release him and walk out of her life. “I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!”

The words came from her mouth in various states of coherence. She wished she could say more, but that was the only thing that came out.

Squall didn't respond. He held her just a bit tighter. He didn't know any other way to be comforting or reassuring. He ran his fingers over her hair, he squeezed her just a bit. He tried to ride out the ceaseless storm of emotions ripping through the both of them.

It took a long time for her sobs to subside. Her tears kept falling gently, but her exhausted body just didn't have the ability to keep bringing forth the body wracking fits. Squall kept holding on until the last of the hiccups faded and she was just holding onto him with white knuckles while her despair beat at their hearts.

“...I'm sorry...” she whispered once more, her voice raw and hoarse.

“Why are you sorry?” He asked, staring into the dark room.

“I'm...sorry...”

“Stop it. Stop apologizing.” He brushed back her hair. “It's...It's okay. Rinoa, the only thing I want from life is you. You're enough.”

Another tear fell from her eyes. “Don't lie to me, Squall. You know I can feel it.”

His jaw tightened. He opened his mouth to try again, but she was right. She might have believed the lie if she couldn't feel his own loss ripping at his chest.

“It was the only thing you've ever asked of me,” she gave a dry sob, unable to pull forth more tears from her dehydrated body. “And I can't even...I can't...”

“Hey,” Squall took her face in hand and forced her to face him. “Yes, I'm disappointed.”

She laughed once without humor. “You're the king of understatement.”

“Okay, I'm...very disappointed. But it's fine.”

She smacked him. “You promised...”

“Okay, it's _going_ to be fine.”

“That's the same thing!”

“Then it's going to be great!” He took her arms, shaking her just slightly. “Rinoa, you are the only thing that I need. I love you just the way are. If I have to give up some things to have you, then it's a sacrifice that I'm willing to make.”

“But you wanted a family!” She yelled, heartbroken. “You wanted children.”

“And we can have them. We can do what Edea and Cid did and just adopt.”

“That's not the same thing. You wanted me to carry the child. You wanted it to be yours.”

“I want you,” he corrected, sweeping back her hair. “I can live without that, I can't live without you. And now we don't have to worry about ever using protection. Or us being too young. We can enjoy ourselves selfishly until we choose to adopt a family.”

Rinoa shook her head, lowering her eyes to look away from him.

She knew what he was doing and she appreciated it. But it was too late for that. She had already felt how excited he had been, the eagerness he had felt, every time he had imagined her being pregnant and giving him a baby. At whatever age. So long as it was theirs.

And it was the one thing that she couldn't do.

It wasn't the first time that Rinoa had regretted the fact that she had inherited Edea's powers. However, the pain of it this time was much more acute than it had been the moment when she thought she was going to have to leave Squall forever.

Because now she realized that she _could_ be with him forever, but the cost was that she could no longer give him the one thing he wanted.

She felt like she wasn't even a woman anymore. Like she had failed as a female. She had one job and she couldn't even do it.

“Stop that!” Squall said harshly, jerking her close.

He couldn't stand these thoughts in her head. He couldn't bear the way she was thinking about herself in this moment. The self hatred, the self depreciation made his limbs grow cold.

“Rinoa, I love you,” he swore, kissing the side of her head gently. “I love you. You are everything I need to make my life complete. I would gladly trade this entire world for you. Would you love me any less if I was the one who couldn't have children?”

“No...” She whispered, trembling. “Of course not.”

“So why would I love you any less?” Touching her gently, Squall kissed her scalp. “I am going to mourn this loss tonight. I am going to hold you and curse the fates and wish that things were different. But come tomorrow, we will make one of two choices, and no matter which we choose I am no longer going to be angry or sad about this.”

“Choices?” Rinoa pushed back to frown at him. “What choices?”

“Either we accept this as the way it is and plan for the day we adopt a child,” he caressed her cheek lovingly. “Or we try to find a way around it. See if it's true and if there is really nothing we can do and fight against this fate with the knowledge that we can fail. Either way, I'm not going to let this hurt what we have.”

Rinoa sniffed delicately. “Fight it?”

He shrugged. “There's always ways. Breakthroughs in medicine every year, right? If it means that much to you, we can try. Or we can adopt. I'm fine with either option. So long as I have you, everything else is just extra.”

Rinoa threw her arms around his neck, holding him tight as her heart quivered in her chest.

“I'm sorry...Thank you...”

***

They slept holding each other tightly that night. When the sun came up and Squall awakened with the dawn, he made no attempt to extract himself from her arms. He held onto her sleeping form and, for just a moment while she couldn't feel it, he mourned what he couldn't have.

He said goodbye to the image of Rinoa, beautiful and pregnant. To the image of himself holding his own son or daughter in his arms. To the fantasy that he could one day have the family he hadn't while growing up.

It was for Rinoa though. It hurt, but pain was something he was used to.

For a moment, when Rinoa started whimpering in her sleep, Squall thought that his own dark thoughts had affected her even in her dreams. Considering the bond between them, he wouldn't be surprised if that were the case.

However, even after he quickly banished the self pitying thoughts, her whimpers only got worse. She started turning over in her sleep. It took him only a couple seconds to realize that she was having another nightmare.

“Rinoa.”

Grabbing her by the arms, he started shaking her quickly.

“Rinoa, wake up!”

It took another moment for her to be forced out of the bad dream. She came awake with a gasp of fear and surprise. Her wide eyes looked at him as though confused. Tears welled up and, with a cry of relief, she threw her arms around him.

“You're okay!” She yelled, crying happily. “You're here!”

“Of course I am,” Squall frowned.

“I dreamed you were gone!”

“You dreamed I died again?”

“No. I dreamed you were just gone.” Leaning back, wiping at her eyes. “Like you never existed in the first place and I was all alone.”

“You have a lot of nightmares,” Squall frowned, concerned.

She shook her head. “I think it was just...the shock...” Frowning, she turned her head to the side and grabbed for her arm self consciously.

“Have you decided what choice you want to make?” Squall asked softly.

Rinoa bit her bottom lip. “Well...If I had to pick, I would rather fight. Wouldn't you? No point in giving up if you haven't tried.”

“You know that, if we try to find a way around it, we could end up right back here,” he warned softly.

“I know,” she nodded, taking a fortifying breath. “But I'd rather spend our entire life trying than to give up completely. Wouldn't you?”

Squall nodded, smiling gently as he rested his forehead against hers. “Yes, I would.”

“I love you, Squall.”

“I love you.”

“Squall? Rinoa?”

The two of them turned to look at the door at the sound of Laguna's voice followed by a gentle, cautious knocking.

“Are you two...awake?”

“Should we answer?” Squall asked. Wondering if she would rather just lock herself away for the day instead of face the world.

She smiled at him. “Let's answer. We can handle this.”

“Right.”

Squall kissed her cheek once before standing up. He walked over to the door and pushed the button to open it right as Laguna was about to walk away. The other man jumped in surprise before looking around, like he wasn't even sure why he was there.

“Oh, hey...” He said lamely.

“Good morning,” Squall said calmly.

“Good morning, Laguna,” Rinoa said as cheerfully as she was able, standing from the bed. She could be strong through this. If Squall could, so could she.

“Hey,” he repeated, staring at her. “Rinoa, I'm so sorry. I-I thought you knew. I didn't mean to- I mean, I swear I would never-”

She held up a hand, cutting him off. She smiled gently. “It's okay. I'm...I'm going to be okay. Squall and I talked about it and...well, we're going to just focus on us for now. We can worry about children later.”

“Right!” Laguna said uncomfortably. He scratched the back of his head. “Actually, I felt so bad last night that I uh, I called Odine.”

Squall frowned at the doctor's name. “Why would you do that?”

“Well, uh...” Laguna hesitated as Rinoa drew even with Squall. He let out a breath. “I guess I just felt terrible about...Anyway, Odine is an expert on magic and sorceresses. There's no one that knows more about the subject than him. I already summoned him here. He's coming to the reception room. I...really think he might be able to help. Or talk our ears off, whichever comes first.”

He laughed nervously as Rinoa and Squall shared a look. He had that feeling like they were once again having a conversation without him. Then Rinoa smiled back at him. She didn't look hopeful, but she was smiling at him like she was willing to humor him.

“Okay. We'll talk to him. It can't hurt anything, right?”

“Right!” Laguna beamed. “Come on. I'll take you there myself.”

Laguna fell in line with the two of them as they started walking through the residence. He was smiling as bright as he possibly could, though there was still something artificial about it.

Do you really think Odine can do anything, Rinoa asked Squall silently.

I doubt it. Laguna is probably being nice.

Rinoa smiled and wrapped her fingers through his. We'll be okay.

Of course we will.

Odine was already waiting for them in the reception room. He didn't seem at all happy to have been awoken and escorted to the palace, nor was he particularly happy about the fact that he was being forced to wait for the president to come.

When they walked into the room, Odine threw up his hand.

“Agh! You call me here, and you don't have ze decency to actually meet me? I vas busy working!”

“You were sleeping,” Laguna grinned. “Who do you think you're lying to? We both know that you sleep late because you're up even later with your research.”

“All ze more reason to question why you're vaking me up!”

Laguna gestured to Squall and Rinoa. “We need your help.”

“You have a funny vay of asking!”

“You're the foremost expert of sorceresses in the world.”

“But ov course,” Odine looked smug at the compliment.

“Then you would know if there was any way for a sorceress to become pregnant.”

Though Laguna had said it casually, Odine's eyes sharpened first on him then on Squall and Rinoa. His eyebrow raised as his fiercely intelligent gaze moved over them.

“I see...” he said softly, holding his hands behind his back. The ridiculous disk around his neck bounced as he chuckled. “So now you need Odine's help, eh?”

Squall's eye twitched. “Little man, I will destroy you.”

“No, you vont. I am ze only one who has knowledge about sorceress fertility.”

“Laguna already told us that it was impossible.”

“And vat does he know? He's a little wanna be king. He is no genius like Odine.”

“Hey,” Laguna frowned. “The heck does 'wanna be king' mean?”

“ _Nothing_ iz impossible for Odine!” The scientist declared, walking towards Rinoa. “As it so happens, I do know somezing of sorceress fertility.”

“Well?” Laguna frowned when he didn't continue.

“You vant to hear my story?” Odine grinned eagerly.

Squall let out a long breath, praying for patience. “I'm not begging, Odine.”

“Very vell! I vill tell you!” Chuckling eagerly, Odine began walking around Rinoa, looking her over with a very critical, clinical eye.

“I admit, it is not somezing zat I was initially interested in. It vaz actually Adel zat had me begin research into ze area. She vanted a successor, as you very vell know. She felt zat one ov her own blood vould be more loyal to her. So she wanted me to find a mezod for her to conceive. So I began to gazer every scrap of information I could get my hands on about every sorceress that I could find. I made a complete list ov each voman and ze events recorded ov her life.”

“How far back could that possibly be?” Rinoa tilted her head curiously as Odine stopped in front of her.

“Surprisingly far,” he grinned happily. “It didn't take me long to discover zat it is not at all true to say zat a sorceress _cannot_ get pregnant. It iz actually better to say zat a sorceress must follow a very specific set of circumstances in order to conceive and zen carry to term. A set of circumstances zat Adel vas not at all villing to meet.”

“What were they?” Squall asked when Odine fell silent. The old man liked answering the questions almost as much as he liked being asked them.

“First,” Odine tilted his head, “vat do you know about my paramagic?”

Squall raised an eyebrow.

“You use it frequently. So you must know somezing about it.”

“I know that it's not true magic,” Squall said, crossing his arms in annoyance at this game Odine liked to play. “I know that it's stored energy harnessed from monsters and Gaia itself that we can cast with the assistance of GF.”

“Very good. And what are ze rules of using paramagic?”

Squall sighed and rattled off from memory. “Those under the age of fifteen should not use paramagic. Paramagic should not be used by those who are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. It is not wise to attempt to cast paramagic around infants or toddlers.”

“Do you see a theme?”

“It's all about children.”

“Exactly!” Odine grinned. “In my research into sorceresses, I actually found zat zere are two different kinds of infertility among ze women. Zere are sorceresses zat cannot conceive. At all. And zere are sorceresses zat _can_ conceive but cannot carry to term. So zen, how to determine which category Rinoa falls into.”

He smiled around at them.

“Get on with it, Odine,” Laguna crossed his arms as well. Rinoa had to fight back a snicker and the thought of how very similar Laguna and Squall appeared at that moment.

Squall still gave her a glare out of the corner of his eye to let her know that he did not at all appreciate the comparison.

“Iz it not obvious?” Odine smirked. “Zat is why I am ze genius and you are not. You vant a hint? Edea iz the kind zat cannot conceive. Adel iz the kind zat can't carry to term. Give up?”

“Please, Odine, do tell us,” Squall said dully, totally deadpan.

It was enough for Odine. “Ah! Ze difference iz simply zis: Ze age at which ze sorceress inherited her power.”

The age? Squall frowned. He felt like he knew their ages at one point, but the memory of it had escaped him some time ago.

Not that Odine was disappointed. Happily, he carried on. “Edea inherited her powers as a young child from her adopted mother. Adel slaughtered the three sorceress she inherited her power from as an adult.”

“Rinoa's an adult, right? So then Rinoa can conceive, but she can't carry to term?” Squall guessed.

“Very good!” Odine beamed, bouncing on his toes. “Prepubescent vomen who inherit ze sorceress power lose zeir ability to conceive. Postpubescent women retain it. Can you guess why?”

Squall thought over their conversation. “Does it have something to do with the fact that children shouldn't use paramagic?”

“Exactly so! Ven I began developing my paramagic, I came across a strange trend. Anytime a voman who was pregnant attempted to use paramagic, she would miscarry. Even those who were late into their pregnancy would lose the baby. Stillbirths, miscarriages. The one time a babe vas born, it's lungs were too underdeveloped to live and it died vithin minutes. Paramagic, for all zat it is very useful, alters ze body's genetic components. I haven't figured out how. Laguna iz very particular about allowing me to have subjects to test on.”

“I am not letting you force women to miscarry for your research!” Laguna snapped.

“Anyvay. Adults are not affected by it. It iz only those who have not yet undergone puberty that are affected. I cannot say why,” Odine gave Laguna another dirty look, “but it iz true. It iz around one year of age that paramagic is no longer deadly, but it still has effects. Most often, infertility in later life. So, using zis knowledge, we can apply zese facts to sorceresses. Ze women who inherit it before puberty, such as Edea, cannot conceive because of the body changes forced on her by the magic. Zose who inherited after puberty may conceive because their body's are too old to change.”

“Then the reason that Adel couldn't conceive wasn't because she inherited too young, it's because she was casting magic while she was pregnant!” Rinoa cried eagerly. Then, was there hope?

Odine laughed. “You are getting ahead of Odine. Okay, let's talk about ze other category. Rinoa, I am going to ask you a question and you must be honest. It iz for science. Since you inherited your powers, have you yet had a menstrual period?”

Rinoa face burned bright red. Laguna was doing his best not to look at her, but Odine was staring quite determinedly. Squall's hand twitched, almost like he wanted to run Odine through. Luckily his gunblade was in his INVENTORY.

“N-No,” she finally answered, embarrassed.

“And how much would you say you use your magic on average?”

Rinoa shrugged. “I don't know. Maybe every other day? Fighting monsters and stuff like that.”

“As I would have suspected. Adel did not have a menstrual period eizer. Through all the women I researched, I found zat only those who had inherited as adults could conceive, but not all who inherited late ever did. Zose who did manage it were often sorceresses in secrecy. Trying to hide what zey were or simply lived such peaceful lives zat zey never needed to use zeir magic. I told all of zis to Adel and explained zat she must refrain from magic in order to conceive zen continued not to use magic as ze child gestated and zen for about ze first year of its birth. She decided to just find a successor instead. I don't blame her. Very difficult to be a tyrant sorceress if you can't use magic. She'd never be able to resist long enough to have her periods again much less conceive and carry.”

Squall frowned. “So, what do _we_ do?”

Odine shrugged. “It iz really very simple. Sorceress magic and paramagic are not ze same. Paramagic is far more altering and dangerous, but it can be unjunctioned. Sorceress magic does less damage to the growing childrens, but it iz inherent in Rinoa's blood. In order to restore her menstruation and allow her to become pregnant, she need only not use magic. Then, in order not to kill ze embryo, she must refrain from using magic again until its initial year one growth spurt is over. Maybe even longer, just to be safe.”  
Squall shared a look with Rinoa. Then turned back to Odine.

“And how do you know all this is true? Did you ever find a sorceress that was successful in giving birth?”

“As a matter of fact...” Grinning, reaching into his pants pocket, Odine pulled out a thin case about the size of a bubble gum packet. It took Squall a moment to recognize an INVENTORY. The model Odine carried was much more advanced than his own.

From within, Odine summoned an old book with a worn spine and yellowing pages. He held up the leather bound novel. There was no cover art, but the title was still emblazoned in gold.

“The Sorceress's Knight?” Rinoa read, frowning. The sorceress did give birth at the end, after her knight had died. But...

“Odine, that's a fantasy novel,” Laguna pointed out with a frown.

“Oh, look at you so smart with your eyes and your obviousness,” Odine touched the cover gently. “It so happens, zat zis is not just an ordinary fantasy novel. Zis is a play written by a very famous novelist a hundred years and more ago in Centra. Centra was a land zat near worshiped sorceresses. In zeir history, many of zeir rulers possessed ze gift. In a land zat held sorceresses in high regard, it would be common knowledge zat sorceresses cannot carry to term. Yet, in zis work, it happens almost without comment. When I read it again, keeping watch, I noticed zat the author made sure to stop her from casting spells long before she was impregnated.”

Rinoa held her elbows uncertainly. She was trusting the hunch of a scientist who was getting his information from an old fantasy book?

Odine made a sound of distaste at the look on her face. “You don't believe Odine? Bah! Zere is none more knowledgeable than I!”

“It sounds like you're just guessing,” Squall crossed his arms at him.

“It's called hypothesizing based on current knowledge, you plebeian!” Odine crossed his arms. “It iz true zat I have no solid proof, but my guesswork is usually correct. Of course, if you were attempting to bring my hypothesis to test, I should be very interested in observing Rinoa.”

Squall's eyes narrowed but Rinoa's face broke out into a wide smile. Odine was a heartless jerk, but at least he could be counted on to be selfish. If he was wanting to prove himself right like the complete narcissist that he was, then he would only have cause to tell the truth.

“You're sure that's all it would take?” Rinoa asked cautiously.

“Of course! Odine is never wrong!”

Rinoa turned her bright eyes on Squall. He hesitated only a moment before smiling back. He didn't like the doctor, but he probably knew what he was talking about.

And that means we can do it all we want without protection until we're ready, Rinoa pointed out.

Yes, there was also that.

Laughing, Rinoa threw her arms around Squall. Holding him close, she felt a wonderful, powerful sweeping sense of happiness and relief flood her body.

And as much as he tried to hide it, Rinoa knew that Squall felt similarly. It had hurt him as much as her to hear that they couldn't have children. All it would cost to do so was Rinoa not using any magic? That was easy.

Squall looked at Laguna over Rinoa's head and nodded to him. “Thank you.”

Laguna smiled sheepishly, scratching his head. “Yeah, don't mention it...”

The warm glow in Laguna's chest wasn't an unfamiliar one. It was nearly identical to the feeling he experienced whenever Ellone called him 'Uncle Laguna' and told him she loved him. It wasn't quite the same situation, but Laguna felt that exact same delight anyway.

The door to the reception room opened with a soft swoosh and Kiros and Ward stepped inside. Kiros was frowning.

“We have guests,” he said simply.

“Guests?” Laguna repeated as Squall and Rinoa separated. “Who?”

“Yoo-hoo!” Irvine grinned as he poked his head from around the door. “Hey, hey, hey!”

Smirking, adjusting his hat, he walked inside. Behind him, Selphie was skipping followed by Zell then Quistis. The four of them smiled. Squall frowned.

“What are you all doing here?”

“We were worried about you,” Quistis said, coming forward. “You were supposed to be back three days ago. And we know you wouldn't delay a meeting time for anything inconsequential, so we thought we'd come to see what the problem was.”

“There's no problem.”

“Like Hyne there's not,” Selphie pouted, crossing her arms. Zell mimicked her.

“Seriously,” he frowned.

“What?” Squall asked, looking between them.

“How could you not tell us?” Irvine asked as though scandalized. “We have to find out via news report as we're flying in? What kind of way is that to let us know that you and Laguna are related!”

“Oh, yeah...” Squall had honestly completely forgotten that they didn't know. “Well, you know now.”

“So not the point,” Selphie told him. “We're friends! That's the kind of update you should deliver in person! Rinoa, did you know?”

“Uh, yeah,” Rinoa grinned sheepishly.

“And you didn't tell us?” Zell gaped at her.

She shrugged. “You know how Squall is. He likes to keep things on a tight leash.”

“Yeah, but we're family!”

“Seriously,” Quistis smiled at Squall. “You all right?”

“I'm fine,” he assured her. “We had a little problem when the press got footage of us discussing it and I needed to stay and deal with the fallout. Also, Laguna and I were considering trade negotiations between us and Esthar.”

“Really?” Quistis brightened. “Xu will be happy to hear that.”

“I figured she might be. I think we've got most everything settled now,” Squall looked at Laguna who was smiling at him.

“It's been great having you.”

“I think this is a moment,” Irvine fake whispered loudly to Selphie.

“Do you think we broke it?” She asked back just as loudly.

“Nah. We only added to it.” Irvine grinned. “So nothing we can do to help?”

Squall shrugged. “I think we're done here. We're probably thinking about leaving today.”

“What? We just got here!” Selphie protested. “We haven't even had time to get to know your dad properly!”

“Can you not call him that?” Squall grumbled.

Rinoa laughed as Laguna clapped him on the shoulder. “How about dinner? We didn't really get to finish our cookout yesterday. You all can go back tomorrow.”

“I'm pretty sure I was only coming here for one night,” Squall continued to grumble.

“Oh, stop being such a sourpuss,” Quistis laughed. “Dinner sounds great, President Loire.”

“Call me Laguna. For crying out loud. I'm so tired of all this formality.” Beaming around at the gathered group, Laguna felt suddenly a great deal more secure than he had since first finding out that he had a son. It wasn't perfect, but, honestly, he was feeling better than ever right now. He couldn't ask for better than this, and he didn't even want to try.

***

The casual dinner the night before had been a relaxed affair that still felt slightly formal, for all that it had lasted only a few moments. That was probably Squall's fault. He had never been able to relax and act calm and casual around new people. Even people that he had literally seen the inside of their heads and fought for their lives.

The addition of his other friends broke that formality that he couldn't breech.

Selphie sighed over Laguna for a while, making the older man slightly uncomfortable. Then Irvine stepped in, getting jealous and possessive. Laguna then enjoyed flirting with Selphie only because it was fun and harmless and it made Irvine hold her tighter.

If there was one thing Laguna encouraged, it was holding your loved ones tighter. Because you never knew when it would be the last time you would see them. A painful lesson that he knew only all too well.

Ward, Zell, and Ellone grouped together. Though Ward couldn't talk, Zell felt like he had been inside the mute man's head enough to be able to translate him. Which he did with rather surprising efficiency and accuracy. Ellone liked talking to both of them while hanging out close enough to the poolside chairs that Squall and Rinoa, who were seated together on the same chair, could easily join the conversation if they so desired.

Kiros and Quistis hit it off rather well. They were already starting to talk about trade. While it was technically work, it was something both of them enjoyed. It wasn't even all that serious. It was mostly batting ideas around and discussing the future.

“There are three gardens in the world, correct?” Kiros was asking curiously.

Quistis hedged. “Well, not really anymore. Trabia was destroyed by missile fire. We've heard of plans to rebuild, but it will take years. Galbadia Garden was damaged very badly by our battle, but we haven't seen it since. They haven't got back to their previous resting place. I feel like Balamb Garden is the only one left.”

“Well, I was thinking...”

“Yes?” She encouraged him.

“I admit, I've been in Esthar for a long time. I've begun to think as Estherians think. I discounted your strength and skill before I saw it. But now that I have seen it, I'm beginning to think that it wouldn't be so bad to learn from you as you learn from us.”

“What are you suggesting?”

“How would you feel about setting up a garden here in Esthar?”

“Esthar Garden?” Quistis's eyes went wide.

“It could, of course, feed into the SeeD program. It could also feed into the Estherian military. It would take a great deal of planning and coordination between your garden and ourselves, but I believe what we have to learn from one another would make it well worth it.”

Quistis grinned. “I'll run it by Xu. I'm sure she'll be excited at the prospect.”

“We can discuss details later.”

“Yo!” Zell cried over to them. “Are you two seriously working right now?”

“We're enjoying ourselves,” Quistis said calmly, sipping at her wine.

Zell bared his tongue in disgust. “You can't work! It's a day off! Right, Squall?”

“You'll never hear me say you _can't_ work,” Squall said calmly.

“I asked the wrong person about this,” Zell grumbled. “Anyway, I want to hear more about this father-son thing Squall and Laguna have going on.”

Squall's eyebrow twitched. “Stop calling him that.”

Laguna chuckled. “I don't mind talking about it. But that's really up to Squall.”

Multiple pairs of eyes fell on him. Letting out a long breath, Squall figured that they might as well hear it from them.

With Laguna and Ellone stepping in occasionally to fill in some blanks, Squall told them the story he had been told. He might have clipped the emotions a bit – as was his habit – but Laguna and Ellone kept tearing up to make up for his lack.

“Wait, so they named you after the storm that killed...” Irvine trailed off, eyes moving quickly over to Laguna. The older man's shoulders had slumped at the reminder.

“That's seriously messed up,” Zell growled in anger. “How could those people do that?!”

Rinoa's hand twisted through Squall's and he smiled at her gently.

“Well, we could call him something else!” Selphie suggested brightly.

Squall's eyebrow rose. “Something else? Like what?”

“Like...” she cast her mind around quickly. Her face brightened. “Leon!”

Squall frowned. “Leon? Where did you get that?”

“From your last name! 'Leon-hart'. You could be named after Raine!”

Laguna grinned. “Leon. I kind of like it.”

Squall rolled his eyes. “Don't encourage them.”

Rinoa laughed gently. “What do you think? Leon isn't bad. You could change your name, if you wanted to.”

Squall stared at her for a moment. Then found his eyes moving past her out towards the sky. He couldn't really see the stars because, even at night, Esthar was such a bright city. But the moon was still brighter and he could look at that and think.

He had been named after a squall, a deadly storm, that had taken the life of the woman that had given birth to him. As punishment for a crime that he couldn't say he committed. It had a nasty sort of connotation and, really, no one would blame him for shedding it considering the history behind his real first name.

Yet...

Squall felt no shame at his name. For better or worse, a storm was part of his past. It wasn't quite a badge of honor, but it was a weight he didn't want to get rid of. He knew, because of Shiva and Bahamut in his head, that he might very well forget about his own past. He would write it down later to be sure it never truly escaped, but one day...

If he kept his name, if he kept the mark given to him in hatred, at least he would never be able to shed his past completely. It wasn't a badge of pride or honor, he felt no pleasure at knowing he was wearing the title of the very thing that killed his mother. But he also didn't want to release that tenuous connection he had to her.

“I think I'll keep it,” he told them softly. “I am Squall, and I'm not ashamed of that.”

Rinoa smiled and gently rested her head against his arm. “Okay. Squall it is.”

Laguna nodded, accepting his decision.

“Aw, I liked Leon,” Selphie pouted.

Irvine chuckled, tousling her hair. “Leave him alone. Leon's a weird name anyway.”

“Who asked you?” She batted his hands away from her head.

Squall grinned at her. “It's not a bad name, Selphie. I'm satisfied with who I am though. It's not the greatest past, but it is mine and I won't turn from it.”

She smiled at him with the others. Rinoa kissed his shoulder and he grinned slightly at her. Much more comfortable around these people he was so familiar with than anyone else. It was a side of him that Laguna hadn't seen before.

Seeing it now filled him with a sense of peace and satisfaction. More than anything, after finding out he had a son, he had desperately hoped that the boy – the man – was happy. He had been concerned since he met him that it wasn't true.

Around his friends, his family, Squall was much more at ease. Happier. And his happiness made Laguna feel better. It didn't quite alleviate the guilt at his own unintentional abandonment, but it eased his worry that Squall was somehow displeased with the way his life had turned out.

“I really like Esthar,” Selphie said a little while later, sniffing at a large bouquet of flowers sitting on a side table near the doors. “Are these native to these parts, Laguna?”

“Yeah,” he beamed. “Pretty, right?”

“They'd make a great perfume!”

Rinoa smiled at her then to Squall. “What do you think?”

“About perfume or flowers?” He looked to her, confused.

“I mean about the perfume. I haven't had any in a while. They might have it as a scent here. I could pick it up. If you like it.”

Squall leaned in close to her and sniffed at the curve of her neck drawing a soft sound from her throat that tickled his heart.

“I like the way you smell,” he assured her.

“I smell like soap.”

“No. You smell like flowers.”

Rinoa frowned. “What are you talking about.”

He looked at her with a soft smile. “You smell like the flower fields at the orphanage.”

“I do?” Rinoa lifted her arm and sniffed it curiously. She couldn't detect her own scent.

Squall took her hand and brought her arm to his own nose. He drew in the sweet honeyed scent of flowers and soil that permeated her body.

“You've smelled like this since you got your powers.”

Rinoa blinked. “My magic...altered my scent?”

Squall shrugged. “I suppose so. I like it.”

As he admitted it, he detected it just slightly heavier in the air. As though the confession had somehow caused her to put out of more of it. He wasn't complaining.

Rinoa giggled. “Well, that's one upside I didn't consider. Guess there's got to be something good about being the only sorceress on the planet. Smelling nice isn't totally horrible.”

“What are you talking about? When have your powers ever been totally horrible?”

“That part where I freed Adel wasn't great.”

“I dealt with that.”

“That part where I hurt you because I was possessed kind of sucked.”

“I've lived through worse.”

“That whole 'no kids' thing is pretty terrible.”

“We just found out there's a way around that.”

“Squall, if I didn't know better, I would think that you're an optimist.”

He shrugged. “A realist. All of those things were taken care of or resolved themselves. Besides, without your power, I don't think we'd be as close as we are.”

She grinned. “That's true. I can't deny it's nice being able to just hear whatever your thinking and feeling. Makes things much easier.”

“Ah-HAH!”

Both of them jumped and turned to see Laguna leveling a finger at them.

“I knew there was something!” He declared. “I kept swearing that you two were having conversations when I couldn't hear them.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” Zell held up his hands. “Are you serious? You two can literally hear each other's thoughts?”

Squall and Rinoa shared a glance, then a grin.

This is your fault, she said. You're so secretive.

I never forbid you from telling them.

“They're doing it again!” Laguna accused with a big grin. “I am so glad I'm not crazy!”

“Well, those are two different points entirely,” Squall said mercilessly.

“Ow, that hurts,” Laguna grabbed his chest. “You're so cold to your father.”

“Stop it.”

Rinoa laughed, brushing back Squall's hair and pulling his gaze back to her. “Why do you not like it when people call him your father?”

Squall blinked, feeling an interesting sense of deja vu. Like she had once asked him something very similar. He shrugged.

“I don't know. It just feels...weird.”

“Weird?”

He touched his chest. “Here. Feels...tight. I think? I don't know...”

Laguna grunted like he had been struck. Squall turned to see the other man biting on his knuckle.

“You okay, Laguna?” He asked calmly.

“I'm good,” he said, his voice tight with emotion.

Squall didn't know it. But now Laguna did.

Squall actually felt something for him. And that was what Laguna had not dared ask for.


	51. The World's Enemy

It was the first time Squall could remember waking up like this. Not with Rinoa in his arms, he didn't think he would ever forget such a wonderful feeling. Nor sleeping on the ground, that happened to him all the time.

It was the first time he could remember waking surrounded by his friends camped out like they were having a large slumber party. Selphie and Quistis laying crosswise on the couch with one of Selphie's arms hanging over the edge. Laguna was passed out longways on his bed, Kiros tucked in more properly on one side. Zell had knocked out leaning against the wall beside Ward and his head had fallen to rest on the other man's shoulder. Ellone was curled up into a ball on a lounge chair near the sofa with the blanket from the bed around her. Squall and Rinoa, having taken the pillows from the bed, were camped out in the middle of the floor. It was just where everyone had fallen and laid their heads because no one had wanted to leave last night.

It was the first time that Squall could remember waking like this. Yet it was incredibly familiar to him as he sat up and looked around the silence of the early morning sleepers.

In the back of his mind, calling out from the distant past, Squall could barely recall something similar to this happening many times. As a child. When he and his siblings had all fallen asleep in the play room or they had all snuck from each other's rooms and congregated in one instead. It was the same quiet, peaceful sort of feeling.

Rubbing his neck, Squall stretched his back. He wasn't wearing his jacket. It was wrapped around Rinoa like a blanket with his Odine capsules in the pockets alongside hers.

Pushing himself to his feet, Squall yawned silently as he walked around the room. He made a quick trip to the bathroom and, when he came back, it was to see a group of silent servants setting up a long table of breakfast. The scent of coffee, eggs, and Estharian bacon filled the air.

Forgoing the coffee, Squall opted instead for orange juice. He was drinking from a glass as the servants walked out. Still silent and completely professional. They didn't even appear curious about how many people were camped out in their president's room.

“I smell coffee!”

Squall turned to see Selphie's head having popped up from the couch like a gopher. Twisting away from Quistis, she nearly fell to the ground. Then walked like a zombie over to the food, following her nose more than her half closed eyes.

Squall watched her grab a cup of coffee, a biscuit, and an apple before stumbling back to the couch and laying back down. Doing so disturbed Quistis who woke up as the girl was drinking, still half asleep, at her coffee while her food rested on her stomach.

Squall watched, sipping at his juice, as the blonde woman sat up and looked around, curious at the scent of food filling the room. She smiled when she caught sight of Squall and stood.

“Good morning,” she greeted softly.

“Morning,” Squall nodded to her. He reached behind himself and picked up an apple for himself and took a bite. Crisp and slightly chilled, juice filled his mouth as he chewed.

“How early is it?” She asked.

Squall didn't need a watch. His internal clock was very well tuned. “Around 08:00.”

“You don't have to answer in military time,” Quistis chuckled, grabbing the pot of coffee to pour a cup for herself. She added cream and sugar and took a sip. Then let out a soft moan. “Oh, wow. I haven't had Esthar coffee yet. This is really good.”

Squall shrugged. He didn't drink coffee. Not that he didn't need it, he just didn't want to start a morning dependence on caffeine. So he had simply trained himself to wake up and fight off the morning grogginess without the aid of the stuff.

The smell of food and coffee gradually brought everyone else around. Waking slowly, comfortably, everyone moved just a little bit languidly as they sought out breakfast. Squall made a plate of food as Laguna was stumbling over to the coffee in a blind haze. Grabbing another glass of juice, he returned to where Rinoa was still sleeping.

His sleepy princess was the last one to waken. Everyone already had food and were chilling out on various surfaces by the time that her eyes were opening. Yawning, rubbing the sleepy brown orbs, she sat up causing Squall's jacket to fall from her shoulders.

“Morning,” Squall smiled at her.

Reaching out, she stole one his strips of bacon from the plate he had half filled for her. She smiled and snuggled in close to his side.

“You have fun last night?” She asked, nibbling on the bacon.

“I did,” he assured her. “We're leaving today though. No more delays.”

“I'll miss Laguna.”

“We'll see him again. We have to work out the trade agreement. And Quistis is already talking about starting a new garden here. That's going to require a lot of work.”

Rinoa hummed thoughtfully. “What about the other gardens?”

“What about them?”

“Trabia is trying to rebuild, right? And Galbadia is...I don't know what Galbadia is.”

“Last I heard, Martine is in FH. I don't think I'd want him back in charge though.” Squall was still slightly bitter over the lies he had told that had led to Squall's imprisonment and torture. A man who would lie and steal like that shouldn't be in charge.

“What if Balamb just took over all the gardens?” She suggested calmly.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, if Balamb became like the central headquarters and controlled the other gardens. You could keep people like Martine from taking over. It would be a big project, but...I don't know. It might just be the sleep talking.”

Squall hummed thoughtfully. Balamb Garden just got their aerial division. He was still in talks with Weiss about starting a navel division – and the talks were going well. Xu was about to be busy with the Esthar trade agreement, he was already considering putting Quistis in charge of the Esthar Garden project since she was so interested in it. Balamb Garden was expanding quickly. They weren't reaching outside of their means either.

“Do you think we could start a Timber Garden?” Rinoa perked up eagerly. “They're an independent nation again, so they can have one too, right?”

Squall grinned at her. “Maybe wait until Zone and the others get the government put in place before you start talking about big projects like that.”

“But it's on the table right?”

“Sure. Maybe someday.”

Beaming, Rinoa scooped up the other half of his biscuit and began eating it happily. She loved the thought of Timber joining the other nations with its own garden. More than that, she really loved the thought that Squall could be in charge of not just one garden but five! Well, after a fashion since all gardens fed into the SeeD program.

Finishing their food, Squall stood to return the plate to the table to be taken and cleaned by the palace staff later. Zell was grazing at the table, talking at Ward happily. Laguna and Ellone were on the couch talking about nothing. Squall turned back to the room as Rinoa stood, stretching her arms over her head.

“Are you gonna call one of the BBs now?” Irvine asked Squall from where he was sitting on the lounge chair with Selphie perched on the ground in front of him leaning against his legs.

“Yeah,” Squall reached out to take his jacket from Rinoa. Intending to pull the communicator from the pocket so he could place the call.

He was actually eager to get home. He felt like he had been gone forever. Probably because he hadn't meant to be away for this long.

As he was dialing Xu's number, Kiros was powering up his tablet so he could check the news for the morning. He made a strangled sound in his throat when he did so, catching Laguna's attention from beside him on the sofa.

“What is it?” Laguna looked over towards the tablet. A very similar sound came from his mouth as he stared with a grimace.

Squall looked up, frowning as he hesitated before placing the call. “What?”

“Um...” Laguna frowned as Ellone leaned across his lap to check herself.

“Oh...” She made a face.

“What?” Squall repeated more firmly.

Kiros hit a couple buttons on the tablet. Doing so turned on Laguna's large holo TV set against the wall and changed it to the news channel he had been watching.

“ _-absolutely shocking. After years of being untouchable, it seems our president can't go a single day without scandal coming from the palace._ ”

Squall frowned as he moved around to get a better look at the TV.

“ _We now go to our political correspondent to discuss the potential fallout of this disturbing news._ ”

“ _Disturbing is putting it lightly. This is downright alarming. President Loire has made no secret about the recent dealings with Adel, this rumored 'Sorceress Ultimecia', and Sorceress Rinoa. What he failed to mention is that Sorceress Rinoa is, in fact, the last sorceress on all of Gaia._ ”

Squall frowned as a video filled the corner of the screen. Showing Laguna's balcony and zoomed in on where Squall and Rinoa had been sitting last night.

“ _Guess there's got to be something good about being the only sorceress on the planet,_ ” Rinoa was saying with a smile.

The correspondent started talking over the muted video. “ _The last sorceress? That would make this woman a very powerful, very dangerous person. And we come to find out now that she's having an affair with Commander Squall Leonhart. The estranged son of our president who, just yesterday, told us that he would authorize an attack against our country if paid to do so._ ”

The video changed. It was a split screen between some point last night when Rinoa had put her arms around him and kissed him full on the mouth and, on the other side, the video of him standing beside Laguna being questioned by reporters.

“ _So, if this is true about this woman being the last sorceress, what impact does that have on us?_ ” The female reporter asked the correspondent gravely.

“ _Well, as far as I can tell, her fate is going to end up in one of two places. Either A) she's going to pass her powers onto someone that becomes this 'Ultimecia' that our president states tried to destroy all of existence, or she herself becomes this woman. Honestly, I can't discredit either option. Especially when you consider the mercenary she keeps on her arm._ ”

“ _There are rumors going around that Commander Leonhart is actually Sorceress Rinoa's knight, can you make any comment on that?_ ”

“ _I would certainly say it's a possibility. Which should only make us more worried. It means that he can be commanded by this woman. She could have him fight anyone if she desired. All of our safety comes down to the whim of this young girl who is, for all intents and purposes, the strongest being on the planet._ ”

Growling, Squall turned on his heel. Marching from the room, he slammed open the balcony doors and moved immediately to where he imagined the camera had to have been placed to get the angle on those shots. The bouquet of flowers Selphie had been sniffing yesterday caught his eye. Ripping at the blooms, petals scattered to his feet as he lifted the tiny camera. Not at all dissimilar to the one that had caught the first conversation.

Turning with an angry snarl, he saw Kiros standing in the doorway with an expressionless look on his face as he stared at the camera in Squall's hand.

“You promised me this wouldn't happen again,” Squall growled, the camera icing over in his grasp as his anger got the better of him.

“Squall...” Rinoa frowned. “Calm down. It'll be okay.”

“Kiros, you told me you were dealing with it!” Squall threw the camera. The frozen machine hit the ground and shattered at Kiros's feet. “How did this happen twice?”

“I don't know,” he admitted tightly. “I've had my men investigating everyone carefully. There's no one even working the floor tonight that worked that night.”

“Clearly, that's not enough.”

Kiros frowned at Squall's tone. “If you don't like how I work, you're free to do it yourself.”

“Is that a genuine offer?” Squall growled.

Kiros crossed his arms. “Sure. Why not?”

Squall nodded once. “Quistis, Selphie. I want the investigation on the staff finished by tonight.”

“Roger!” Selphie yelled as she and Quistis saluted him.

Turning, the two women ran off. He looked to Irvine.

“I want you to comb the entire floor. Check for any more hidden cameras, hidden microphones, anything.”

“Yes, sir,” Irvine winked, following after the girls.

“Zell.”

“Yeah!” He jumped to attention.

“You're going to begin trying to track down the source of anything Irvine finds.”

“You got it!” Zell saluted him and ran after Irvine.

“Rinoa, you stay with me,” he ordered unnecessarily. She was already smiling, moving in closer to him to make herself feel better.

“You can't finish the investigation in one night,” Kiros frowned at him.

“It'll be done,” Squall assured him with cold eyes. Looking at him, not as his best friend's son, but as the SeeD commander. Emotionless, hard, and frozen, inside and out. In a place now that only Rinoa could reach. Far from the man he had been last night.

Kiros's misgivings were proved wrong before dinner time. Though he had been investigating his own people since first finding the camera, he was only about half finished with the long list of staff that worked at the presidential residence. There were just that many people who worked here as cooks, cleaners, servers, etc. 

Despite the number, Quistis and Selphie still finished before nightfall. Quistis's ability to rigorously set a neat and ordered schedule and Selphie's boundless energy worked well together to divide the employees into groups then finish each group exactly according to schedule so that they could both present their findings to Laguna, Kiros, and Squall on time. Kiros was honestly shocked that they had finished so quickly.

“How did you do that?” He asked, his eyebrows raising high as he looked over the list they had just transferred to his tablet.

“Hard work and dedication,” Quistis smiled peacefully. “We also expanded our search outside of the general staff and cooks to the guards.”

“Why? They weren't there that night.”

“Of course they were. There are always guards on the floor. You just don't usually see them because they're doing their jobs well. As point of fact, we generated our own list of suspects based on our findings and our number one _is_ one of the guards.”

With a swipe of her fingers on her own tablet – and Kiros had no idea where she had gotten one – she sent him her list of suspects. Then the file on her number one suspect.  
“His name is Jessie Hyur. He's been a member of the Estharian Army for five years, made the royal guard two years ago. His wife left him six months ago and since he has gotten involved with drinking, gambling, and excessive spending. He barely manages to pay his bills each month. Twice now he has been given a large deposit of money, the second occurring last night around midnight.”

“Are you serious?” Laguna frowned, looking over his expenses. “But, my guard is completely trustworthy!”

“I don't believe he intended to do harm,” Quistis lowered her tablet to hold her hands before herself formally. “His personality profile indicates his loyalty to Laguna and his country. He was sold out because Squall and Rinoa fall into neither party, not even as your son.”

“What? But...” Laguna frowned over the report. He couldn't really deny the validity of black and white numbers laid out right there for his eyes to see.

“I've already sent Zell to pick him up,” she said, moving her blonde bangs back. “He hasn't had much to do as Irvine has only found three more devices.”

“Three!?” Kiros jumped. “Where were they?”

“There was a camera above the door pointing down the hall to see who was coming and going and there were two microphones. One in the bedroom and one in the conference room.”

Kiros's mouth was moving but no sound was coming out. His own guard wouldn't have found these things because, if a member of the guard was hiding it, he would have known exactly where to put them to avoid detection.

“That was...fast,” Laguna marveled.

“Good work,” Squall praised with a nod.

Quistis smiled. “Thank you, commander. We've been keeping our eye on the news feeds as well. Have you?”

“Been trying to avoid it,” Squall admitted.

Quistis made a face. “It's really not that great. They're making Rinoa up to be this big enemy of humanity. They just keep saying that, one way or another, she's going to be responsible for Ultimecia.”

“Ultimecia doesn't even exist,” Kiros frowned.

“No yet,” Quistis frowned. “But they're making a good point. We defeated her in the very far future, but there's still the time in between that she rules. She destroyed everything too. The guardian I fought told me that she had sunk the entire Island of Balamb.”

Rinoa frowned, looking to Squall. “Are they right? Am I responsible for Ultimecia?”

“Of course not,” he frowned. “That's like blaming all the sorceresses before you because they passed on their powers to people who would eventually pass their power to Ultimecia.”

“What about...those who say I _am_ Ultimecia.”

Squall gave her a look. “Of course you're not Ultimecia. Don't be ridiculous.”

“But...” Rinoa hesitated, unsure.

She couldn't really say what Ultimecia looked like. They had defeated versions of her through time, but each one had been caked in so much make up that her face had been hidden. Including the woman herself at the end.

“Rinoa, if you were Ultimecia, where was I?” Squall asked with a look. “If you were her, wouldn't I have been there?”

Rinoa smiled softly. “Of course.”

Even if she was an evil sorceress, Squall would be with her. That would be true regardless of whether she had destroyed everything or not. Ultimecia had been alone.  
Well, her and her guardians...

By morning, things had started getting out of control. Jessie Hyur had been arrested and sent for questioning. It didn't take long for him to confess. The rest of the staff, scandalized by his betrayal, had pulled their ranks tighter. They were all watching each other more carefully and going over the palace that much more diligently to sniff out any other traitorous devices.

They also, however, were giving Rinoa just a little bit more room. No one wanted to meet her eye as though afraid she might suddenly strike if they did so. The people of Esthar were calling for her to leave the city and for President Laguna to be evacuated until she did so.

Though Laguna wished they would stay longer, Squall found it was probably a better idea to just agree with them and leave.

Rinoa had grown quiet. Seeing the palace staff avoid her so much, hearing the people's calls for her to leave, for her to die, for her to be sealed as Adel had been and launched to the moon so she could never be recovered, had affected her. She quickly became withdrawn and ashamed, as though she had done something wrong.

Her misery was making Squall angry and protective. He started snapping and growling. Walking around with his gunblade on his hip as though eager to use it. Her unhappy emotions were just putting him on edge so he felt better with it.

His behavior, however, was only making things worse. People began saying that she was putting her dog on attack, showing her true colors.

So, though he didn't want to leave on such a sour note, Squall felt like they didn't really have a choice anymore. Things were only going to escalate and he had a feeling that he was going to be the one that snapped when someone finally pushed Rinoa too far. To save Laguna from the disaster that action would bring down around his head, Squall decided to leave.

The last of the Balamb fleet had been finished by then. BB4-6 had been completed along with the fleet leader dubbed QB0 for queen bee zero. Squall and Rinoa boarded to the QB to pilot it back themselves since they didn't want to force any Estharians to bring them. Quistis, Selphie, and Zell were all driving one of the BBs with Irvine riding with Selphie.

“I'm really sorry about this,” Laguna frowned as they loaded up into the mini-airships.

“It's fine,” Squall let out a long breath. “this isn't the first place we've made more enemies than friends. The people will calm down. Eventually.”

“I'm going to do what I can,” Laguna promised sincerely. “I want you both to feel welcome here. You're my family. I don't want to drive you away. Especially not now.”

Squall let out a soft breath. “It's fine, Laguna. Next time, why don't you just come to the garden? You'll be treated well there. Completely safe and no recordings at all. I promise.”

Laguna laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head. “Thanks for coming to talk to me, Squall.”

“As though you gave me a choice.”

He laughed again. “Yeah. Call it selfishness. I'm happier now though. Ellone has agreed to live here with me. I don't expect the same from you, but if we could keep in touch?”

“Just don't send me multiple emails a day,” Squall looked at him pointedly.

Laguna beamed. “How about once a day?”

“How about once every other day?”

“Deal!” He reached out and shook Squall's hand eagerly.

“I might not be able to always respond,” Squall warned. “I do end up in battles a lot more than I usually intend to.”

“That's fine. It's enough to know you're there. I'll see you soon, Squall. Tell Rinoa I'm sorry and that I can't wait to see her again too.”

Squall nodded. Releasing his father's hand, he turned and started back towards the QB where Rinoa was already waiting in the co-pilot's seat. She was looking down at her lap sadly. She didn't glance up when Squall took the controls and prepared for take off.

Squall remained silent as the other BBs started up. He followed after them, pulling the QB up gently and taking to the air. He wasn't a pilot, but he wasn't going to be doing any fancy moves. He just needed to make it back to the garage.

The others started pulling off. Taking one last look out of the window, Squall glanced down to where Ellone was standing under Laguna's arm. They both smiled and waved at him.

His family.

Squall supposed that this tightness, this warmth, must be what it meant to have one.

Turning the QB, he flew after the others. Esthar fell behind them, leaving the judgment, the anger, the demands behind them. Rinoa didn't appear to be any happier. Squall tried to tell her silently that they would be fine. Esthar news didn't reach anywhere else in the world, no one else was going to know what she was.

That didn't make her feel any better.

So he focused on flying. On getting them home.

Unable to fly at top speed, it was going to take a few hours to get to the garden's location where it was currently resting at a beach on Centra. Weiss and his men were coming aboard and they were going to begin looking at the front gates both above and below the water to see how they were going to adapt it to their needs.

Squall didn't need to focus much on flying. At cruising speed, going in a straight line behind the others, he was pretty much just sitting there. Going down a list of his duties, his chores, the things he would need to do to make up for the multiple days he had missed. Mostly he was just trying to avoid thinking of anything that might upset Rinoa.

He didn't know when she made the decision. His own thoughts were so busy that he didn't hear hers come up with the idea. He only knew when she finally lifted her head and looked out the front window at the Esthar mountains passing under them.

“Turn around,” she said softly. Just loud enough to get his attention.

Squall looked over at her. “What?”

“I don't want to go back yet,” she told him.

“You want to return to Esthar?”

“No. I want...I...” She hesitated for a moment then turned to look at him seriously. “Take me to the Grandidi Forest.”

Squall frowned. “Why?”

“I want...to be alone. To be away from everyone.”

Squall watched her for a long moment. Then, reaching forward, he flipped off the coms. He pulled up on the control, stopping the airship. He turned, then took off back north.

All the way on the other side of Esthar, past the northern mountains, there was a massive forest. It couldn't be used as a lumber source because the mountains were impassable. The single beach that allowed access was usually frozen over because it was so far north and was too narrow to dock a garden or even a ship at.

Even the mini-airship, for all that it was tiny in comparison to the large Ragnarok, couldn't land through the thick canopy of trees. The best Squall could do was to find one of the golden cliff tops and pull in to park.

Leaves kicked up as he brought the ship down. A few monsters scurried away, scared away by the unfamiliar sound of an engine. The monsters here had probably never seen a man before. The untouched emerald forest certainly looked out of another time.

Rinoa let out a long breath, like a weight was being removed from her shoulders, as she looked out over the rippling canopy below the golden cliff.

“Why here?” Squall asked as he powered down the QB.

“It's where we agreed to live if we had to escape,” Rinoa smiled sadly. “This...This would have been our home if we hadn't gone back.”

Squall blinked at her before turning to follow her eyes outside of the ship. The forest stretched on far past the horizon. The trees were so close that they would probably have a hard time attempting to walk there, much less fight monsters. But he had agreed to make this place a home once. It almost felt like it was just from that promise alone.

“Did what those people said hurt you?” He asked, knowing very well it had.

“Do we have to go back?” She asked sadly. “We can try to keep this secret, but do you really think we can do so forever? What happens when it gets out?”

Squall frowned. “It's not going to get out.”

“Yes, it will. Maybe not soon, but one day. And when it does, there are going to be more people who want me dead or sealed. Or people who hunt me for my powers. There are always going to be those. Do you plan on fighting them forever?”

“If I have to,” Squall's brow furrowed, confused at where this was coming from.

“You can't possibly do that!”

“Then what do you want?”

Rinoa's mouth moved but no sound came out. Her head lowered, her hair covering her eyes. Squall was worried he might have snapped and hurt her feelings. Then...

“Squall, what if they're right?”

“About what?”

“About me being responsible for Ultimecia.”

“Stop it,” Squall turned, rolling his eyes. “Of course that's not your fault.”

“Isn't it? What do we even know about her? She's a psycho who wanted to destroy all time. That's it. We don't know where she came from or why. Don't you think her guardians acted odd? She put on that fake accent when we talked to her. Why did she possess me only the once?”

“She possessed you twice.”

“That second time doesn't even count. Why let me go at all? She could have brought me down from space easily. Even if I didn't know how to use my power then, she did. Why not keep using me? If she wanted me and Adel as one, why let me drift into space?”

“I don't know how she thinks,” Squall frowned. “What does it matter? She's done for.”

“No. She's our future. Our inescapable future. Or we wouldn't have needed to fight her at all. She's going to destroy the world. She's going to kill everyone. And if I don't become her, that still means that _someone_ I pass my powers onto will.”

Squall's jaw tightened. He didn't want to think about Rinoa passing on her powers because that meant immediately thinking of her death.

“Even if you don't fail and I die of old age, someone still has to inherit the power after me. I thought I might pass it down to my own daughter one day, if we ever have one. But then that means that my child would be the one responsible. Or maybe I'm killed and whoever kills me is responsible, in which case it's still my fault for not stopping her.”

“Enough!” Squall snapped. “I don't want to hear this nonsense anymore. You are not going to become Ultimecia. You are not responsible for Ultimecia!”

“You don't see my nightmares.”

Squall frowned. “Your nightmares? What does that have to do with anything?”

“I dream I'm losing you. I've lost you. Or that I just can't find you. I run everywhere. Sometimes...I destroy whatever gets in my way to find you. It's usually monsters. Lately...it's been shadows. Men and women that lift their blades to me. I destroy them too. I lay waste to a city, turning it upside down to try finding you.”

“Those are just dreams, Rinoa.”

“Are they? They don't feel like it.”

“Nightmares always feel more real.”

“I've had nightmares before. They don't feel like this. It's like...I _am_ that person. Destroying countries to find you. I'm always more concerned in the beginning. But by the end, I'm so desperate to find you again that I'm draining lakes, leveling mountains, burning forests without a care. I just keep saying that I have to find you. That all will be okay when I find you.”

“Rinoa...” Squall hesitated, unsure what to say. They were just dreams. Even bad ones. But that didn't mean that she was at all responsible for Ultimecia.

“She's our future, Squall. And I'm scared that...she's _my_ future.”

“She's not.”

“Isn't she?” Rinoa looked at him. “What if...What if the reason you're not in the future, the reason I'm having these nightmares of losing you...is because I do. What if you die one day and I'm left alone?”

Squall wanted to assure her immediately that it wouldn't happen. But his line of work was a dangerous one, and if someone _did_ attack her for her powers, he would fight back. No matter how strong the enemy or how hopeless the situation. If he could save her, he would give his own life. Which would, by definition, leave her alone.

Rinoa nodded upon hearing the thought. “What would I be without you, Squall? I don't know that I would survive it. If I become Ultimecia, then clearly my mind _doesn't_ survive it.”

“If you became Ultimecia, why would you try to destroy time?” He returned. “What would that gain you? Why try to kill me when I came forward into the future?”

Rinoa shook her head. Because she didn't know. She didn't know anything. And it was that unknowing that made everything so much worse. Rinoa had no idea the set of circumstances that would take place that put Ultimecia in power. She just knew that, as part of the future, they were inevitable. Nothing could be done to stop them.

Squall watched her for a long moment before turning to look out over the expansive Grandidi Forest. A place untouched by man.

“What if we move here?” He suggested softly.

“Why would we? We have no reason to anymore.”

“We could build a home here.”

“And have it destroyed by monsters daily?”

“A city.”

Rinoa frowned, turning to him. “A what?”

He shrugged. “If people have a problem for you, then we'll build a place where they don't. People once considered sorceresses sacred. In ancient Centra, they worshiped them outright. We just build a city here in the Grandidi Forest where only those who respect you are allowed.”

“Do you know how long that would take?”

“Years. It's definitely not something we can do overnight. But we want a safe place where you can not use your magic for years at a time. How else would we have a family?”

Rinoa blinked at him. “This place is almost uninhabitable, you know.”

“I have connections to the most technologically advanced country in the world and control the strongest army that has ever existed. It won't be easy, but I'm willing to do it.”

“For me?” She said in amazement.

Squall reached out and took her hand in his. “For us. If there's nowhere in this world where we can be happy and peaceful, then we make one.”

She grimaced. “That still doesn't solve our Ultimecia problem.”

“I don't think that...”

Rinoa, staring at the ground, frowned when Squall cut himself off. She looked up, confused. She was opening her mouth to ask what he didn't think.

The words died in her throat when she saw Squall's eyes rolling back. As she watched, his grip on her hand loosened and he collapsed over, his head hitting the window.

“Squall!” Rinoa jumped up to grab for him. “Ellone? Is that you?”

No response.

The darkness slammed into her a second later and Rinoa's eyes rolled back as she collapsed over Squall's lap.

It wasn't Ellone.


	52. From Our Future, Our Past

Squall knew it wasn't Ellone. It wasn't the same feeling. It hadn't started with that annoying high pitched whine, for one thing. The trip didn't rip him away from Shiva and Bahamut's mind. They came with him, both crying out in surprise and concern. It almost felt like he was falling down an impossibly long well, the air beating at his face and body.

Then a cooling sensation rushed over his skin. Like he had just splashed through water without actually hitting anything. He couldn't tell if he was naked or if the sensation was just tingling along his skin like he might be.

After a moment, he managed to pry his eyes open. The instant he did everything stopped. He found himself standing up straight somewhere that was oddly familiar. Stars stretched over his head and below his feet in all directions. Turning his head, he glanced around trying to remember why this place was familiar.

“Squall?!”

He turned around again quickly at the sound of Rinoa's panicked cry. Doing so caused his belts to clink together and the sound made her turn as well with a gasp. They had appeared in the same place with their backs facing each other.

She closed the distance between them quickly, grabbing onto him in relief.

“Are you okay?” She asked immediately, touching his face as though to assure herself that he was real.

Squall nodded once, holding onto her waist, he looked over her head and continued glancing around this place.

“We've been here before...haven't we?”

Rinoa turned as well, shaking and scared. “It looks like...that place where we fought Ultimecia.”

Yeah, that was it. The infinite space where she had died. Why were they-

“Please...help...”

They both turned quickly, their hair and clothes whipping back as they both instinctively grabbed for their weapons. Neither of which they had. Both were in Squall's INVENTORY.

Not that they needed it. Ultimecia was far from them, sprawled out on the lack-of ground holding up her torso on weak and shaky limbs. Her gray, thin skin was beginning to flake as though she were turning to dust before their eyes. Her long, steel gray hair was falling down concealing most of her nude body. She wasn't looking up at them. Not like she wanted to hide her face. More like it took just too much effort to use her neck muscles.

“...help...” she repeated again. Her voice was weak and thready.

Squall and Rinoa stood there for a long moment, unsure of what to do. Squall couldn't sense any hostility from her. It was almost like he was looking at that unsteady, unliving but not yet dead shade that had been desperately searching for someone to pass her powers onto.

“Ulti...mecia?” Rinoa questioned softly.

The sorceress was panting softly, though even that looked like it was exhausting. Squall wondered if he would even need his gunblade to kill her as she was now.

“I need your help...” she told them both.

Squall's eyebrow rose sardonically. “You need _our_ help?”

“Please,” she begged. “I need you. I can't...I'm still connected...You didn't finish the job...”

Squall frowned at her. He was reaching into his jacket, pulling on his INVENTORY. As he was pulling out their weapons, he was asking her, “Why should we help you?”

“I can't move on...”

“You already passed on your powers.”

“Not all of them. There's still one thing connecting me. You have to destroy it. Free that last...or I can't be free...”

Squall passed Rinoa her blaster. She hastily connected it to her arm. He attached his gunblade to his hip, one hand staying the hilt. The urge to slash her was strong, but the odd way she was acting made him cautious.

“What do you want, Ultimecia?”

“Kill it...If you kill it, the last of my power will be freed...And I can finally move on...I can be together with him...”

“What are you talking about?” Squall snapped at her. He was about to kill her anyway.

As he was starting to draw his blade, Ultimecia finally found the strength to lift her head. Her gray hair fell back from her face.

Rinoa screamed. Squall's fingers went numb.

Immediately, he was infuriated.

“What trick is this!?” He roared angrily.

Ultimecia, with no make up to cake her face, finally looked at them. Her eyes were still gold. Unchanged from anytime they had ever seen her. Without the elaborate stage make up though, it was easy to recognize her face.

The soft roundness of her cheeks. The fullness of her lips. The set of her eyes. It was all so familiar to Squall. It was the face he woke up next to every morning. It was the face that had settled into his dreams, both waking and sleeping. Older, yes, but not by much.

It was Rinoa.

“Please,” she begged. “Help me...”

Her voice was different. Just slightly. No fake accent disguised it any longer, and in seeing her face, Squall could tell that it was Rinoa's distinct tone. The melodic quality was gone though. Like she was too tired to keep even that up.

“What are you trying to pull?!” Squall growled at her. Angry. Certain that she was attempting to lure them into a trap of some kind. That was the only way Ultimecia could have Rinoa's face.

“Squall...” She whispered, staring at him almost longingly. “Please, kill him...”

“I'll kill you!” Squall drew his blade quickly. The bright sword didn't even make her flinch.

“I can't die,” she told him as though the fact distressed her. “I can't die so long as that last piece of me remains. Only you can do it. Only you are strong enough...”

Crying out, Squall charged at her. Slicing down, he intended to take her head.

His sword broke through her. A cloud of dust exploded. But her head remained attached. She didn't even twitch. She continued to look at him as he sliced through her again. More dust. Not even a small cut appeared on her flaky skin.

Stepping back, Squall stared at her. Rinoa, standing back, was shaking.

Ultimecia closed her eyes. Squall fell back further, joining with Rinoa.

Four lights appeared in a circle around Ultimecia. They blossomed and formed into the shape of people. Individual bodies and features began appearing. Their lights faded away and left Squall's friends standing there. Turning their heads around. They looked just as confused as Squall had felt when he came into this place.

“Squall?” Quistis asked, bemused. Her eyes narrowed on Ultimecia.

Squall and Rinoa said nothing as the others saw her, saw her face, and recognized her. Their initial cries of shock were quickly cut off as they all looked to Rinoa.

She was staring at Ultimecia. At herself. Shaking and terrified. Her face had turned white and she was breathing fast. It wasn't so easy facing your worst nightmare.

“I need your help,” Ultimecia repeated desperately.

“Let's kill her!” Zell yelled, tightening his gauntlets.

“Let me explain,” she begged.

The others looked to Squall. Waiting for him to give them the signal. He knew from just trying it that it would be useless. She was staring at him through Rinoa's eyes, in shape if not color, and it was hitting him harder than he would have believed. Because it was Ultimecia, and the face was older and gray, but it was still Rinoa.

“Explain what?” He asked coldly, still enraged.

“I thought it would be enough...I didn't want you to know...But you have to kill him to set me free and if this is the only way...”

Ultimecia's head dropped. Like she had lost the strength needed to keep it up. She was still breathing hard. Squall watched her mercilessly.

“Explain what?” He repeated.

“Why I did what I did....”

“You killed my friends!” Selphie yelled, her face drawn in fury.

“You destroyed Seifer's mind!” Quistis shouted.

“You threatened my family!” Zell roared, his fists burning.

“You brought down the Lunar Cry!” Irvine aimed his Exeter at her.

“You tried to kill us,” Squall said softly, his voice angry.

Rinoa looked up to her, her hands shaking. “You tortured Squall...”

“I did all of those things...for you...” She lifted her head, looking at Rinoa and Squall both.

Rinoa shook her head as Squall snarled at her.

“You wanted to obliterate time itself.”

“Didn't you ever wonder why?”

Squall said nothing. He had. But he had convinced himself that he would never find out and that he would never need to. It was easy. SeeDs were used to not questioning a job or the reasons behind why they were doing it. This one was the easiest because he could at least assure himself that, no matter why she did what she did, he had a very personal reason to keep her from doing it.

Ultimecia pushed herself up the rest of the way, sitting back onto her knees. Her tired arms could fall to her side as she sat up, facing them.

“Let me explain,” she repeated. She sounded so tired.

“Explain what?” Squall said once more. Softer this time. No less angry.

“My past,” she breathed, her eyes closing. With the golden orbs hidden, she looked even more like Rinoa and it made Squall uncomfortable.

“Things were different...I was born and raised in Galbadia. My mother died. I hated my father. I ran away...”

“I know that,” Squall growled, his hand clenching on his gunblade.

“I ran away...to Balamb.”

They all frowned, sharing a look. Because that wasn't what had happened.

“You ran away to Timber,” Rinoa corrected, confused.

“No. You ran away to Timber. Because you had Seifer to accompany you. To keep you safe as you crossed the forests. I didn't have Seifer. I had to board a train and the one to Balamb was the one running soonest.”

Rinoa frowned. Thinking back, she had almost made that same choice. She had been about to board that train when Seifer, who she had met a few days prior, had caught up to her. Excited at the prospect of her running away, he had offered to help her. And she had accepted.

“Things were different,” Ultimecia repeated. “Squall...You were different. Raised in Balamb, you were working in the junk shop...”

“What?” Squall frowned.

“Laguna left Winhill and went to Esthar to chase after Ellone. But he failed. Without me there to stop her, Adel found and caught him. She killed him. She kept Ellone as her successor. Brainwashing her as she raised her. Killed her too because she wouldn't obey. And since Ellone wasn't rescued in the past, she wasn't there in the future to send you back to rescue her in the past. Esthar expanded into Centra. Cid and Edea fled with their children to Balamb. She used her powers to protect the small island nation and raised her kids there. That's where I met you. Working in the junk shop. Saving enough to move out into your own home.

“We fell in love. Of course we fell in love. You were still a warrior, because that's who you are. As you worked at the junk shop, you learned to use the weapons you created and upgraded. You wanted to help protect Balamb from Esthar. They were expanding still. Everyone knew it wouldn't be long until she realized that Edea was protecting the island and came after her. You wanted to protect the woman that was your mother.

“Years passed. We got married. We worked together. We loved together. It was the best years of my life. We were happy. When I told you I was pregnant, you were ecstatic. Everything was perfect. And then Adel finally found us.

“The Esthar fleet came towards us. Adel led it herself. She wanted to kill Edea and obtain her powers. To be the last sorceress. You picked up your sword. You would fight for your home. For your family. I begged you not to go. I begged that you evacuate. That you run away with me. You were never able to turn down a challenge.

“You told me to run. I didn't listen. Despite the danger, I had to stay with you. You were my everything and I can't be without you. I ran after you. The battle was on the beach. Adel was killing everyone. Edea didn't want to fight. She was so peaceful. But she had no choice. Adel killed her easily. She inherited her power. She was the last one. You were angry. You chased after her.

“Adel was laughing. She was reveling in her victory. You attacked so quickly that she wasn't ready. Your saber went right through her chest. Right as I caught up to you. Adel shrieked. She was angry. She lashed out with her claws. She tore through your heart as her power escaped.

“I was closest. The power came to me. As you were falling, I caught you. You were dying. I couldn't live without you. I didn't know how to use my powers. I reacted without thinking. As your life escaped me, I grabbed your soul. I didn't mean to. I did the only thing I could do. I forced your soul from your body and took hold of it so it wouldn't leave me. I made you...I made you a GF.”

Ultimecia's eyes opened on him. The golden glow had faded slightly. Squall, trapped in the story she was telling, stared back at her. In his head, Shiva and Bahamut both felt a strange mixture of emotions at hearing her admit it.

It was the same way we became GF, Shiva told him. Humans. Our souls captured. We became the power that was in our hearts.

“My love,” Ultimecia sobbed dryly. “My heart. My grief. My Griever...”

Rinoa's hands clasped over her mouth. The lion they had fought. The lion Ultimecia had been so attached to...No...

“The magic was too strong,” Ultimecia's head dropped again. “I didn't know...I started bleeding almost immediately. I saved you...and I lost your baby. But I didn't save you. Your body was gone. All I had left was your soul, the power, that I junctioned into my head. You were different now. You no longer looked like you. But you still sounded like you.

“I had to have you back. I can't exist without you. As Esthar collapsed, as the world began winning the war with Adel gone, I went on a journey. I needed to find a way to restore your life. I had just made you a GF. There had to be a way. I didn't know how to fight. But I didn't need to. When I came across a monster or an attacker, I would summon you.

“Those times I did so were the only ones when I could see you. Sometimes, it was like I could almost touch you. As I looked for a way to restore you, I began seeking out fights. Anything to be able to draw you out and see you again. Each enemy you defeated made you stronger. My magic developed and matured and I began to be able to make you more solid. Sometimes you would linger and, when you did, I could touch you for a brief moment. It was never long enough.

“I needed more fights. More of a challenge. Any reason to call you from my mind. I began to stop caring about who I fought. Anyone. Anything. For any reason. So long as I could call you. I kept looking for a way to restore your life. But I kept looking for a fight. Anything I did, you were happy to go along with me. Whatever made me happy. You still loved me. I still loved you. As long as we were together, things would work out.

“I forgot the rule about using a GF. I forgot the price that has to be paid. I forgot...everything.

“It was innocuous at first. Things I never needed to recall anyway. I forgot my mother. I forgot my father. I began forgetting my friends. One by one. It didn't matter. I needed the next fight. So long as I could see you, nothing else was important. People began sending others to fight me. I didn't have to look for the next battle, they were coming to me. They wanted to kill me. They wanted to take you away from me. When the friends I had forgotten came against me, betrayed by what I had become, I killed them. Then I preserved their souls because you asked me to.

“I forgot my home. Then I destroyed it. I forgot our home. Then I destroyed it. As I became more powerful, as I destroyed more, people became more desperate to get rid of me. My search for a way to restore your life had given me methods to extend my own. And I used them so I could keep looking for ways to save you. And I kept using you.

“I built my own place. I subjugated the souls of our old friends. I found a way to restore a soul from the lifestream through Gaia. But no way to restore a soul to their body. I made my friends into my guardians and forced them to protect me while I searched for ways to retain my immortality. I searched into the past. I searched other worlds. I used you to kill and you allowed me to do so.

“I forgot who I was. I forgot where I came from. I forgot what I was doing and why. I had only my obsessions...

“Then...one day...I forgot you.”

Ultimecia looked up again, staring at Squall. “I woke up and I realized that I couldn't remember your name. I felt you in my head, but it was like you weren't even there. No matter how I wracked my brain, I couldn't bring your name to mind. And you can't summon a GF if you don't know it's name. I couldn't summon you, I couldn't touch you anymore. The obsession with you was the only thing that I had and I couldn't even remember why.

“So...I unjunctioned you. For the first time in too many years I took you from my mind. I hadn't even done that to sleep. I didn't care if I had weird dreams, as long as you were with me. And now I was completely alone without you. But I had to remember.

“Did you know...the first memories that return aren't the one's you lost most recently. They're the ones that you lost first. I began to remember...everything I had forgotten. I remembered my mother. I remembered my father. I remembered my home. Our home. Our friends. Our life. Our baby...A baby that I had killed...that I had sacrificed, however unknowingly, to preserve your soul. Your name was the very last thing I remembered and by then it was too late. Because I finally remembered who I was and I looked at myself and I felt only horror.

“Look at me.” Ultimecia held out her hands. Skin flaking off into nothingness. Pale and dead but not quite gone. She couldn't die as she was and it was torture. It was a fate she had brought on herself by her own actions. “I couldn't let this happen. I had destroyed the world. I had broken everything that I once treasured. Including the love I felt for you. I had to fix it.”

Her hands dropped back down as though her control over them had been cut. They flopped down beside her lifelessly. “I went down into my vault and I found the junction machine that Odine had built from Ellone's brain. With it, I could see the past. I collected it hoping to be able to change the past and save your life. You know as well as I do that it's impossible. You can't change the past in the future. Doing so negates your reason to change the past in the first place so the change never happens. It's the most basic of paradoxes. So long as I was part of time, I couldn't alter it.

“But I was powerful. I was unbelievably powerful. If I couldn't fix time while I was part of it, then I would break away from time entirely. I used the machine to go back in time. I went to the moment that Adel killed Edea. Right before you killed her. As the powers congregated together. I joined in that instant and my power, already impossibly incredible, doubled. And I broke time. I shattered it. I ripped it in two and I separated it.

“I created a new timeline. Almost exactly the same as mine. But, as someone outside of time, I could now interfere with it. I was constrained by my machine. I could only go back so far. To a moment in time when Edea was standing in her house. I needed a plan. SeeDs had been trying to kill me in my time, so I decided to create them in this new timeline. But earlier. I possessed her and forced her to tell Cid. Garden will train SeeDs. SeeDs will defeat the sorceress. Defeat me. And I let his own personality force it to blossom from there.

“I moved to Esthar. To Adel. I caught Ellone and allowed Odine to create the junction machine. More than that, when Laguna came around, I allowed him to seal me and Adel away. I abandoned her to be taken to space and I waited.

“Cid did well. He created Garden exactly as I wanted. Edea went into hiding and, to my annoyance, all of my friends were separated across Gaia. I needed you all together. I needed you to come together so you could help me.

“I was trapped in my outer world. I needed it destroyed so only the timeline I was crafting would remain. The timeline where you lived and I remained myself. To do that, I would need to destroy everything that I am. My power helps keep the world alive. It is part of Hyne and, because of that, it has ties to Gaia itself. So you had to destroy me. Destroy the GF I had created with my power. All of them. Cut the ties I had made so that time would be righted.

“So I had to gather you all. When Squall was ready, when he was strong enough, I began to move. I began planting ideas into Seifer's brain. Wonderful, romantic dreams. He would be my servant. He would help me make things right. So I made him obsessed with the idea of me. He's not a sorceress, so I couldn't possess him, but I could fill his mind with thoughts of me. With thoughts of being my knight. I made him yearn to go on vacation to Galbadia. And I guided him to me. To Rinoa. And when we were ready to run away, he was there to take us to Timber instead.

“I possessed Edea again and I took her out to Galbadia. I introduced myself to the president and I promised him every dream he had of domination. He gave me power. I made myself a problem. I forced Martine to send you to me, Squall, and you came. But you were too weak yet. You couldn't defeat me and my servants. I had to make you stronger.

“I speared you with ice. Then I saved your life and forced Seifer to interrogate you. I knew he would hurt you. But through hurting you, I would make you stronger. Give you drive. Give you reason to get stronger. To hate me. To want to destroy me. All of you. I took Selphie's friends from her. I destroyed Seifer's mind. I covered Gaia in monsters. I threatened you and those important to you. To make you stronger. To make you despise me so you would want to kill me.

“Do you still hate me? Then I did my job well. I wish I could tell you that I regret those lives I took. I wish I was still human enough to feel pity for them. But I don't. You are the only one important to me. I do everything for you. Nothing else matters. I had already destroyed nations for you. What were a few hundred more lives?

“When you killed me in Galbadia Garden, I knew you were ready to come to the future. When Edea's powers transferred to us, I had to catch Adel's power as well so I would be strong enough to keep you all alive long enough to reach me outside of time in my frozen world. I forced us up into space and forced us to free Adel. I forced you to kill us by giving you no choice. I knew you would give anything to save us.

“Then I brought you to my world. I forced you to fight and free the souls and power I had crafted as my guardians. My world was already destroyed. My castle was falling to pieces. And when I let you go, I made sure to direct you once more back to the orphanage. Back to the moment I started to give Edea the message so that the cycle would be complete. Whole. And I could finally die.

“I thought you had killed everyone. But you missed one. My power remains sunk into him and, so long as he still lives, I can't be free. Your world can't be the only one...”  
She trailed off, breathing hard. Like all that talking had exhausted her.

Squall and the others shared a look. Her story rang loudly in their heads. Impossible but...

In a way, it made a sort of sense. Some things had been too coincidental. Some things had seemed strange and confusing. There had always been the question of why Ultimecia would want to destroy time at all.

But this story she had told...

“Are you serious?” Zell asked her, his fists no longer flaming.

“I no longer have the ability to lie,” she whispered, her voice thready. “Please...help me...”

Everyone looked to Squall. He looked back at her.

“Who did we not kill?” He asked simply.

Ultimecia lifted her hand and pointed behind them. They all turned quickly, hands immediately reaching for weapons.

Squall knew that no one had been there before Ultimecia started talking. He had looked around in every direction when he first arrived. Now, standing about a doze yards behind him, was a large silver and blue monster. It had a large, boulder like body with four legs and a face on his chest. And he had a smaller torso and head coming from the top of that face with a clear, golden sword in one hand. He was almost exactly like the monster Squall had fought at the excavation sight of the deep sea research facility. But colored differently.

“Omega,” Ultimecia whispered from behind them. “I found him at the bottom of the ocean when I was looking through a sunken city for ancient magic techniques. He was so strong. So I bound him to me and made him stronger. You didn't find him in my world, so he wasn't killed. He remains alive in the nothing world and keeps me bound there. Please...kill him...and set me free...”

As though her words had broken through some kind of barrier, Omega's eyes suddenly focused on them and his body tensed. Growling, his upper torso lifted the large golden sword. Everyone drew and unfolded their weapons quickly as it growled.

Omega charged at them. Everyone jumped out of the way.

“The hell is that?!” Irvine yelled as he cocked his gun.

“It's that thing that melted Squall's hands at the bottom of the ocean!” Zell yelled. Worried. Because this one looked different. And he was worried how much 'stronger' Ultimecia had made it.

Squall's pristine hands tightened on his gunblade as Omega looked around at the humans. It hadn't eaten since Ultimecia's world had fallen. It was strong enough to survive without a world now, including not being able to eat, but it still felt hunger. It wanted to satisfy that most basic desire to devour and consume.

The face on its torso grinned as it looked at Squall, but it's mouth remained shut. The armor that made up its body was impossibly strong, even at the joints. Squall had killed it last time by spearing it through the open mouth.

“Squall?” Rinoa looked at him, waiting for a command.

“Watch out for its blood,” Squall told everyone. “And don't stop moving!”

Even as the warning was coming from his lips, impossibly fast, Omega charged towards Selphie. She cried out, diving to the side inelegantly. Following Squall's order, she immediately rolled and sprinted away, narrowly avoiding getting slashed open when the sword chased after her.

“Jump!” Squall shouted.

Selphie obeyed. Blindly leaping into the air. The sword passed under her. She landed, dropped, rolled, and ran in the other direction.

Irvine rushed forward, shooting towards the higher face on Omega's strange body. The magic infused with the pulse ammo burst against its shelled body like water pellets.

“I'm not even touching it,” Irvine frowned as Omega turned from him, rushing quickly for Zell.

The warrior didn't run from the sword. Lifting a flaming fist, he punched the sword aside. If there had been ground, it would have embedded in it beneath them.

Omega lifted the sword again. Quistis's Queen snapped around the body, catching it in place. Gritting her teeth and hunkering down, she pulled back as the monster pulled against her, trying to rip her off of her feet. Twisting her hand, she sent thunder racing down the body of the whip.

Omega roared as it hit him. Not in pain. More in annoyance. Spinning so quickly wind whipped across her hair, Quistis was thrown to the side. She twisted in the air and landed on her feet again. Yanking her whip back, she ran away before Omega could hit her.

Mistress.

Rinoa jumped in surprise at the unknown voice in her head. She felt Diablos become just as curious. As long as Eden had been in Rinoa's mind, she had only heard the GF introduce herself. Even that had been done in a soft whisper. This call was stronger, but still shy and uncertain.

“Eden?” Rinoa blinked, her attention turning inward.

“All at once!” Squall ordered, charging forward.

The others, except Rinoa, obeyed. Squall jumped onto Omega's back as Zell jumped onto his torso-face, grabbing for the arms of the smaller body to keep the sword still. Irvine dove, sliding under its belly and shooting up, hoping to find a soft spot. Quistis wrapped her whip around its back legs, shocking it again with her electricity. Meanwhile, Selphie ran behind Zell, swinging back the pronged end of her Vision. She grabbed the ends and held them out wide as she slammed into its torso-face. The prongs on her Vision slammed through its eyes. Simultaneously, Squall slammed the point of his Lion Heart down through Omega's back. The adamantine succeeded where Irvine's bullets failed.

Its blood had darkened since Squall had last seen it. The blue had become a bruised sort of purple as it began pouring out of the wound in its back and lower face. Omega reared back, a true cry of pain echoing from both throats; at once squealing, high pitched scream and a rumbling, bass filled roar that were completely dissonant with each other.

The humans cried out, grabbing for their ears as the clashing notes, vibrating so loud, threatened to rip them apart.

It has a weakness, Eden whispered to Rinoa. You don't need to die. Do this...

Rinoa lifted her hands, taking aim as Omega shook, throwing the humans away from himself. It turned raising up its sword over his head. Ready to rend Irvine, who hadn't been able to be thrown from under the monster, in two.

“Meltdown!” Rinoa yelled, a burst of magic that was strangely hot yet tingly cold burst from her palms and raced towards the monsters like a tunnel. Omega cried out as it crashed into him. Doing little damage to its health.

But making its armor-like skin brittle. Susceptible.

Omega drew back, looking at its hands. Roaring, it turned towards her. Squall, crying out, charged forward. Omega lifted his sword-

-and the weakened gold colored blade shattered when the Lion Heart slammed against it. Fragments fluttered down around them, falling past the non-existent ground they stood on and floating down to join with the stars.

Omega growled, lifting his now bare hands.

Light shown between them.

“Squall, watch out!” Rinoa yelled, Eden's warning in her head.

The burning, pulsing light that burst from Omega's hands set Rinoa's hair on edge as she quickly threw out her magic, wrapping Squall in its protective embrace. She cried out in shared pain as the blinding light burst over Squall.

When it faded, Squall was down on his knees, clutching his heart as he struggled to breath. Omega reared back, ready to squash him under his large hooves.

Zell cried out, jumping over Squall's body. Fists blazing, he slammed his entire body into Omega's underbelly. The monster, thrown off balance, fell backward. Zell hit the ground and rolled back onto his feet, running. Not fast enough to escape Omega's smaller, upper torso from grabbing onto his ankle and sending him crashing down.

Zell grabbed for something to hold onto but his fingers found no purchase as Omega dragged him back towards the razor sharp rows of fangs that opened in anticipation of ripping through Zell's leg. Pulling away the flesh and meat from the bones and letting his hot blood pour down his throat.

Quistis's Queen slammed down against Omega's upper torso. The bladed tip slashed against the skin made brittle by Rinoa's spell. The armor splintered like rock and purple blood oozed out from behind the cracked skin. She struck again as Zell kicked out to free himself.

Rinoa ignored them all as she raced towards Squall. She slid down next to him, wrapping her arms around him. The healing magic in her palms alleviated his pain quickly. Squall let out a breath of relief as the pain faded. He felt like his skin had been flayed off by the power of that strike. If Rinoa hadn't protected him at the last second, he probably would have died.

“You okay?” Rinoa asked as they stood up.

He nodded, tightening his hand on his blade. “I'm fine. That thing's barely dented though.”

Rinoa frowned, looking at it. “Eden says it's different from how she remembers.”

“She's finally talking to you?”

Rinoa smiled sadly. “Yeah. She has great timing.”

“Any advice?”

Rinoa didn't respond and he could hear her conferring with her GF through their bond. He could only feel her though it, not her GF. So he had to wait until Eden had answered so she could actually tell him using words.

“She says hit it hard and fast. Don't let up. Just keep beating down on it.”

“How? Physically or magically?”

“...All of it.”

“What?”

“Use all of it,” Rinoa looked at him. “She says we have to strike with everything we have at the same time or Omega is just going to keep bouncing back. These little hits are like ant bites to that thing.”

Squall's jaw tightened as he turned back to Omega. It was already getting back up. Quistis and Zell had done a small amount of damage to its upper torso, but not nearly enough. If they kept trying to fight it like this, they would never defeat it.

“Okay,” he nodded, rolling his shoulders and stretching his neck. “SeeDs! Pull back! Surround it!”

Everyone obeyed at the same moment. Rinoa ran away from him and took her place in the circle as everyone pulled back and looked at Omega between all of them. The monster turned quickly, its two undamaged eyes looking between them in confusion. It wanted to attack, but the circle surrounding it had temporarily confused it and it was wasting time making the choice.

“Selphie, Carbuncle!”

She grinned as she pulled her tiny blue friend from her mind. “Ruby Light!” She yelled.

The protective spell coated herself and all of her friends. Creating another sort of circle around Omega that confused it further.

“Your strongest spells!” Squall ordered, his voice carrying loudly over the space.

The sound caused Omega to turn to him. Squall could see the choice made in its mind – minds? – as it decided to come after him. It was clear that Squall was the head. Take the head, kill the beast. Even this monster knew that.

It was a tiny second of decision. But it was a hesitation.

The SeeDs obeyed their commander.

Opposite of Squall, facing Omega's back, Zell lifted his fists. One burning with fire, the other glowing with a pure, hot light.

“Holy!” He punched one spell forward. “Firaga!” He punched the other.

They burst against Omega making it roar out.

Selphie laughed, water spinning out from her Vision. “Water!”

So fast it was like a laser, the water blast burst against its right flank.

Opposite her, Irvine lifted his gun, cocking it one handed. He slammed the barrel into the ground and pulled the trigger.

“Quake!”

The not-ground holding Omega snapped sending it crashing down. Irvine lifting his Exeter up to the not-sky and pulled the trigger again.

“Meteor!”

Stars came raining down from the infinite space, belting Omega like an enormous hailstorm of asteroids and space debris.

Beside him, Quistis twirled her whip over her head. The air currents began collecting, condensing, forming a dust cloud from the asteroid dust left by Irvine's spell.

“Tornado!” She yelled, releasing it to rip at Omega's hide. Slamming her whip down, she unleashed a massive jolt of lightning, crying, “Thundaga!”

Across from her, Rinoa had started gathering her magic into her hands. She no longer needed to place the individual spells on her Wishing Star, she had learned to condense and coat them on her fingers like she was counting them off.

Beside her, Squall took aim with his gunblade.

“Blizzaga!” He roared, blasting an impossibly cold burst of ice around and inside of Omega. He drew back the trigger again. “Flare!”

The contradicting spells didn't cancel each other out so much as they seemed to amplify the damage that the other did so that Omega's skin began flaking away like Ultimecia's.

Rinoa drew back her palms and threw her spell. “Ultima!”

The green, soundless explosion stole their senses for a moment as it seemed to break through the very fabric of reality itself. The reflect spells over everyone kept each and every spell contained on Omega, reflecting and rebounding all the power on its body alone so that no power escaped.

When the power of ultima faded, Omega was left turning to dust. But still alive. Bleeding purple, alkaline blood from various breaks in its brittle skin but not nearly enough to be even considered a dangerous wound.

Still wasn't dead.

“Your GF!” Squall ordered.

Zell obeyed first again. Lifting his flaming fist, his right eye burned red. “Hellfire!”

Lifting his pulsating fist, his right eye flashed white. “Holy Judgment!”

The bright white streaks of light that rushed through the air from the infinite space around them brought with them a large flaming ball of magma and lava rocks. As they both beat down on Omega, Zell's eyes became a swirling, disturbing orange.

“Runaway Train!” He yelled summoning Doomtrain.

The tiny fires that burst to life between Zell and Omega looked almost like the edges of railroad ties lining the space. Zell's fists came forward. No one could see Doomtrain but himself, but they could see a swirling rush of energy that crashed into Omega all at once.

Selphie was giggling maniacally at all the destruction and power going on around her. She was eager to add to it. Her right eye and nunchaku glowed gold, her left eye and nunchaku glowed sky blue, as she twisted them around herself. One end struck out at the air, throwing the golden light.

“Silent Voice!” The first, low tide wave of water that hit Omega was just an appetizer of what was really coming. Selphie turned again, throwing out the blue light.

“Tsunami!” She yelled as the impossibly large wave of water washed over Omega, crushing it under its weight and power. 

Irvine's fist tightened, his gloves creaking as one eye turned spectacularly bright green and the other flashed incredibly dark green.

“10,000 Needles!” He shouted, the tiny spikes erupting from the air around him and spearing Omega in place like a needle through a big. Irvine pointed to the ground. “Chef's Knife!”

His cute little Tonberry, undeterred by Cactuar's needles, faded into existed. Irvine couldn't help but laugh as the tiny knife embedded into Omega's skin. A cute little poke. A little...'doink'-

Omega roared in pain.

Irvine's two green eyes became a solid, unified purple as he cocked his gun against his shoulder as he came back to his trusty brothers.

“Brotherly Love!”

The earthly attack shattered against Omega like a mountain to the face. Leaving the large monster reeling as its bones began breaking.

Beside him, Quistis snapped her whip backwards, reaching into herself. One eye became a light, baby sort of purple. The other electrified blue, yellow, and green. They switched between each other as the GF jumped around in her head.

“Thunderstorm!” “Tornado Zone!”

She cried out both names, but it was almost like she had spoken them at the exact same time. As though she might have two throats calling at the same time.

The electrified, razor sharp winds ripped at Omega's skin, peeling broken pieces away and causing more purple blood to well up. The winds threatened to spin the alkaline fluid out over the SeeDs as it picked the liquid up and swirled it around.

Squall slammed the point of his gunblade into the not-ground, sticking it before himself. His hands came in towards his body as he grabbed the mental 'hands' of both GF at the same time. His eyes burned a combination of ice blue and deep, stormy gray as the colors swirled together creating a skyscape in his irises.

“Diamond Dust!” One palm forward. “Mega Flare!” The other palm followed it.

It was like the magic spells he had cast, but stronger. More concentrated because it came from the spiritual manifestation of those very elements. They broke over Omega's armor-like body sending cracks echoing through the space between them. Omega roared, beginning to thrash as its body started to break down.

Rinoa's eyes turned red as she pulled on the great power of gravity and her old partner Diablos.

“Dark Messenger!” She yelled, closing her hands around the air, closing her power around Omega's body.

Her eyes darkened and became flecked with stars as her second partner, her quiet controller of all the power of creation and destruction, stepped in. To get revenge on the very creature that had kept her prisoner in the dark for so long.

“Eternal Breath!”

The power of everything, of all things, infinitely small and unimaginably large that ranged the power spectrum from absolute zero to the fiery depths of the hottest sun broke through Omega's body as Rinoa threw out her arms.

Omega's mouths opened, like it was screaming, but no noise came out. Its two good eyes rolled back into its head as its limbs shook. It was so close now.

“Quistis!” Squall looked at her. “Cerberus!”

Grinning, her eyes flashed black as Quistis called on her last partner. “Counter Rockets!”

A pillar of light fell over her. Then over each of her friends moving out around the circle and encompassing all of them. Everything seemed to slow down around them as Cerberus made all of them faster, casting Haste on all of them at once.

“Hit it with everything you've got,” Squall ordered them as Omega moved about in their circle of death as though in slow motion.

Laughing, Zell charged forward. Fists blazing with his powers, he beat along its body. Weakened and broken, Zell's blows broke bones as he dueled with the slow monster. Kicks and punched fell like a storm as fire and holy burst out along its body.

He attacked until his limbs couldn't power that much strength any longer. Then he jumped back and allowed Selphie to take his place.

She looked like she was having the time of her life as her hastily moving nunchaku began carving up its right flank. Breaking into its skin and, with each hit, an empty Odine capsule fell from the storage compartments in each base as she used her one off spells.

Water. Blizzaga. Firaga. Thundaga. Quake. Then a loud explosion that almost looked like Rinoa's utlima but seriously underpowered. All told, 24 Odine capsules were emptied into Omega's body before Selphie ran out. Laughing, she back flipped away.

Irvine took his cue and jumped forward. Throwing back his coat, he aimed one handed as his other hand grabbed for his ammo belt.

The loud gunshots rang out somehow louder from time being slowed around all of them. Irvine emptied every magazine into the creature that he could. All his demo ammo, all his AP ammo, all his pulse ammo, one belt after another. Empty shells fell with drops of purple blood from the chamber and down into space as each shot carved out a new chunk of flesh.

The last of the pulse ammo shot out of a barrel smoking red hot and Irvine stepped back having hit it with everything as instructed.

Quistis curled her whip up as she reached into her own storage of blue magic.

“Shockwave Pulsar!” She yelled, throwing out her most precious, most draining spell. She fell to her knees as Omega burst into a swirling column of light that began peeling away what little skin remained and burned away its dangerous blood.

Rinoa lifted her fingers to her lips, summoning a different kind of guardian. An ear piercing whistle ripped through the air. A light formed before her and shaped into a four legged creature. It faded away leaving Angelo bowed low to the ground, growling as he glared at Omega.

Rinoa lifted her hand over him, soaking her magic into his fur so he began to glow as blue as her the duster swirling behind her in the wind of her magic.

“Wishing Star!” Rinoa pointed to Omega.

Angela charged. The light wrapped around him, capturing him. He looked like a star as he shot through Omega once. Twice. Three, four, five, six, seven, eight times. As he broke through the last time, Omega was twitching, trying to regain its footing. Angela landed beside Rinoa, panting up at her with an adoring look on his face.

Rinoa laughed, scratching his head as he disappeared back to their world.

Squall walked forward, his Lion Heart waiting in his hands. Omega glared at him, still alive and refusing to die no matter what they threw at it.

Squall lifted his gunblade and aimed it at the monster's heart. He stayed still for a brief moment, meeting its doll-like eyes with emotionless, cold ones of his own.

Pulling back his gunblade, taking a preparatory step back...

He disappeared.

Omega roared as the first burst of light crashed through him. He thrashed as the second hit. More purple blood burst out as the third sliced him in half. The fourth took an arm. The fifth took a hoof. Its second head, on top of its higher torso, rolled with the sixth. The seventh split the rest of the body down the middle. The eighth shattered bone as Squall slid against the not-ground, his leather smoking from friction, his gunblade glowing white hot.

A second passed...

The speed, the heat of it, was too much. Omega's body began vibrating. Fast. Too fast. An explosion broke outwards as Squall stood upright, letting out a breath. His newest cut...

The Lion Heart.

Squall didn't look backwards at Omega to see it bursting into dust and light. Fading away. Exploding into nothingness. A purple haze lifted from the remaining pieces, coagulated above its body as its skin darkened back to purple and its blood became blue.

The purple haze rushed towards Rinoa. Her eyes closed as the last of the power joined with her, back where it was supposed to be. And Omega vanished into the stars.

As it disappeared, Squall kept his eyes forward. Trained on the colorless, flaking form of Ultimecia as she watched Omega disappear. As the last of the purple haze faded into Rinoa's body, Ultimecia smiled and her eyes closed.

She didn't flake away as Squall expected. Her body started fading. Becoming sheer, then translucent, then nothing more than light itself. A shimmering glow of a shell that resembled Rinoa far more than Ultimecia had, and Squall finally believed her story.

He didn't turn as he heard his friends walk to his side and join him watching Ultimecia.

Because they were all facing her, none of them saw the shimmering light form behind them. They didn't know it existed until it walked forward, stepping right through Squall like he didn't exist. Or the light man didn't.

Black boots scrapped against the not-ground. The medley of black and brown belts at his waist clinked together as the silver gunblade at his side moved with each step. His white shirt was easily visible under the half jacket of black leather with red wings emblazoned on the back. The fur collar met with brown hair just a bit too long. Short sleeves, a concession to his love's preference on his arms, showed his skin, though his hands were still in leather gloves.

Ultimecia, still tired, looked up as he approached. Her hair, black and long, shimmered around her face as her brown eyes filled with tears that sparkled like stars.

“Squall...” She whispered like a cry of pain.

The man of light stopped in front of her, holding out his hand. Ultimecia was still crying as she took it eagerly and let him pull her up.

For the first time in too many years to count, she finally got to hold him again. Older, more ragged and worn, Rinoa cried into his chest. Older, more battle hardened but somehow softer than his counterpart, the other Squall looked over to his friends.

He smiled and nodded to them.

“You can go,” he said, his voice soft and understanding. “Thank you. For everything.”

They faded into starlight together. At last.

Rinoa and Squall looked at each other.

Everyone burst into starlight and faded away.

The original world, the old world, was nothing now. There remained only the stars of infinity and the love of a couple that transcended time and space, life and death, and every dimension between.


	53. The Sorceress's Knight

“The Lion is on the prowl, Air-1. I repeat, the Lion is the prowl.”

“Copy, Lion Pride. What is the Lion's location?”

“Repeat, Air-1; I don't copy.”

“Roger that. What is the Lion's current location?”

“...The Lion is officially off grid.”

“Dammit, again?!”

Their voices faded into the back of Squall's mind. Honestly, he had stopped listening to the radio chatter a long time ago. He kept the ear piece in, just in case there were any changes that he needed to be notified about immediately, but his own radio was silent.

Yes. Again.

The rules about going out alone were his. He himself had created them, he enforced them and expected them to be followed to the letter. Most especially that number one rule about leaving any base to go into the forest. Always go in groups. Grandidi Forest was just too dangerous, even with most of the malboros cleared out, to be alone.

Squall always had trouble following that rule. And it wasn't that he was opposed to it in any way. Nor was he opposed to having company when he went on his little walks, 'prowling' as they liked to say over the radio – because every Hyne damned thing had to be a code word of some kind. Simply put, there just wasn't anyone in Arcadia that could keep up with him anymore. And sometimes he just wanted to press forward – prowl – without having to slow down.

Like now. When he wanted to hurry up and reach the shipyard at Grandidi Beach and he wasn't willing to wait for his team to catch up. They knew where he was going. They could meet up with him there in their own time.

Everyone assumed that he was eager to meet the visiting dignitaries. It was his job to come down here to collect them and escort them to Arcadia. However, that wasn't what was driving him. It was the much more personal message sent directly to his phone by a number that he hadn't heard from in years, and the last time the caller had promised it would be the last.

The tiny sliver of beach surrounded by cliffs on either side was the only entrance into Arcadia without flying over the cliffs. As a result, the fort set up on the beach was incredibly well fortified. To the point of being neigh impregnable. From the beach or from the forest. The former for any foes that might dare to take on Arcadia – not that there were any – and the latter to protect from the incredibly powerful monsters that Squall was in a constant war with.

A war he was winning very easily of late.

Squall knew the moment he stepped out of the shade of the trees and towards the gates made of metal and magic that radios would be calling out his location. He also knew the moment that happened because he heard their explosion of chatter in his ear.

Shiva complained again. Bahamut told her to calm down. At least, he reminded her, it wasn't directly blasting into their minds any longer.

The doors opened as he approached. Not the large gates meant for supplies, but the smaller one meant for individuals or teams. Squall stepped through and ignored the man that immediately descended, frustrated and annoyed that their leader couldn't follow his own rules.

Squall paused to look around, hands on his hips.

The beach fort, they called it Seventh Heaven's Gate, was made of beautiful and sweeping architecture, like most things in Arcadia. It was a near seamless blend of nature and construction that came together in a way that left the beholder feeling like they were looking onto the fields of peace itself. Squall knew this because people told him so the first time they came here.

He supposed it was beautiful. Then again, most of the things that Rinoa planned were and this place bore her personal touch. Just like most things in Arcadia.

“Sir, the dignitaries aren't expected for another three hours,” the gatekeeper was telling him now.

“I know that,” Squall assured him. “I'll be down to meet them when their ship arrives. Until then, I have some personal business. Don't bother me unless it's important.”

With that, he left the man behind. He could hear their groans of frustration. He was too focused to care at this very moment. He would get lectured later, he was sure – and he planned on ignoring that too – but for now he had a task to complete.

There was an inn here because people often didn't want to risk being out into the forest after night. So guests to Arcadia would stay here for the night and move on in the morning. There was plenty of time to get to the main city from SH Gate before nightfall even if they left at noon, but it just wasn't worth it to most.

The few monsters that remained were always more active at nightfall. As though they knew that Squall wasn't going to be hunting them in the dark. Not because he was afraid of the dark but because he had far more important things to tend to at night.

The Seventh Heaven Inn was right across the street from the famed Seventh Heaven Bar where, it was said, a man could get the best drink he had ever enjoyed in his life and have a grand old time. So long as no one angered the bartender.

Walking through the door of that bar, Squall scanned around quickly. Noting the woman behind the bar, the large man in the corner arguing with a little girl – and losing it looked like – and the group of friends drinking and having a good time.

And there, in a table in the corner, were the three people Squall had come to see.

Ignoring everything else, he walked their way quickly. Neither of them had their back to the room, even after all these years their training wouldn't allow such a thing. It was too easy to be attacked. It was hot here in Grandidi this time of year and they showed it.

The girl was wearing a sleeveless turtle neck zip up, dark blue and trimmed and silver. The dark skinned man across from her was wearing a simple, orange sleeveless top with a large silver chain around his neck that flashed as he lifted a drink to his mouth. Squall was at least glad that they had hidden their weapons away.

Squall was more concerned with the man with his back to the corner. The only one not dressed for the heat.

“Still wearing that flashy silver trench coat, I see,” Squall said, stepping up to the table and crossing his arms.

Seifer lifted his head from his mug and looked up at Squall. Time had not been as kind to Seifer as it had been to Squall. But his face was still distinguished. Still proud. And when he grinned at Squall, it wasn't so much a happy gesture as a cocky one.

“Still wearing too damn many belts, I see,” he countered, cocking his eyebrow.

Squall grinned at him wryly, the belts on his hips shining in the light easily under the half jacket with short sleeves that he liked to wear. It was easier to move in than his full length jacket. At least, that's what he told people whenever they asked.

“What are you doing here, Seifer?”

“Can't I come to see an old friend?”

“Sure. Anytime. Doesn't explain what you're doing talking to me though.”

Seifer dropped his head back, laughing from deep in his chest. “Oh, man...I actually missed you. How crazy is that...”

“Only half as crazy as me agreeing to meet you.” Squall pulled out the fourth chair and sat down with his back facing the room. He wasn't so concerned as they were about being attacked from behind. Not that he wasn't taking it into account as a factor, more that nothing had been able to sneak up on him in the last two years. Not since the new gear had been installed.

“So, Seifer,” Squall looked at him calmly, leaning back. “What are you doing here?”

Seifer looked across the table at him. Two brothers met each others gaze for the first time in about five years, give or take. Since Squall had defeated him in the Lunatic Pandora. Though the last time they had spoken had only been three years ago. When Seifer had called and told Squall that he was leaving Balamb and to not expect to ever see or hear from him, or his posse, again.

That conversation was very clearly in the air between them. Squall wasn't going to bring it up as fact against Seifer and demand that he leave. But he also knew that Seifer wouldn't have gone back on that word if it weren't something important.

“We've been traveling,” Seifer said, starting from the beginning. “Since we left Balamb.”

“Go anywhere interesting?” Squall asked, mostly to keep the conversation going.

“We went everywhere. We saw everything. We lived off the land and worked for our beds. We fought battles that almost killed us. And had fights that almost destroyed us. We walked from one end of Gaia to the other. Rested when we could. Worked when we had to. We stayed in hotels every now and then, but I haven't slept in a bed of my own in...well, a long damn time.”

“Sounds like quite the journey.”

“I prefer to think of it as a pilgrimage.”

“I see you're as dramatic as ever,” Squall raised an eyebrow to him. “I believe a pilgrimage usually has a set destination though. Where were you heading that it took you three years to get to?”

“I wouldn't call it a place.” Seifer leaned forward onto his arms, looking at Squall through eyes that had aged far more than the years that had passed.

“Of course you wouldn't,” Squall said dully. That would be too easy.

“I'm gonna level with you, Squall,” Seifer laid out his hand flat. “I wanted to find myself. After you told me that my dreams and aspirations were only because of Ultimecia's influence, I got angry.”

Squall wasn't surprised.

“So I needed to find who I really was. So we ditched Balamb and struck out on our own.”

“So?” Squall lifted his brow when Seifer didn't go on. “Did you find it?”

Seifer leaned back again, shrugging. “Maybe.”

“You called me out here to tell me that?”

“I'm not refusing to tell you, I just don't know.” Seifer shrugged, unconcerned. “Truth is, it's really not so fundamental a question to answer. How'd you find yourself, Squall?”

Squall shrugged. “I didn't. Rinoa found me.”

“Yeah. Well, I don't have a Rinoa in my life.”

“More's the pity for you.”

“So vindictive,” Seifer grinned. “I like it. When did you get a personality?”

“It's been developing for a little while. You still haven't explained what you wanted, Seifer?”

“Straight to the heart of the matter.”

“Did you expect anything less?”

“We want into Arcadia.”

Squall's eyebrow rose. “You can apply for entrance just like anyone else. Why petition me?”

“Do you really think the city guard would let me in? The Pride Pack is legendary.”

Squall couldn't help it, he grinned. His personal army here in Arcadia, dubbed the Pride Pack by some guy who thought he was being clever, was the one responsible for protecting the city and the beach fort from attack by monsters. They protected Squall and his people whenever they left the city. They were in charge of protecting the city itself. All of them were graduates from the SeeD program at Balamb Garden that had wanted to move on past being mercenaries.

Squall was really rather proud of them. Their power, their coordination. They often lost track of him, but they always found him again. The Pride hadn't lost a single fight yet and were known around the world, even though they had only been in existed for about four years.

“I got history,” Seifer said, twisting his cup.

“The pack knows why you did what you did.”

“Yeah, but that don't change my history. Especially not my history with you.”

“I've made my peace with it.”

“Oh, get over yourself.” Seifer gave him a glare. Just because Squall had made his peace with it...

Squall said nothing for a moment, letting the unsaid words hang between them. Then...

“Why do you want to come into Arcadia?”

Seifer didn't respond immediately. They sat there in silence for a long few minutes.

Raijin was the one who finally broke the silence. Grinning, he saluted Squall lazily. “What up, man? How ya been?”

Squall shrugged. “Pretty good. How are you doing?”

“All good, man. All good. Ya know? Been having the time of our lives. Ain't we, Fuu?”

She glared at him. Squall heard a kick from under the table and Raijin groaned.

“Sorry. Sorry. I meant, _aren't_ we, Fuu?”

“BETTER,” she said shortly.

“What's with that? You trying to learn how to speak properly or something?”

“Or something,” Raijin laughed. “Fuu just gets mad sometime. Ouch! Woman, that hurts!”

Fujin grinned at him, enjoying his pain and frustration.

Between them, grateful for the time bought to get his thoughts in order, Seifer continued turning his drink around in his hands.

“How's the garden here doing, Squall?” Seifer asked, getting his attention back. “Arcadia Garden is brand new, right?”

“We call it Radiant Garden, actually,” Squall corrected. “The designer went a little too happy with the fountains and colors in my opinion, but its doing well. Going to celebrate its first year anniversary in a few months. Everyone's getting really into the party planning.”

“Wait,” Seifer frowned. “I thought Rinoa was the designer.”

“Yeah, and she knows how I feel too. Far too happy for my tastes.”

Seifer laughed. “Well, it's one of the places we're hoping to see if we get in.”

“I'm sure you'd enjoy it.”

“It's also where we were hoping to get a job if we got in.”

Squall's eyebrow rose again. “You want to work at Radiant Garden?”

“Come on, don't look at me like that. I'm good, you know I'm good. I'm still the only one who can keep up with you.”

“That's debatable.”

“Well, I could back when you were just a lousy commander of Balamb Garden.”

“That's also debatable.”

“Point is, you and I both know how hard it is to find a gunblade instructor. You're a busy man, you can't be expected to be on sight all the time. I'm a gunblade specialist, same as you. I think you would find that I would be a great teacher.”

“Your skill with a gunblade isn't in question. What's in question is your ability to be an instructor.”

Seifer's eyebrow twitched, but he had to give Squall that one. “Look, it's not like I would get an entire class. Gunblade students never pass into the double digits.”

“When was the last time you walked into a garden? Don't forget who I am here. Gunblade hopefuls try out all the time. Few make it. Only a handful passed the SeeD exam. But a gunblade instructor has to deal with even the hopefuls.”

“All right, so I would have a lot. But I have the energy to do it.”

“Again, that's not in question. What I'm more worried about is your temperament.”

“And what's that supposed to mean?”

“You're a cocky show off who can't let anyone best you.”

“Hey,” Raijin frowned and Fujin's brow furrowed.

“Is he going to deny it?” Squall looked between them.

Seifer said nothing.

“Exactly. Being an instructor isn't about one upping than your students. It's about trying to make your students as good as you. Or better. I can't have you stepping into a training session or an exam in order to show up the cadets.”

“When was the last time you talked to me?” Seifer asked, irritated now. “Yeah, I'm a hothead. All right? I admit it. I like being better than everyone. But I didn't go on my pilgrimage to end up in the exact same spot as where I started. I can hang back now. I can cool off. I've been working on anger management. I had this old man in a bar teach me some techniques.”

“That's encouraging.”

“Ease up on the sarcasm, all right? The techniques work.”

“Do the techniques involve heavy drinking? Because I can't have alcoholic professors teaching teenagers weaponry. That just begs for problems.”

“Oh, ha ha ha,” Seifer made a mocking face. “Aren't you a good little leader?”

“See, that's the attitude I'm talking about.”

“Yeah, and I haven't punched you yet, have I?”

“Despite all my baiting, no you haven't.”

“The techniques, man.”

“I'm so proud.”

“I see you're really trying hard on that sarcasm thing.” Seifer crossed his arms. “I'm damn good. You know it. And I've only gotten better since I began my pilgrimage. I'm in a good place. Mentally. I wouldn't be here if I didn't think I was ready.”

“So this isn't so much a petition to enter Arcadia as it is a job interview.” Squall looked Seifer over carefully.

His old shield brother certainly looked different. Older. Calmer. There was still a restless sort of energy to him, but that disturbing hunger from years ago had faded. Seifer had experienced life on top, and found himself unequal to it, then had experienced the fall afterwards. The hard landing back to reality had not been kind to him.

But he had walked away from it better. Stronger. More mature.

Squall currently wasn't in charge of the gunblade classes. That responsibility was falling to one of the SeeD transfers from Balamb that Squall knew desperately wanted to be back fighting. People didn't spend so much time and energy becoming gunblade masters to teach. They did it because they wanted to fight and the current instructor was no different. He felt very much like he was trapped in a cage, but he stayed there out of duty.

If a gunblade instructor, world weary and ready to stop fighting, wanted the job, Squall should be jumping at the opportunity. If it were anyone but Seifer, he would be.

“What about Fujin and Raijin?”

“What about 'em?” Seifer looked confused at the question.

Squall looked between him posse. “You two want to follow him in and watch him be instructor all day?”

“NEGATIVE,” Fujin said simply.

“We thinkin' about gettin' jobs too, ya know,” Raijin assured him. “Not thinking about asking to be instructors. Maybe not even at the garden. We just followin' Seifer. Ya know?”  
Yeah, he did know. Squall had seen these two follow Seifer all the way up then chase him when he took the tumble down. They had been there through the best and worst of times. They weren't likely to pull away from him now.

Squall owed them nothing. He had made his peace with his past with Seifer. To be perfectly honest, he hadn't even spared his former brother a thought in a long time. But just because he was over his past didn't mean that he was willing to make friends. Like Seifer said, they had history. And some things could be moved past, but never forgotten.

Squall didn't have to do a thing for them. No one would blame him for kicking them back out of Arcadia. The reason they had an application process to enter their city in the first place was because they wanted to keep criminals out.

Seifer was right. The Pride probably wouldn't let him in.

Squall stood up from the table, straightening his shirt as he did so. He looked down at Seifer who was glancing up at him through carefully hooded eyes. It was restraint that Squall would never have expected from his emotional training partner.

“I'm expecting some VIP guests today. So no one is allowed to cross into the city. You can get in contact with the pack on guard duty tomorrow. I'll have you entered into the system by then.”

Seifer's face broke into a smile. “Thank you, man.”

“I'm not guaranteeing you a job. You're going to have to meet with the headmaster of the garden to get that yourself.”

“And what's the headmaster's name?”

Squall pushed the chair back in. “It's Zell. He'll be expecting you.”

“Say, wha-?!” Seifer's mouth fell open as Squall turned and walked out, grinning to himself.

He couldn't help but wonder what Seifer was thinking to hear that the chicken-wuss was headmaster of Radiant Garden. It was going to be even more funny to find out what Seifer's reaction was going to be when he found out Zell's other title.

Squall was almost whistling as he made his way down to the pier to meet with the dignitaries.

***

“Commander, we have visual on the target.”

“Excellent. Tell Alpha team to move in. Have Beta team on standby and get Gamma team to start making their move.”

“Roger, commander. Alpha team, this is HQ, you are clear for entry. Beta team, go to standby. Gamma team, begin distraction maneuvers.”

Zell grinned and rubbed his hands together gleefully as he watched the monitor displayed before him showing the slightly grainy feeds on the video cameras of the four teams making their moves. Today was the day. He had thought of everything.

“Commander, Alpha team is in.”

Zell laughed, hands to his hips. “No mistakes this time. I don't want to hear about it later. Do we have the target in sight yet?”

“Not yet, sir. Delta team, this is HQ. Any movement?”

Zell heard the team leader respond through his earpiece. Everything was quiet. Unnervingly so. Zell didn't like it. Where was the opposition? There was no way she was letting Zell get this close to the target and not stopping him.

Reaching up, he scratched at his ear. The new equipment was just installed and, while he couldn't deny that it was really useful, it was damn itchy. Squall promised it would fade as he used it more, but the new junction machine was still annoying. Maybe Zell should just take the earpiece out and put it in the other ear. Then he would have the radio in one ear and his GF in the other.

Lowering his hand, he focused back on the mission at hand. Itch later, focus now.

“Target confirmed, commander.”

“Take it!” Zell ordered.

Alpha team moved in quickly towards the target in the warehouse.

***

“Ah, ah, ah,” Quistis grinned as she watched the teams move in on the target on the large screen displayed in her command center. “I'm disappointed, Zell. A full frontal? How very common. Spring the trap.”

“Roger, headmistress. Springing the trap.”

***

“She set a trap!”

Zell cried out as the video feed was suddenly flushed with light. The cameras bleached out as they tried to adjust to the sudden light change. As they came back into focus, Zell could hear his people crying out as Quistis's men descended on them.

He grinned. “Beta team, attack!”

***

“Ma'am, he's got a secondary force!”

Quistis gaped in surprise before a wide smile broke out on her face to see a second team rush in from behind the first, trapping her men between Zell's two groups. One man broke free and raced towards the package.

“I must admit, I didn't see that coming,” she clapped for him. “All right. We're not losing that package.”

Her eyes narrowed as she darted her gaze between camera angles set up around the warehouse. It was hard to count with everyone moving, but it looked to be about...Twenty men. Ten men per team. The first team had the package. Quistis had only set fifteen men on the trap. They were going to lose out on basic numbers.

“All right.” Reaching up, she turned on the mic on her earpiece. “Forward team, this is command. Fall back. Draw them back towards the water.”

She heard a response confirming her order. She grinned as her team began tactically moving backwards, never actually running but staying just out of reach of Zell's teams. Forcing both groups to follow them, essentially.

***

Zell frowned as his men chased out Quistis's. That was too easy. That old bird wouldn't order a retreat that easily.

“Delta team, you see anything?”

He heard the negative through the radio. He turned his head, confused. His men were outnumbering Quistis's, but she should definitely have more. That wasn't the totally number she was supposed to have for this meeting.

All three teams were out of the warehouse by now. Getting close to the water. It was dark out so the surface of the water was black as obsidian. Still and perfect. There was a single boat bobbing up and down at the end of the deck, but it belonged to Zell. It was his getaway. Well, one of them. The most obvious one. He honestly hadn't expected that he would get to use it.

The black water was quiet as Zell looked around it. Honestly moving right past it at first. He missed the rippling of water in the grainy footage as figures emerged from below. Until, all at once, fifteen more people charged out of the water and sprinted towards Zell's people.

“Ah!” Zell cried out, surprised.

Quistis's forces, now doubled, met his twenty person strong force. They outnumbered him by ten now and the large difference was starting to beat his people back. Zell watched, unable to move, as her people reclaimed the package.

He growled. “All right, Gamma team, end distraction. It is so not working. Come back around and join with Alpha and Beta teams.”

She had hid them underwater! Damn, he would never have thought of that. He was years out of school and she was still teaching him lessons.

***

“Forward team and water team are pushing back the enemy,” one of Quistis's coordinators told her unnecessarily. She could see it playing out.

Even when another ten people came around to join with the first two teams, they only stalled the fighting in place. The numbers were matched, so it was more a battle of skill.

“Okay. We have the package. The fight is unimportant. Rear team, extraction.”

***

“No!” Zell yelled as he watched ten more people, her final ten, rush into the fight. His last ten were on watch duty and couldn't get to the others in time. He could do nothing as her final team grabbed the package, separated, and one man escaped towards the boat. His escape boat.

“Dammit!” Zell threw up his hands as the man jumped in the boat and began pulling away.

He didn't have to go far. The end line wasn't far off the pier. The boat crossed it and the simulation chamber lit up bright as midday.

“Argh!” Zell ran his hands through his hair as the fighting all ceased.

“ _Package retrieval simulation competition: Complete. Winner: Esthar Garden._ ”

***

Quistis laughed as her people celebrated another successful simulation. That was another win for her and her garden. At this rate, they were going to be absolutely undefeated this year.

“Good work, everyone. Have the team pull back and prepare to be graded.”

Reaching up, she pulled off her earpiece. Doing so jostled the earring that wrapped over her lobe. It started itching as a result of being moved. The installed tech was new. Odine's newest invention that pulled GF from the brain and housed them in the tiny capsules of the earring which connected into the head via optic fibers. It meant that they could use their GF without having to surrender space in their brain. While Quistis could admit that she missed having their constant presence, the new sense of privacy was welcome.

As well as the return of unimpeded access to all of her memories. That was huge.

The technology was brand new. Only a few people in the world had it. Squall had been helping Odine for the last two years by testing it though and he assured all of them that, after a little bit of time, the itching would stop and they would get used to having their own minds again.

The GF preferred it as well. All the comfort, safety, and sensory of having a mind without being forced to endure someone else's mind at all hours of the day.

Quistis was still going to complain about the itching when she met up with them later. For now, she had to go home and pick up Xu so they could leave.

There was no way that she was going to let Zell live down another defeat. There was a reason that Esthar Garden had the highest rate of SeeD graduates outside of Balamb Garden. And, even with that, Quistis kept winning their collaboration simulations.

***

The visiting dignitaries were coming in via sea ship. Squall had offered to send an airship to pick them all up, but they had insisted on coming by sea ship. Squall figured it didn't matter so he had allowed it and just took the time to come down to meet them.

It was the least he could do for the people that had raised them.

The White SeeD ship, now a pleasure sailing vessel, came into port driven by expert White SeeDs. All from the navel program at Balamb Garden. They rotated out turns driving the retired former headmaster and founder of, technically, every garden.

Squall smiled as the gangplank lowered. He didn't get a chance to walk up to greet his adopted parents himself. Edea was already waiting at the edge of the ship and, as the gangplank touched the deck, she rushed down with wide open arms.

“Squall!” She called eagerly, enveloping her boy in her arms.

Squall hugged her back and smiled over her shoulder as Cid followed her more slowly. He had caught up to his wife before she was releasing him.

“Oh, look at your hair,” she said, running her fingers through the ends. “It's so long. When did you last get it cut?”

“Can you not sound like such a mom?” Squall grinned at her.

Edea laughed, stepping back to her husband's side. “I'm so excited about tonight. We brought presents. Cid, do you have the presents?”

“I have them,” he assured her, patting his pocket where his INVENTORY rested.

“Come on,” Squall indicated with his head. “Ellone is already here. The others are due later.”

“Oh,” Edea looked surprised. “How did she get here ahead of us?”

“She was already here. She got here yesterday. She said she wanted to help set up and Rinoa allowed it. Honestly, I think she was just tired. Ellone has been a great help.”

“What's her husband's name again?” Edea frowned, trying to think back.

“It's Watts,” Squall reminded her with a smile. “He's not here yet though. He should be leaving Galbadia Garden soon.”

***

“I'm coming, sir,” Watts said into the phone, throwing his stuff into his suitcase.

“ _You were supposed to leave already._ ” He could hear her pouting into the phone.

“I know, I know. Class ended late though, sir. Presentations went long.”

Because of Squall's recommendation, Watts had become an espionage and spy teacher at Galbadia Garden. He had wanted to work at Timber Garden – and had for a few months – but he had ended up being traded for the spy teacher at Galbadia as part of the peace program in order to foster good relations between the countries. Watts had been traded, not because of his position as instructor at the garden, but because of his position as best friend of the current president of Timber.

President Caraway of Galbadia – who still had his job – was trying to make peace with Timber. Not because he wanted peace but because Timber was a close ally of Arcadia and Arcadia was a very strong nation. And because he was still trying to make his daughter not hate him. He wasn't trying all that hard though. He wasn't coming tonight. Watts heard he had sent a present in his name though.

“ _You're going to be late,_ ” Ellone sighed. “ _I won't get a chance to see you before we have to start._ ”

Watts frowned. “What are you talking about, sir?”

“ _You have to swing by Timber and pick up Zone, right?_ ”

“Yeah, but the headmaster is letting me use the QB to do it.”

“ _Irvine is letting you take the fleet command ship?_ ”

“Well, he's coming with me. We're all going to be there at the same time. But it should be really fast. QB just got a tune up.”

On the other side of the line, he felt Ellone smile. Which filled him with warmth. As it did every time he saw her smile. Since the first time he had seen that smile when he met her at Squall and Rinoa's wedding four years ago.

“ _Well, get here soon. I miss you._ ”

“I miss you, too, sir,” he smiled back. It had only been a day since Squall's personal airship had picked her up from Galbadia, driven by a member of his Pride since he himself had been rather busy back in Arcadia preparing for tonight.

***

The city of Arcadia was a beautiful masterpiece. The result of years of designing, planning, execution, and expanding. Like SH Gate, it was a beautiful combination of nature and artificial building. Rooftop gardens were very common. Glass and bright, golden metals were the most ordinary colors so that it made the city seem like it was created out of sunlight.

It was possible to reach Arcadia from the ground. There was a special fortified entrance called the Dragon's Gate just for doing so, but the only people that used it were Squall and his Pride. Most people didn't consider it a viable method of entrance. Because of that, the only other way to get into the city was through airship.

The city was built high, connected in the earth but still it gave the illusion of floating. As Squall drove his personal airship, brought to him by his Pride, Cid and Edea admired what he and Rinoa had spent the last five years of their lives building.

They hadn't done it alone, of course. Though they had done most of it, it still wouldn't have gotten as big as it had if they hadn't had help from everyone. Laguna especially, in his position as leader of Esthar, had been most helpful. The people that had begun moving to Arcadia, driven by the thought of living in such a wonderful place, could certainly not be discounted.

The last time Cid and Edea had seen it had been three years ago. Back then, the city was still very tiny, probably no more than a town. It had grown exponentially since and they congratulated him on such beauty as he flew over the buildings.

The building in the very center of the city was a mansion of incredibly proportions. Built around an artificial waterfall and filled with fountains fed by said waterfall, it was probably a palace. Certainly the leader of Arcadia lived there, but Squall never thought of it as a palace. For all that it was an enormous, breathtakingly beautiful mansion, it was still simply home to him.

“When is Laguna arriving?” Cid asked as Squall pulled his airship around to dock in the garage.

“Should be in about an hour. I'm going to meet up with him after I show you to your room.”

“We remember where the guest room is,” Edea assured him.

“Yeah, but Rinoa redecorated last year. Everything is different from last time. It's not a big deal, I don't mind. I'm going to be shepherding people around all day.”

It was a very busy day for him. He was enjoying every moment of it.

***

“I'm so excited!” Laguna declared, practically bouncing up and down in his seat.

“Please act your age,” Kiros said calmly, reading the news on his tablet. Beside him, mirroring his movements, Ward nodded in agreement.

“You two are no fun,” Laguna said, unable to even grumble properly on such an exciting day. He couldn't remember being this happy in a long time. Probably since he had first heard that Ellone was alive and well despite what he had believed for nearly twenty years.

“Are we there yet?” He called up to the pilot of his airship.

“The city should be coming into view soon, sir,” he was promised.

Laguna nearly squealed. He was just so completely excited. It felt like he was going to explode right there at his seat.

Arcadia was beautiful. Honestly, as much as Laguna loved Esthar, he was probably going to retire in Arcadia. Not just because it was an absolutely perfect city – at least in his opinion. It helped that his son lived there. Ellone didn't, which was a draw back, but she was in Galbadia with that wretched husband of hers anyway.

“You've got that look on your face again.”

“What look?” Laguna frowned.

Ward's eyebrow rose.

“I was not thinking about him!”

“Leave the boy alone, Laguna,” Kiros rolled his eyes. “They're married already. Get over it.”

Laguna crossed his arms. Okay, so maybe there was something that could ruin his mood today. “That Watts isn't good enough for her. I don't like how he calls me 'sir' all the time. It's really shifty.”

“He passed all the background checks. What more do you want?”

Laguna continued to grumble even when Arcadia came into view. The bright city didn't lighten up his mood at all this time. It wasn't until he was landing in Squall's garage and saw his son walking towards the door of his airship that he perked up again.

Forgetting Watts – that untrustworthy, suspicious character that he was – for the moment, Laguna nearly leapt out and threw himself at Squall-

-who easily side stepped the hug and nearly sent Laguna crashing to the ground. He nodded respectfully at Kiros and Ward as they came out after him.

“Hey,” Squall greeted. “Did you all have a pleasant trip?”

“Same as always,” Kiros shrugged as Laguna, laughing sheepishly, rejoined them.

Squall gave him a cool look and smile. “Evening, Laguna.”

“Hey,” he smiled at him. “Where's the star of the show?”

“It's the princess's nap time,” Squall shrugged. “Come on. We've got your rooms all ready. I want to get you settled before the others show up.”

“Who's already here?” Kiros asked as the three of them fell in line behind him.

“Edea, Cid, and Ellone.”

“Ellone's here?” Laguna perked up. Then frowned. “Is that punk here too?”

“No, Laguna. _Watts_ is not here yet.”

“Ooh! Was he not invited? Are they finally getting a divorce?”

“First off: Why finally? It's been six months.”

“Ugh...” Laguna made a face.

“Secondly: He's on his way. He's riding with Selphie, Irvine, and Zone.”

“Oh! Zone's coming. He's cool.”

“How can you like Zone and not Watts?”

Kiros grinned. “Easy. Zone isn't having sex with Ellone.”

Laguna's cry of agony and despair echoed loudly in the hall and made Squall glad that his and Rinoa's room was on the other side of the house from the guest rooms.

***

Reaching out his hand, Squall helped Selphie stand from the QB. She smiled at him in thanks, putting her hand on her rounded belly and caressing her baby sleeping there under her breasts.

“Hey, you look good,” Squall said gently, smiling at her.

“Oh, thank you,” she beamed, her cheeks flushed red with pregnancy and happiness.

Behind her, Irvine groaned painfully as he stood up. “Oh, sure. She smiles at you...”

“Shut up, Irvine,” Selphie growled, murder in her eyes. Turning, she marched away from him.

Squall looked from her to the exhausted Irvine who was rubbing the back of his neck.

“You all right?”

“Kill me now,” Irvine begged. “This pregnancy is going to destroy my soul. Set it free before she has a chance to devour it.”

“You two having a fight?”

“Yeah, going on month three now. I don't understand. They said her first and second trimesters would be the worst. They all promised that her third would be when her hormones balanced out and she would be more herself. But I think she just turned into a monster of some kind.”

Squall shrugged. “You're the one who wanted to get her pregnant.”

“Irvine! Stop dawdling!” Selphie growled. Then beamed. “Squall, I know we're eating later, but can I have something small now? Like maybe just some tea and crackers? I've got a hankering for tea. Pretty please?”

“Sure, no problem,” Squall nodded to her

“What spell did you cast over her and how can I do it?” Irvine asked pitifully.

“Oh, it was really easy. I'm not the one who got her pregnant before marrying her.”

Irvine rolled his eyes. “Did she tell you to say that? It was an accident!”

“And the months in between?”

“I'm not having a shotgun wedding! I mean, I'd be down for a shotgun themed wedding...”

Watts stood from the car next, carrying Selphie's luggage. He smiled in greeting at Squall.

“Hello, sir. Sorry we were almost late.”

“Move it, Watts!” Zone yelled, trying to get out after him. He stood up and Squall raised an eyebrow.

“What's with the look?” Squall asked.

“Like it?” Zone turned, showing off his new suit. “I have a new PR agent. He says I need to look mature and competent. And the suit just says 'refined gentleman'. Doesn't it?”

“It kind of looks like it says 'my tailor is blind',” Squall admitted, frowning at the ill fitted suit.

Zone deflated. “Can you not be so honest?”

Squall shrugged.

“Why don't you wear a suit?”

“Why should I?”

“Don't you run this city?”

“Sometimes. Parts of it.”

“So?”

“So what? A suit doesn't determine my abilities to run anything. Besides, you can't fight in a suit.”

Zone rolled his eyes as he fell in line beside him. Irvine let Selphie take his arm and she growled at him even as she held onto him.

Irvine smiled at her. She was putting him through hell right now, but damn if he still didn't love her crazy. Probably because, despite the anger directed only at him, she was still an absolute wildcat in the sack.

Selphie glared at him. She still loved him. Absolutely. But these last two months she had only wanted to rip his head from his shoulders and kick it across the garden. She couldn't wait for this phase of the pregnancy to pass.

Then again, she could still punch his stupid face...

***

Quistis and Xu were the last to arrive. Zell had already traveled from Radiant Garden to meet up at their house by the time that the two of them were landing. Quistis had been ready to leave hours ago, but Xu was still coordinating some last minute security details.

Being the head of security for President Laguna came with a lot of responsibilities. Not just for him, but also for Kiros and Ward as his VP and head adviser respectfully. Even after they left, she had some last minute things to finish up already preparing for their return. Only then was she able to get into her and Quistis's airship and take off.

So they arrived almost too late. The others were already gathered down in the dinning room. Squall came out to meet them and welcome them in. He showed them to their room but quickly had to excuse himself to go back to his own. They knew the way to the dining room themselves though so they bid him farewell to finish getting ready.

Squall walked quickly back towards his and Rinoa's room. He wasn't changing, but Rinoa had decided to dress up just a little bit. He insisted that she didn't need to. But she was feeling a bit self conscious about her body lately and so he hadn't protested long. He was planning on assuring her the moment he saw her that she was still absolutely beautiful.

You know I can hear you, right?

Then you already know the answer to the question.

Squall smiled as he walked through the ivory double doors into his room. Their room, that Rinoa spent a great deal of time designing, looked like something from the depictions of the fields of peace. Their glass ceiling let in the sun's rays and showered the golden, white, and pale blue room in light. Their large bed, set on a raised dais on the far wall had white sheets like fluffy clouds. There was a reflecting pool under the holo TV. Across the room were the doors that led to their closet and bathroom.

Rinoa was seated on the far side of the bed. She turned, smiling at him when he came in. The earrings dangling from her lobes shined brightly when she did so. The duster she wore was new. It hung off of her shoulders and tied just above her breasts before trailing down her body. The black, skin tight dress underneath it was fringed in lace and tempted Squall with the pale lines of her skin at her thighs. The gleaming necklace around her neck was made of diamonds and gold and shaped like wings.

“Stunning,” Squall told her immediately.

She laughed. “You're ridiculous.”

Squall grinned at her and came forward. She was smiling because, despite knowing that he had planned the compliment, she also knew that he absolutely meant it.

“Everyone is finally here,” Squall told her walking up the dais.

“Where are they?”

“Waiting down in the dining room for us.” He came around the bed.

Rinoa smiled from him then to the hanging bassinet set up on her side of the bed. Their newborn daughter, only a few weeks old, was reaching up and touching the bright golden chocobo feathers that were dangling above her head.

Squall stepped into her view. She couldn't see properly yet, she was too young and her eyes hadn't developed that far, but Squall was the darkest thing in her life. He was identifiable because everything else was bright.

She giggled and kicked at the air at the sight of him.

“That's my girl,” Squall smiled, reaching down for her. She caught onto his finger and immediately tried to stick it into her mouth.

Rinoa smiled, her heart absolutely soaring at the sight of her husband playing with her daughter. The two of them together were the absolute, most perfect things that Rinoa could imagine.

Their baby girl, only six weeks old, looked like a perfect cross between the two of them. She had Rinoa's soft face and mouth. The shape of her eyes were all Squall though. It was too early yet to determine whether the color would be Squall's or hers, but Squall desperately hoped that they would become the same brown of Rinoa's. He loved those eyes so. Her soft hair was already thick when she had been born. It was still short but it was a cross between their colors, darker than Squall's and brighter than Rinoa's.

Rinoa had dressed her up for today. She was wearing a cute little white dress with lace and a golden bow about her waist. The soft shoes around her feet were a new type of clothing and she kept kicking her feet in order to dislodge the unfamiliar sensation.

Squall tried to take his finger back but she complained. Smiling, Squall reached down and scooped her up from her bed. Rinoa smiled as she stood to stand beside them. She gently touched her baby's soft cheeks as she rested her heavy little head against her father's chest.

“You ready to meet your family?” Squall asked his little girl, brushing back her hair.

Rinoa reached down towards the bedside table and picked up a little golden bow hair band. As Squall held her, she fitted it over her head.

“Perfect,” Rinoa smiled, kissing her cheek.

Squall watched her do so, his chest squeezing with the familiar, wonderful sensation that he lived to feel. His wife. His daughter. Things couldn't be more wonderful

Hearing that thought, Rinoa smiled up at him.

“It _could_ be a little more wonderful, actually,” she told him.

“Oh?”

She nodded. “As of yesterday, the baby's room was finally finished. She can move in and we have the monitor so we can hear her all night long.”

“I know, I was the one who finished it.”

Ignoring his interruption, she continued. “And as of today, it has been exactly six weeks since she was born.”

Squall grinned as he caught track of where her thoughts were going. “Really?”

“Oh, yeah,” Rinoa grinned salaciously. “And with Laguna here, we'll be lucky to be able to pry her away and back into our arms until he leaves the city again.”

“True, true.”

“So think of all that we-time we'll have.”

Squall smiled as she leaned up to kiss him. He put his free arm around her waist and kissed her back happily. Until their little princess grabbed a handful of her mother's hair and pulled. Rinoa separated from Squall's lips, laughing as she extracted her hair from the baby's tiny hands. Rinoa kissed her tiny fingers, loving how little they were.

“Shall we?” Squall asked, indicating to the door.

Rinoa nodded eagerly. Laguna had already met her, but the others hadn't. They had seen pictures, of course, but this was the first time that the baby was meeting her full family.

Squall, his daughter in one hand and his wife in the other arm, began walking towards the door.


End file.
